LED power button flickering?

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xMRxVENGEANCEx

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okay so i just noticed that my power LED button was flickered. not majorly but noticeably. at the moment the computer has been turned on and off since and i noticed it while i was gaming, it was just a very faint flickering, like the lights weren't actually going off, just going dimmer for a split second. at the moment it is VERY slightly doing it. Like, not really even noticeable. What could cause this? I would hope this doesnt mean a fault in the power supply or motherboard. maybe it's just not plugged in that well? i can have another check for plugging it in but i'd prefer not to go to the hassle. so is this a major issue or not? also by the end of writing this the flickering has gotten substantially more noticeable. maybe it get's worse after a few minutes of being turned on? if you guys suggest it could be a problem with the motherboard or PSU, please tell me how to check if that IS actually the problem or how to tell if it's faulty. i'm using a corsair 300r case and i doubt that it's supposed to have any kind of flickering to indicate anything? so what is most likely the cause or? whatever? thanks
 
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InvalidError

If the "problem follows the LED" then the HDD LED which is now plugged in the power LED header should not flicker.

The power LED which is now plugged in the HDD header will do whatever the HDD led would normally do + possible flicker from whatever defect affects it, which makes it pretty much worthless as a diagnostic..
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InvalidError

InvalidError

Titan
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If your computer works fine but some of your "power" LED is flickering, my guess is the LED or its current limiting resistor is burning out. I had that issue with an Antec Aria case where the accent lighting flickered for a while before dying for good. The computer itself is still working.
 
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xMRxVENGEANCEx

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ill probably have a check tomorrow inside the case to see if it's plugged in properly. i hope it's not dying, i mean it wouldn't be the end of the world but it would suck a bit. i just hope that the PSU and motherboard are still fine really. is there anyway to check the psu and mobo?
 
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InvalidError

InvalidError

Titan
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The only 100% definitive way to know if a PSU is fine or not is to hook up an oscilloscope and put the PSU through it paces at every load level you normally put it through including transients, ripple and noise. With a multimeter, you can at least check if all the voltages remain in the general ballpark of where they should be, which is still better than just about any shot-in-the-dark test.

But since the computer works fine, it is most likely only the LED or something directly related to it.
 
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InvalidError

InvalidError

Titan
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Here is one cheapie test you can try to test the LED: switch your HDD activity LED with your power LED.

If the HDD LED (which is now plugged on the power LED pins) is still flickering while the power LED (which is now the HDD LED) works normally, the problem is on the motherboard.
 
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xMRxVENGEANCEx

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someone just told me that when i switch them, if the hdd light is solid, then the problem is just the led?

 
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InvalidError

InvalidError

Titan
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If you switch the LEDs around and the problem follows the LED then yes, the problem is either the LED or its wiring. Which is exactly what I said in my previous post here.
 
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xMRxVENGEANCEx

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So while I'm switching the LED's, how will I know if the problem follows the LED's? Should the HDD LED be solid when switch them? And what should the power LED be doing when I replace them also?

 
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InvalidError

InvalidError

Titan
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If the "problem follows the LED" then the HDD LED which is now plugged in the power LED header should not flicker.

The power LED which is now plugged in the HDD header will do whatever the HDD led would normally do + possible flicker from whatever defect affects it, which makes it pretty much worthless as a diagnostic..
 
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xMRxVENGEANCEx

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Jun 29, 2014
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yeah cheers turns out my motherboards good, probably my fault the power led is faulty cause i remember when i was cable managing, i pulled it out by the cable cause it was too tricky. so now i dont have my power led in at all, its just dangling loose because its better to be off than annoyingly random. just wondering how to fix, or replace
 
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InvalidError

InvalidError

Titan
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For that, you would need to find out if you have a wiring or LED problem first. Either way, you need to pull the whole wire with LED out to see if the cable itself got damaged. If it was, you might want to replace it. LEDs rarely fail in some intermittent mode so a wiring issue seems more likely.
 
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InvalidError

InvalidError

Titan
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Unless the resistor is defective or overloaded to failure, they are very stable.

Since the power LED is driven by the chipset, it is probably hooked up directly to the IO-pin and current-limited by the driver FET.
 
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volcanoscout

volcanoscout

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xMRxVENGEANCEx - it's bad form to run multiple threads on the same problem. You should pick one to continue with and close the other. Anyone that wants to post in reply can go to the open one. Thanks!

http://www.tomshardware.com/answers/id-2245026/power-led-dead.html

Edit: I should add, if you were or are looking for second opinions, that's not only tolerated but encouraged here - don't worry about it hurting someone's feelings, if that was the reason for the second thread.
 
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