# Computer suddenly died and won't boot! PSU or motherboard?



## dragonfruit8 (Nov 11, 2011)

Background:

I built my first custom PC in July 2011. Before this I had only replaced parts in store-bought desktop computers. I bought all my parts from NewEgg and Amazon. Everything is still under warranty from the manufacturers. It has been a great computer with no issues since July 2011, so a little under 4 months.

Dead Computer:

Last weekend I moved into a new apartment. I packed my computer most carefully... in the back-seat of the car wrapped in a giant blanket, surrounded by pillows! It made the journey safely. From Saturday afternoon until Tuesday PM the computer was fine. Tuesday evening I was just writing an e-mail and it died. Suddenly (no errors) The computer went quiet and the monitor went dark as though it lost power for about a second (then the monitor flashed the "no signal" message as though the computer wasn't plugged in). Power button does absolutely nothing.

Electrical Problems:

I had the computer, monitor, speakers, external HD, everything related to the computer plugged into a power strip. Very stupid...a power strip, NOT a surge protector. I started noticing electricity issues Tuesday when I got home from work, a couple hours before my computer died. I set up my bedside lamp, which is a touch lamp, and noticed that it turns on by itself all the time! Could there be weird fluctuations in electricity that zapped my computer? Could be coincidence, but I put the two together within minutes after my computer died and immediately unplugged it and switched the power strip for a surge protector.

Symptoms:

-Power button does nothing.
-No fans or noises what-so-ever.
-When plugged in to the surge protector there is one light on the motherboard that comes on. It is a power-button on the motherboard itself with a green lit power symbol. Pressing this button does nothing.

Seeing as my parts are under warranty, I would like to have them replaced rather than buying new ones. But I want to properly diagnose which part is actually dead before I send it it and would love a little advice!

Is my first step to get a Power Supply Tester? I don't have one.

This is my power supply: Newegg.com - Antec EarthWatts Green EA-430D Green 430W Continuous power ATX12V v2.3 / EPS 12V 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC Power Supply

Can I just get a cheap tester like this? Amazon.com: Coolmax LCD Power Supply Tester PS-228: Electronics


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## makinu1der2 (Jan 1, 2008)

Your symptoms would normally indicate a power problem.

The tester you linked should help to confirm the PSU status.

I would also recommend having your electrical outlets checked.


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## dragonfruit8 (Nov 11, 2011)

Thanks for the input! Yea I think I'll start with a PSU tester. I might see if I can get one from a store tomorrow so I can get to the bottom of this over the weekend.

What should I do to get my electrical outlets checked? Call an electrician? Anything specific I should ask for other than just telling them what's happening? This is my first time living in my own place so I'm not very familiar with these things... In addition to the problems I listed with the computer and touch lamp, I can't use my blow-dryer because it blows a fuse every time. :frown:

At least my rent is cheap!


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## dai (Jul 2, 2004)

what are you running
video card
cpu
m/board
ram
power supply
brand
model
wattage

check the listings in the bios for voltages and temperatures and post them

it sounds like the circuits are overloaded an electrician will be able to check


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## dragonfruit8 (Nov 11, 2011)

dai said:


> what are you running
> video card
> cpu
> m/board
> ...


video card - none (on board)
cpu - Amazon.com: AMD CPU HDZ955FBGMBOX Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition 3.2GHz AM3 125W Retail: Electronics
m/board - Newegg.com - MSI NF750-G55 AM3 NVIDIA nForce 750a SLI HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard
ram - Newegg.com - G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Desktop Memory Model F3-10666CL9D-8GBXL

*power supply *- Newegg.com - Antec EarthWatts Green EA-430D Green 430W Continuous power ATX12V v2.3 / EPS 12V 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC Power Supply
brand - Antec EarthWatts
model - EA-430D Green
type - ATX12V v2.3 / EPS 12V
Input Voltage - 100 - 240 V
Input Current - 8A @ 100V, 4A @ 240 V
Output - [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]

*I can't get into the BIOS. Nothing happens when I press the power button. I have nothing on-screen to work with.  *

Thanks!


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## dai (Jul 2, 2004)

the m/b is pcie

the min we recommend is a quality 550w 80+ psu

antec are not recommended

Power Supply Information and Selection - Tech Support Forum


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## dragonfruit8 (Nov 11, 2011)

dai said:


> the m/b is pcie
> 
> the min we recommend is a quality 550w 80+ psu
> 
> ...


How do you think the pcie relates to my issue? No video card in any of the slots. The only thing I have in a pcie slot is a wireless card.

Unfortunately this is what I got! I hadn't heard anything bad about Antecs, it had good reviews, and I valued the fact that it said it used less power. Oh well... I'm driving over to my parent's house tonight because they have an old desktop they think used to be mine that still works. They said I can take it for parts, so I have another power-supply I can test.

Anything I should look-out for before I actually test this power-supply? In terms of compatibility? I have no idea what I'm going to find in this old computer, I think this was the computer I first took apart and replaced parts in! Might have been 10 years ago... and I never replaced the power supply. I'll figure out what this unit is before I test it in my new computer.


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

If the PSU is that old it will probably only have a 20 pin Mobo connector and will proably be low quality & way underpowered.
Antec PSU's are not recommended because they change suppliers too frequently to make them reliable.


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## dragonfruit8 (Nov 11, 2011)

Tyree said:


> If the PSU is that old it will probably only have a 20 pin Mobo connector and will proably be low quality & way underpowered.
> Antec PSU's are not recommended because they change suppliers too frequently to make them reliable.


Yup! Just opened it up and found exactly that. Low voltage compared to the one I have and 20 pins. Gonna go to the computer store in the morning to buy a psu tester.

Anyone have a specific power supply recommendation based on the other computer parts I mentioned? If it were you, would you send this Antec back under warranty and get a replacement? Or spend the $ to buy a totally new power supply?


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## dai (Jul 2, 2004)

post 7


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## dragonfruit8 (Nov 11, 2011)

Yea, well I guess I'm just trying to decide what to do. I already have this Antec that I already paid for 3 months ago and is still under warranty. Too late now to return it. If I got a replacement I wouldn't have to pay for anything but shipping. Do you all think that Antecs are _that bad_ that I shouldn't even bother to get a replacement from them?



> The Standard Computer Class would be used for Internet surfing, general office work, and light gaming, with limited hardware upgrades on the computer. The Standard Desktop machine with an integrated/onboard video can perform flawlessly with a quality 400 to 550 watt PSU. However, we recommend that those with dedicted video cards need to have a 550 watt power supply.


It says that 400 to 550 should be fine? I don't have a video card or play games. Do I still need 550?

Used a power supply tester on the PSU and it's totally fine... 

Of course MSI technical support/RMA is only open business hours M-F. Looks like I'm just going to pack this thing up for now unless anyone has any other recommendations? I'll call MSI Monday after work.


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## dai (Jul 2, 2004)

we never said the psu was faulty

just that it was not powerful enough to run the system reliably


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## dragonfruit8 (Nov 11, 2011)

Oh, yea, I understand! I was just hoping the PSU was faulty because that would be one of the easier things to replace. I felt like I had to get it checked out before I went taking everything off the motherboard.


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