Computer Failed. RMAed Both Mobo and PSU. Got New Parts. Computer Still Failed

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legomoan

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In Feburary, I built this computer:

AMD X4 760K
MSI A78M-E35 FM2+
EVGA 896-P3-1264-A3 GeForce GTX 260
Kingston HyperX 8GB 240-Pin DDR3
CORSAIR CX series CX500 500W
Windows 7 Pro x64

Initially everything worked fine. In March, one month later (just outside the newegg return policy of 30 days), the computer would start randomly resetting to the BIOS screen and restarting. This would happen when I played any graphically intense game. Then the computer started rebooting randomly, even when idle. Then it refused to boot at all.

When I pressed the power button, the computer fans would spin on and off. On and off. On and off. No boot, no boot, no sound. Just fans spinning on and off.

I was pretty sure either the PSU or the Mobo was bad, but I couldn't tell which one was at fault. So I RMAed both to the manufacturers to get replacement (this happened 2 days of the newegg return window of 30 days).

April one month later and my parts came in the mail. I even ordered a MSI R7 260X 2GD5 OC Radeon R7 260X 2GB in anticipation of my new computer. I rebuilt my computer with the new GPU and replacement PSU and Motherboard.

SAME PROBLEM. I turn on the computer, the fans turn on and off. On and off. On and Off. On and off. On and off. On and off. No boot, no post, no sound. On and off. On and off. On and Off. New GPU. Replacement PSU and Motherboard. On and off.

I took out the psu and with my multimeter, I manually tested the voltages each of the pins on the connectors. I checked these with the specifications on the corsair website and they were all okay. The PSU is okay. I think.

So here I am. $500 poorer, no computer and with a helluva lot of frustration. I am guessing that either Corsair and MSI sent me the same broken units I sent them. Or they sent broken replacements. Or the CPU is bad.

How likely is it that the CPU went bad? I was extremely careful with the CPU when seating and unseating it.

Can I manually test whether the motherboard or CPU is bad? I am pretty sure it's not memory, because a computer can boot into bios without memory. Correct me if I am wrong about this.

I don't have any extra PC parts lying around, and I am NOT buying more PC parts to test whether this piece of crap works or not. I am strongly considering going to the hardware store, buying a $10 hammer, and smashing this piece of crap to bits. That would bring me so much satisfaction to me right now. And a $10 hammer is pretty useful. I can find uses for a $10 hammer. $500 broken piece of crap is not useful.

Never building again. Buying computers out of the box from Dell, Hp, etc. Never had a problem with them.


 
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legomoan

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Yes, I have double checked the mobo standoffs and the mobo is not in contact with anything. The standoffs are in the right position. I've even taken the mobo out and put it on my desk, outside of the case. Same problem. Fans spin on and off.

I only have one stick of ram. There are only 2 DIMM slots. I've tried in position 1, position 2, no ram. Same problem. Fans turn on and off. On and off.

I should also note, that I only plugged in the motherboard power and it does this on and off fan issue. When I plug everything in, nothing happens at all.
 
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Optimus_Toaster

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You definitely need the memory to boot into bios, so test one stick at a time in various different slots. If one of the configs works then you know that the memory is the cause of the hassle.

Your tests on the PSU should rule it out as the cause, I am also going to rule out the mobo as getting 2 DOAs is incredibly unlikely.

A change in GPU pretty much rules that out as well.

This all points to the CPU having gone bad. When the PC did work, did you keep an eye on its temps? It is possible that the heatsink was not functioning correctly (due to a bad mount of fan problems etc.) and that it got to hot and kept shutting down to prevent damage. However by turning it on again you could have caused a bit of damage and over time killed the CPU. It's also possible that the pins on the CPU have been bent (no matter how careful you are these things still happen) causing the problem.

My final idea is to unplug all the extra things that are attached to your mobo and try again. Just leave the 24 pin, the 4 pin cpu and the necessary GPU power cables. My first ever PC build failed to boot due to a USB header not working. Had me scratching my head for days but I sure am glad that I didn't smash it to pieces as I am still using bits from it today.
 
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HiTechObsessed

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Definitely sounds like a power supply problem then. Do you see any blown/damaged capacitors or scratches on the motherboard at all?

Try plugging all the fans and HDD into the power supply, and try the paperclip method. See if you get any kind of response from the fans/HDD.
 
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legomoan

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I periodically monitored my cpu temps and it averaged around 50 degrees Celsius under load. I never overclocked it.

I suppose the CPU could have gone bad. However, I am extremely hesitant to buy yet another cpu for this. I plan on returning the R7 260x to newegg to get my money back before 30 days run out. I suppose I could get one of those AMD Apus, the AMD A10-6800K. But I have no way of knowing whether the cpu is at fault, and I don't want to spend another $130 on a cpu, just to find out that my computer still won't boot.

I have tried unplugging all the things from the motherboard expect the 24 pin and 4 pin.
When only the 24 pin is attached, the computer does the on and off loop. When the 4 pin is also attached, sometimes it does the on and off loop. Sometimes nothing happens

 
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legomoan

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That's what I thought the first time so I sent the PSU back. Got a replacement from corsair. Same problem.

I tried the paperclip method. I attached all my fans to the psu and they ran fine. No problem with load. I used my multimeter and tested all the pins and they were outputting the correct voltages.
 
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HiTechObsessed

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Well the multimeter and paperclip test just rule out a completely blown power supply, not necessarily a power supply that can't handle higher loads. The CX series isn't a very well-made power supply to begin with.

Have you tried resetting the BIOS using the CLR_CMOS jumper or by removing the CMOS battery for a few minutes?
 
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legomoan

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I have tried both jumper and removing the battery for 10 minutes.
Same problem. Fans turn on and off. On and off. On and off.
 
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coastie65

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Y0ou said you have tried it outside of the case. We call that breadboarding. I usually set the motherboard on the box it came in, install the video card, and one stick of memory, and the CPU and cooler. You need to have the 24 PIN ATX connector and 6 or 8 Pin CPU conector plugged in, plus those for the Video card, if needed. That is it and connect the thing to the Monitor. Once done, power it up. All you are looking for is it to POST. If it posts, then you are fine and can then install it in the case. If you have problems after putting it in the case then you have a ground problem ( most likely Standoffs ). If you have problems when bread boarding, first check the connections to the Motherboard and make sure they are snuggly plugged in. In your case, if you have one, try another PSU. If the persists, you have ruled out the PSU. At this point, I am thinking it is a power issue. Maybe a CPU, but unlikely.
 
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legomoan

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I've tried all those things. I've assembled the motherboard outside of the case and plugged in power. Nothing. Fans spin on and off. On and Off. On and Off.

Remember, I just RMAed BOTH the PSU and Motherboard, and I am getting the same problem. I mentioned before, I already manually tested the power supply with a voltmeter and everything was fine. The motherboard looks fine (no fried parts, remember this is a RMA replacement). I've reseated the memory, cpu, reset the bios battery and jumper. I've tried everything suggested by this thread.

Nope. Fans turn on and off. On and off. On and off. On and off. On and off. On and off. On and off.

The hammer option is looking better and better. I'm going to the hardware store right now.

I guess god is telling me I am not allowed to ever build a pc. I bought a Dell XPS 400 8 years ago, and 8 years later, it's still running fine, same harddrive and everything. It's big box computers from dell from now on. No more of this custom pc bullshit for me.
 
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legomoan

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Oh god. I have to send back the cpu, paying for shipping, and wait yet another MONTH for it to come back.
And then probably I will still get this same goddamn problem with the new cpu probably. And I am not spending another $130 for a new cpu. Forget it.

Nope. My time is worth a lot more to me than this bullshit.

TIME FOR THE HAMMER!

Thanks for all the suggestions I guess. I've learned my lesson. I'm going dell from now on.
 
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Optimus_Toaster

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Oh god no don't go dell or another large OEM. If you cannot be bothered with fixing things yourself at least go to one of the custom PC makers as they'll be much more helpful.

Also the whole point of sending a faulty product back is that you don't have to pay for a new one, that is the reason you send it back. And in all likelihood it will work as getting DOAs is very unlikely (hence why we have ruled out the new mobo, gpu and PSU as being the cause). You're very likely near the end - giving up now would make this whole journey completely pointless.

Coastie65 FM2 CPUs work on FM2+ boards and his board has the necessary bios to run that chip.
 
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coastie65

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Okay. As I said I haven't dealt that much with AMD and have a lot of catching up to do. Definitely wasn't familiar with that CPU. That info is appreciated. :)
 
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legomoan

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I've bought a dell xps 400 8 years ago, 8 years later, it's still working great.
I bought a dell vostro 220 5 years ago, 5 years later, it still works great.
I got a dell inspirion 1750 refurbished, 3 years ago, 3 years later it still works great.
I build my first computer, and it dies one month later (right after the return period).
Dell - 3, Custom PC - 0.

(The dells I bought as gifts for my family. I wanted to try building my own pc, but obviously that was a huge mistake ;).

If I send back the CPU, I have to wait an entire month to get a new one. I'm not dealing with that shit anymore. I am the kind of guy who likes to buy something once, and BAM! IT WORKS. I am not the kind of guy who spends hours building a pc, only for it to fail one month later, forcing me to send back 2 parts, and rebuild the computer one month later, only to find it failed again. Obviously, these are some pretty crappy parts. Let's suppose that I send for a THIRD RMA, and get working parts. Then there is a high chance the parts will fail again (given the track record), and I will yet again have to deal with this slow and shitty RMA process.

If I send back the CPU to AMD, there is a good chance it will break on the way back. Or AMD gives me a new CPU, but it breaks on it's way back to me. Or AMD just resends me the broken cpu back. Or AMD just refuses my RMA. Waiting one month with uncertainty, and I still need a computer for work. This is why people buy OEM PCs. People like things that work, without all the extra bullshit.

It's too late, I bought a slegehammer and smashed the piece of shit that caused me so much headache and frustration. Nothing could bring me more satisfaction. :) Phew, what a relief. Ahh. Nice!

I do appreciate all the help guys.
If there is a god, I suppose he is telling me never to waste money on this again. Maybe that's the silver lining.
 
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legomoan

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Maybe it was the AMD cpu all along that was causing my issues. I looked them up and they are going bankrupt. I WONDER WHY!??
 
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Optimus_Toaster

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They aren't going bankrupt, they made 95 million profit in the 3rd quarter of 2013. They are also powering every xbox one and PS4 and the millions of mining systems around the world.

Even when there were doubts about their future it had nothing to do with products not working.
 
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legomoan

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AMD made a 100 million in profit in 2013, Intel made 9.6 billion. That's about 100 times as much profit as AMD.
Pfft, with their shitty, unreliable CPUs, I can see why. They aren't making any money from the miners or the consoles.
 
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HiTechObsessed

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AMD GPUs were sold out for about 4 months straight after the R9 series was released. Even selling to retailers at normal prices, they were selling faster than they could produce them - i.e they made plenty of money from miners.

And how are they not making money from consoles? Both the PS4 and Xbone are using AMD-based systems. So for every console sold, they are making money. Considering the PS4 and Xbone were hard to find available for the first few months after their release, and have since sold millions each, again, AMD is making money off of that.
 
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legomoan

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The AMD GPUs were being bought by miners. The retailers were simply overcharging to deal with demand. AMD saw none of those increased prices, while the retailers kept all the profits. When mining don't become profitable anymore, people will dump their amd cards and the market will be flooded with used crap from amd.

AMD is making all the apus on the consoles, but they got the contract by spending a shitload of money to bid for it and by undercutting everyone else and slicing their profits to a razer thin margin. Investors weren't happy with their decision, their stock went down by 14%. Their stock is in the toilet right now.

Intel and Nvidia are simply outselling AMD. I want AMD to succeed, but I am not expecting much, especially with their crap products that they are pumping out now.

 
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