I put together my new system (build below), and it failed to post (very brief power on, then off, when the PSU was fired up). I disconnected everything I could, one at a time, but still no post. I then removed the mobo from the case, and it posted fine. I contacted Antec, and they suggest removing standoffs, one at a time, to see if the board is grounding that way. I had also contacted Gigabyte support, and they sent a form reply, suggesting the obvious which I had already done, and that took them 4 days.

The good news is that all the bits work. The bad news is it's a bit unwieldy with the mobo hanging outside the case.

Any thoughts?

2X ASUS DRW 1814BLT DVD RW
Floppy/USB Mitsumi
GA-X38T-DQ6 Motherboard
Antec P182 case
PSU GB ODIN GT_550W
2X OCZ DDR3 PC3-10666 / 1333MHz / Platinum Edition
Intel Core 2 Duo E6850 Conroe 3.0GHz
Video Board BFGR88768GTXOCE
2X Western Digital Caviar RE2 WD4000YS
Windows Vista Ultimate
Office Pro 2007
Saitek PK02
Logitech MX518
Thermaltake Floppy Driver Round Cable Model A2082
Artic Silver cleaner
ZALMAN ZM - STG1 Thermal Treatment

Thanks.

Put the mobo back in the case making sure that the standoffs are in the proper locations and that you are not shorting anywhere. To obvious?

If it works outside the case but not inside the case then it must be something in the case touching on the motherboard where it is not supposed to.

I agree, but was hoping someone had dealt with the specific (Antec P182/GA-X38T) combination before. My thought is to use a jumper wire from the case, and use it to check the mounting point holes one at a time. I could also check and see if grounding the cooling fins on the back had any effect.

I seriously doubt that any of the mounting holes are shorting. I also believe that the 182 has the standoffs in the right place. Verify that there are no extra standoffs in the wrong place and install the mobo. Confirm that there is no contact between the case and the mobo. Boot to BIOS with the minimum parts, e.g., mobo, VGA, RAM and PSU. Then add the rest of the parts and boot again. If it crashes add the additional parts one at a time.

If you are talking about the crazy cool HS on the back of the mobo, that is insulated from the mobo by a sheet of rubber.

There are nine standoffs, and nine mounting holes, and they all match. Unfortunately, there is no wiring diagram that would indicated where voltages might be an issue, but I will re-mount the board and make careful note of any contact that appears to be out of the ordinary. Obviously, there are some areas where contact occurs (the back panel connectors, for example). I assume that any place (including the mounting points) where contact does occur should show no current flow (checked with a voltmeter), so I'll confirm that as I go.

Thanks for the advice. I'll let you know.

Correct, the only place that the mobo should be touching the case is the standoffs and the I/O panel on the back. As i indicated a peripheral could be causing it, so build it bare bones first to see if there is a short and then continue. Let me know what happens.

Checked all the standoff screw-holes, and they are all grounded, as expected. None of the cooling shows any connection to ground, as had been suggested. I re-installed the mobo in the case, and had the same result (cpu fan start, then stop, and no post. I disconnected each of the front panel connectors, re-trying the post at every turn, and discovered that the PWR connector was responsible for the problem. I can start and run the installed mobo by briefly shorting the two pins on the board, but no matter how I orient the plug, it results in the "no post" condition. The switch feels as if it is OK, and neither pin on the plug shorts to ground, but it is definitely DOA. I'll see what ANTEC has to say.

Maybe rewire it, check for a pinch in the wires somewhere, or is it that the plug is not making good contact on the post, you may be able to gently squeeze the plug with needle nose pliers to see if that will tighten it up any. just love the way they go real cheap on stuff like this.

hope you get it alll sorted

Contacted ANTEC support, and they are sending a new switch. The only thing that would be better is if it wasn't needed in the first place! I'll post agian, when done, as ther may be some new wrinkles.

Cheers and thanks to all.

thanks for the update