Need help troubleshooting new system build!

[jamesb07]

I am a new computer builder and need help figuring out what is going wrong...

I did all the research, put everything together, turned it on and it seemed to work fine for long enough to format the hardrive, install windows, and that was about it.

Here are the specs:

BIOSTAR TForce TA790GX A3+ AM3 AMD 790GX HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard
AMD Phenom II X2 550 black 3.1ghz dual core processor
G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10600)
SAPPHIRE Vapor-X 100269VXLE Radeon HD 4890 1GB 256-bit GDDR5
CHIEFTEC Turbo CFT-700-14C 700W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI PSU
SAMSUNG TOC T260HD Rose Black 25.5" 1080p monitor
Windows vista home premium 64bit edition

It originally had a PSU that came with the case. I suspected that it didn't have enough power to power the Vapor-x card so I installed the OS without the graphics card in. It seems to have the same problem whether the graphics card is in or not...

When I hit the power switch it gives me all four phase led lights on the motherboard, all the fans are going, but it seems to be stuck in that position, no boot-up sequence, no signal to the monitor, nothing. If I hit the reset power button, sometimes it does nothing and continues to be stuck and I have to turn the power switch on the PSU off. Occasionally when I hit the reset power button, it will go through the boot sequence and boot all the way to the Windows Vista screen. However, after a few seconds the monitor goes blank, as in no signal to the monitor, and I am back to the place where I started before hitting the reset power button (4 leds on the Mobo phase 1-4 all lit up, and the two indicator leds dark.) This time when I hit the reset button nothing happens, when I hold down the power button nothing happens, I have to turn off the power to the PSU again.

What is going on here? Could it be a faulty motherboard? Something with the graphics card screwing it up (although it did the same thing when I removed the card)? Something with the CMOS? Or somehow the power is all out of whack? I just really have no idea how to even go about diagnosing this problem. Any help would be much appreciated. Thank you!

 

[shortstuff_mt]

It sounds like a RAM issue to me. Going through every step in this checklist should help you troubleshoot your problems.

http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/261145-31-read-posting-boot-problems

 

[jamesb07]

I will try that, but I don't have a beeper right now...am trying to get my hands on one.

I did try each stick of ram individually in the first ram slot, second ram slot, third ram slot and still get the same problem with both sticks of ram.

Two questions about that...It seems to me unlikely that both of my sticks of ram would be bad, is this common? Also, it will boot all the way to windows and then shut down again, is it possible that it would boot all the way to windows with bad ram and then suddenly shut down?

Thanks for the help! I will continue trouble shooting, I'm determined to figure this out.

 

[jsc]

Times like this, you really need a system speaker.

Then follow the checklist. If nothing there, work on the troubleshooting ideas.

You may not have a power problem, but Chieftec PSU's aren't the best in the world. They aren't even average.