How do I fix a dead bios chip?

[trillionbean]

I have a used Asus P5k SE motherboard that I bought off an online auction site and assembled all the parts with a brand new 1 gig PCIe graphics card and 4 gigs of ram.  Both of the RAM sticks are identical in specifications, but different in appearance.  After I turned on the power switch nothing appeared on the screen.  I don't know if the graphics card is faulty or like the guy said when I bought the motherboard that the BIOS chip is faulty.  Also, the power supply reboots by itself but only once.  Assuming the BIOS chip is faulty, how would I fix it or would I have to buy a new BIOS chip?  I believe it is a AMI BIOS, where would I get a replacement chip from if the BIOS chip needs to be replaced?  And, how much would I expect to pay for a new BIOS chip?

[Geek-9pm]

BIOS chips look like one of these:

Expect to pay $15 plus shipping.
IMO, you would do better to just get a junk motherboard and try the chip from the junk board. Most of them are in sockets. If yours in not in a socket, you should forget it. 
But you can buy used motherboards that work fine for about $25, no CPU or fan.

[EEVIAC]

If yours in not in a socket, you should forget it. 

His bios chip is not in a socket...I checked 

oh well 

[patio]

His bios chip is not in a socket...I checked 

oh well 

What does this mean ? ?
Have you ever seen a BIOS chip that wasn't in a socket ? ?

[Salmon Trout]

Have you ever seen a BIOS chip that wasn't in a socket ? ?

My BIOS chip was not in a socket the day I took it out and posted it to a reflashing service 

Patio, I have seen plenty of BIOS chips soldered in place. Most Gigabyte boards use them for example. They are becoming more and more common these days.



You can get them reflashed and/or replaced. In the case of Gigabyte they charge $30 or so for a factory reflash.

Some boards have dual BIOSes so if one goes bad or suffers a bad flash, you have a reserve.

[patio]

Thanx for that info and i'll sit corrected.
Just something i haven't seen...

I've seen them soldered...but always to a socket.

[Salmon Trout]

Thanx for that info and i'll sit corrected.
Just something i haven't seen...

I've seen them soldered...but always to a socket.

How does anyone remove them?

[Geek-9pm]

How does anyone remove them?

Special Reworking tools. Or cheap alternatives.   
http://chipquik.com/store/prod_template.htm

[Salmon Trout]

I meant, why solder a chip into a socket?

[BC_Programmer]

disregarding that... I wouldn't be apt to think that the BIOS had failed.

It would be more likely that that motherboard itself or CPU has failed in some fashion, then to think the BIOS is the cause; especially since none of the symptoms points specifically at the BIOS (such as, for example, a BIOS checksum error that would more then likely appear)

[Geek-9pm]

disregarding that... I wouldn't be apt to think that the BIOS had failed.

This is one of those times I agree with BC.
There are a number of things that can go wrong. Most common are missing jumpers. After that, damage to a trace of the board from rough handling. Or damage fro static electricity. If the north bridge or south bridge chips are cooked. kiss the board goodbye. Not mention bad electrolytes, which have an uncertain failure rate.
But flash BIOS, overall, have a good reputation. That is why some makers now solder them as SMD chops. SMD is easier to remove that the pin chips.

Anyway, go get another mother like it and use the old old for parts, like CPU and FAN. Didn't I already say that?

[Computer_Commando]

I meant, why solder a chip into a socket?

The socket costs more than the chip.