Is it just me or am I using the wrong motherboard?

I have been trying to install a dual boot with Windows 10 and Linux Mint. I have been trying to port over to Linux and get away from Windows. But I'm a gamer as well as a graphics guy.
I have been trying to just BOOT a Mint distro from USB but can't!
Tried Mint 17.3 and 18.1 on both USB and DVD. When I try to boot from either I get an error:
[ 4.519565] AMD-Vi: Event logged [IO_PAGE_FAULT device=05:00.0 domain=0x000c (more addresses, but usually near zeros all the time) but that changes every time... sometimes the line is "device=06:00.0"
There is more, 3 to 4 short lines, after several seconds, but it flashes past too fast to capture.

Let me add, I DO GET the boot options from whichever media I use. I can select normal boot, Compatibility mode, Etc. It is AFTER I select this that the boot fails. It STARTS to load then the error!

I have gone through the BIOS with a fine tooth comb and still can't get it to work. ALSO, if I turn IOMMU on, it not only doesn't boot Linux, it will not even boot Windows! And I have to completely remove power to reset and try to get back into BIOS to turn off IOMMU. (was Gigabytes first suggestion even though I told them it didn't work)

Using a Gigabyte MB GA-990FXA-UD3 Ultra
AMD FX-8350, 16G (4x4G) Crucial Ballastrix, ASUS Strix GTX-970 4G DDR5 OC.

I am sure it's something with the motherboard because I have a nearly identical system with a ASUS M5A99X MB that will boot and run both the 17.3 flash drive and the 18.1 Flash drive and the 17.3 DVD. But Gigabyte cannot be called, and they take DAYS to respond to questions. Hate to give up on the motherboard because I dont want to give up the USB 3.1 and the M.2 onboard drive mount.
So, there you have it. I have been building PCs since 1990, owner and modifier since 1982! (Atari 800 & 130XE) I have been a long time Windows user but trying to get into Linux. CLI doesn't bother me, but been wanting to stay graphical, call me spoiled! I am a gamer that wants to get my stuff running on Linux, I WANT to get away from Windows. I want to beta test several games made to run Linux. but I cannot even get this dang thing to boot a Linux distro. So far I have tried also Ubuntu 16.04. No Go. Frustrated is a mild term for me right now.

Might dig you outa the hole or not.

link

Heh... you did help, but only in reminding me a left out an important fact. I DO get the USB or DVD to start, I get the Linux boot menu, but after I select and it tries to load that I get the error and crash.

ALSO, Strange thing is after a failed boot and I power off, the motherboard POSTs (beeps), shows the LOGO screen that I have turned OFF in the BIOS. Then it shows the BIOS screen HEADER (ONLY), then it goes dark and I hear the POST beep, THEN it boots normally (INTO WINDOWS) NOT showing the LOGO screen. This is one of several reasons I think the Gigabyte motherboard just doesn't like Linux!

If I TURN ON IOMMU, the system does not load ANYTHING, and I have to totally pull power from it to get it to even boot to the BIOS screen! I REALLY believe the BIOS is faulty on this system, but there is NO other BIOS that can be flashed. They have only their F1 BIOS for this MB.

But Thanks for the quick reply! heh... and so it goes.....

Just looked through the manual for your board, the one thing that gets me is the UEFI and HPET settings..

I have had trouble with booting live install discs since UEFI was added to pc's...

I cant tell you what I did to get around(because I cant remember) it but the problems I had in the past was always with UEFI...

I did try several changes and then success, with others pc's when installing linux to dual boot systems...

My own laptop is the same, I had issues but linux(no windows tho) runs fine after tinkering with those settings..

Your HPET may also cause conflict...

You can but try... best of luck

Depending on the distro you might need to disable secure boot and enable CSM / legacy mode. I've found some motherboards are quirky about DOS or GPT partitioning. As in will boot DOS(MBR), will not boot GPT. But if you're getting to the grub menu, probably not your issue. Make sure the install has a /etc/fstab that is correct. Make sure the /boot/grub/grub.cfg uses UUID or LABEL and not /dev/.

FILE: /boot/grub/grub.cfg

BAD: linux /boot/vmlinuz root=/dev/sda1
GOOD: linux /boot/vmlinuz root=UUID=20170322-1200-1111-1111-111111111111
GOOD: linux /boot/vmlinuz root=LABEL=todayplz

Bad because device names are not predictable now that we have many different storage devices. And the names are not always predictable. If the grub.cfg is good and the fstab isn't a contradiction, the distro should boot. Unless the motherboard is broken, or the kernel/initrd image doesn't have the drivers to access the storage device and filesystem type.

Some systems have a 32 bit UEFI, but are otherwise 64 bit systems. In this case you might find luck with refind.