How to Install the EpoX 8KHA+ Motherboard
Last updated: 12/6/2001

Install the Motherboard in the Case.  There are ten mounting holes on the motherboard:  four across the back, and two rows of three across the front.

19. Set the motherboard with the anti-static bag on top of the side of the case.  Use it as visual guide to screw nine standoffs to the case.  Screw-in the standoffs by hand and then use a socket driver to tighten them (you could use an adjustable wrench or pliers if you are careful). 

Do not over-tighten.  What remains when they break can be very difficult to remove.  Count them to verify there are nine of them.

20.  Push out/in the blanks in the I/O (Input/Output) panel covering connector holes needed for the motherboard (remove the three audio and game/MIDI port blanks).

21. Gently place the motherboard in the case so the mounting holes are centered over their respective stand-offs.

Don't force the motherboard into the case--wiggle it into place if you have to.  Be careful with the metal contact fingers around the holes for the I/O connectors.  They stick out so they will make contact with the motherboard connectors and can get pushed into he holes.  If you see a mounting hole without a stand-off, you didn't install ten of them or, worse, one of them is in the wrong hole and under the motherboard where it will short-it-out.  I've done it more than once.   It is a very common mistake.

22.  Inspect the back of the computer to see if the I/O connectors are aligned with their respective cutouts, etc.

23.  Mount the motherboard to the standoffs with nine M3*5L screws.  The correct screws look like chassis screws except they are smaller and have a finer thread.  I call them "Packard-Bell screws."

Other cases use larger screws.  I usually check alignment and screw-in one screw at the center of the rear of the board, check alignment again, and screw-in another at the front, followed by the remainder.  Do not over-tighten these screws. That could damage the motherboard.

Sometimes the mounting holes in a motherboard will not exactly match the standoffs.  The way to handle this problem is to screw in all of the other screws loosely so that the motherboard can still be moved around. If you are careful and patient you should be able to get all of them in without using excessive persuasion and cross-threading them.  Once that is done tighten all of the screws and check them to be sure none of them are cock-eyed.  I did not have this problem with three separate 8KHA+ Motherboards/KS282 case installations I did for this article.

24.  Double-check that you have secured the motherboard with ten screws and that all of them properly seated (not cross-threaded). 

Besides securing the motherboard to the case, most or all--I can't see all four layers of the board--of these screws electrically ground the board to the case.

25.  Plug the chassis fan wire into the appropriate jack on the motherboard (the one marked FAN3 for this motherboard), coil-up the excess wire, and zip-tie it.

26.  Remove the rubber band from the front panel cables.

27. Attach the front panel cable labeled "POWER SWITCH" to connector labeled "POW-ON" on the motherboard (Front right).

28.  Connect the front panel connector labeled "SPEAKER" to the motherboard connector labeled "SPEAKER."

There is no polarity associated with these two connections.  It is important to connect the speaker now so you can hear any BIOS error beeps when you first power-up the computer.  I do not install the rest of the front panel connectors until I'm sure I do not have to remove the motherboard.

29.  Remove the rubber band from the power supply connectors, untangle them and connect the ATX motherboard power plug  to the socket on the motherboard just in front of the CPU with clip facing towards the right.  Firmly push it down until it snaps into place.  It will only plug-in one-way.

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