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Computer not starting, not even a beep


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Hi all!

 

I'm posting here because it might be PSU related. Essentially I came back to the computer in my sig, press the power button and there is nothing. No beep, no fans, no LEDs, just silence. So I've changed the power lead for one that I know is working, removed all of the hard drives and then removed the graphics card. It still does nothing. I even checked the powerbutton connection to the motherboard. Also the LEDs in my mouse do not light so the USB supply is off too (normally it is always on when the Bonnier is off)

 

So, do I just buy a new PSU or something? It's an old computer and I changed the psu about two years ago when the original blew. The new one is a corsair stealth 600w.

 

I'd appreciate any debug ideas since the lack of any life makes it difficult to point to one thing.

 

Cheers guys!

Edited by Comp Dude2

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Unplug power supply from wall socket

Disconnect all power leads to motherboard and other peripherals

Use a paper clip or wire to jumper one of the black ground wires and the green wire in the 24-pin ATX connector.  You can use any of the black ground wires to the left or the right of the green "psu power on" wire.

Now plug the power supply back into the wall socket (and if the power supply has an on/off switch move it to the on position)

If the power supply fires up it's not completely dead - but that doesn't necessarily mean the power supply is good either.  It only tells you whether it will power up or not.

 

 

 

psu.atx.jpg

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Thanks for your reply. I just tried that and the PSU fan runs and it also ran one of the system fans so it appears to be working, although not necessarily good as you say. I don't have a scope to watch the rails for anything strange so can't tell you more than that. 

 

Does this point to some motherboard/cpu failure? I has been overclocked and overvolted  (1.325V --> 1.365V) for >5 years so maybe it just went pop? 

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If you have a digital multi-meter you can check the voltage of the power supply rails.

 

Do exactly as you did before, but this time before you turn the power supply off check the 12v, 5v and 3.3v rails to make sure they are within spec. (+/- 5% of nominal).

 

Let me know the results.

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I had a similar problem when I was upgrading. I think the psu cant supply the required amount of current for the computer to power on thats why its only spinning one of the system fans. Try running the mobo and cpu on another psu; if it runs, its the psu otherwise...

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Your idle voltage looks ok, unfortunately that doesn't tell us much about what is happening when the power supply is operating under load, or under the high stress conditions of a cold boot.

 

Since the power supply is probably the easiest to swap out (and potentially least expensive) I'd start with that.

 

If it's the Hiper in your signature................. that would have been out of my own system a long time ago  :)

 

No insult meant, just stating fact.

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Not to offend you, but...did you make sure the motherboard I/O are on right or plugged in? I've done this myself a number of time and it's the first thing i check when a computer doesn't turn on. It could have become unplugged or connected wrong. Your psu seems to work so thats all I can think of why it does not turn on.

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Thanks for the suggestions but I'm certain the connections are correct because it had been working for months and then just stopped. I've inspected the connections now as part of my debug.

 

The Hiper PSU is gone, it blew up. So I now have a 600w OCZ which is two years old.

 

Hmm...motherboard?

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