I Just Built a New Computer For My Son

And Now Mine Doesn't #$^^*(*&ing Work!

Published on October 20, 2004 By SSG Geezer In Gadgets & Electronics

I have been putting together a new computer for my son Corey's 16th birthday, you know jut a basic box that will play the newest games,
no monitor, keyboard or very many extras, just a good processor, lots of ram and a good video card.

So; I finish putting the finishing touches on his comp, I load the last software, and I take a picture to send to my Mother and Sisters who
contributed $$$ to the project. I move over to my computer, put in the slower video card, push the power button, and voila! no picture.
Step 2, reseat the card, check connections and, voila! the damn thing won't even power on. Argh! Since this box is going in a box for shipping
in a matter of hours, I am stumped. And pissed. but hey, I posted. (So give your harrassment to a rhino somewhere.)

Comments

chiprj

on Oct 20, 2004

Good to see you back on here. Good luck getting the new computer to work. I'm terrible with the machines, so I'm no help.

SSG Geezer

on Oct 20, 2004

I am not horrible but I am baffled. I had to hold the power button for 4 seconds to shut it down when I had no video, but now I can't get it to even power up at all.

on Oct 21, 2004

Hmm that is indeed bad. Did you make a spark when you touched video card or rest of computer? That may be the case.

Try removing video card and trying to boot it without one. Hit F1 when it seems quiet. If it starts to be busy ( looks like loading windows, etc ) then Video card is the problem.

Otherwise, it's possible it's motherboard, or video card may use too much power for your power box to supply. There is many possible causes.

oleteach

on Oct 21, 2004

Good to see you back blogging. Sorry about the trouble. Pray! That is always my panacea...never the last resort!

Nadeon

on Oct 21, 2004

G,
Just for grins and giggles...
Is the video card AGP2, 4 or 8 or is it PCI?
To eliminate the card as a cause, put it back in the box you built for your son (if compatible...you know the drill, RTFM). If it boots with the card, that's not it obviously.
I would suspect the power supply however. Not sure what you're running, but I just went through 3. The rule of thumb is, ditch the one that came with the case...they are usually crap (why do you think you can buy a case with a power supply for 50.00?). Use a brand name power supply, check www.tomshardware.com for reviews. Stay away from anything under 350 watts, better still go with 400 to 500 depending on your wallet. Expect to pay about 80.00 ish. I'd suggest Enermax or Antec. I had a 450 watt Powax for 60.00 that killed itself and my video card.
It's mostly the consistancy of the power to the mainboard, which in turn powers your cards, ram, cpu etc. that seems to be a problem with el cheapo power supplys. The constant drops and spikes will kill almost anything before the power supply gives up the ghost or worst case scenario, burns (it really does happen). A bad power supply will look like bad video, boot problems, heat problems, or even bad ram, because they're not getting a clean constant supply of adequate wattage.
Like you I live life, so paying mega bucks for PCs is not my top priority. I like to get the most bang for my buck. I shop the shows, and ocassionally on line. Check out pricewatch.com for price deals.
Before you run out and buy something though, and I know this a pain in the ass, take the power supply from your son's box, since we know thats good, if it's compatible (P4 vs AMD) and run it on your machine. If it boots ok, it's the power supply. If not, it could be your motherboard, but don't give up hope. If you still have the manual for the motherboard, check out how to reset/clear the bios/cmos. Most motherboards have 2 solder points you can jump with a paperclip. Or remove the battery for a while and put it back in. Make sure the power is turned off and the cord unplugged. Try that and see if it comes back to life. Smell the power supply, does it smell like it's burned? Check out the capacitors around the processor. Any sign of a blown one (looks sort of like corrosion on the tops of one or more, usually white, brown or greenish)? If they're ok, the tops should be silvery/aluminum metal. Any signs of leakage of electrolyte around the base of the capacitors? There's a million other things, but troubleshooting a PC is more a process of elimination than anything else. Some things are a little more obvious is all. I'll check back to see how you're doing.

Nad

greywar

on Oct 21, 2004

Pray! That is always my panacea...never the last resort!

Works as well as anything with computers some days...

SSG Geezer

on Oct 21, 2004

Ok I should have listed specs but i wass pissed and it was late.
Antec Sonata case/Antec 380 W P/S
gigabyte GA-K8NS-PRO Mobo
AMD 64 3200+ Socket 754
1 G Ram
ATI 9800Pro 256 bit 128 MB Ram
1 80GB HDD and a DVD RW

I moved the 9800 into my case and failed to seat it properly, the lights seemed to show power to the system but i had no video so i held the PWR button for 4 seconds to shut it down.

Reseated the card, plugged everything back in, and no action after touching either the power switch or the reset button. BUT

There seems to be power since the 2x AGP light shows on the MOBO when I attach power and turn on the PS switch.
Since that happened I removed the CMOS battery for ten minutes as directed by the MOBO instructions. yes i actually read them.

Still get the 2x AGP light but not the RAM or power LEDs. The card is 8x AGP, so Do you think I jacked it up? My sons comp s going in the box in 5 minutes so i must get my laptop cranked up to read any future responses.
TYVM for the help

Nadeon

on Oct 21, 2004

Sounds like the Power Supply. I had the same situation with my Gigabyte 8IK1100...Ram LED was lit, but no power up. Same thing..relatively new (less than 6 months) 450 Powmax. Shuttled it out with a few others from my bone pile and still no joy. I started thinking it was the cpu since the board was brand new. Given that 80 bucks was a lot less than a new PIV, I finally grabbed my kids smaller Power Supply and voila! It lit up. Since I'm running a ton of crap in my box, his little 350 wasn't going to cut it for long. Ended up with a 475 Enermax...but with some nice features; quiet manually contollable, though bios over ride when it heats up, fans, and most importantly SEPERATE 12 volt rails, one for the MB and cards, one for the CPU. Also has SATA power connectors when I'm ready to convince myself losing 6 IDE drives is OK. Let me know what else you find.

Nad PS: Had a chance to check low voltage. The 12 volt rail for the board could be fried while the 3.5 for the board could be ok. Check the connectors and make sure they're seated too.

Spc Nobody Special

on Oct 21, 2004

(So give your harrassment to a rhino somewhere.)

WWWhhhhheeeeaaaaaaaahhhhhh.........so it doesn't sound like a rhino, neither did Spc. Glitter Monkey. good luck with your box, and good to see ya post again.

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