Upgrade won't POST

Hi all,

After hours searching the threads here and elsewhere, I'm beginning to think I have a bad board on an upgrade for my daughter's PC. Here's what I know:

Daughter's mobo died in her antiquated system & she wanted to do an inexpensive upgrade rather than wait until she'd saved the money for a new system. Problem is, the replacement gear won't POST.

Once everything is connected, CMOS is cleared, and I hit the power switch, the power switch LED flashes for an instant, the CPU fan gives a VERY quick and VERY small twitch - moves slightly and then back to its original position, and that's it. It's all over so fast, I can only see one of them at a time - daughter confirms light flashes when I'm watching the HSF, and vice versa. No beeps, no other signs of life.

Here's what's new with the system:

Gigabyte GA31M-ES2L
Celeron E1400 (supported since first BIOS version on the above mobo)
Antec Basiq 350W PSU

The RAM I'm using was functional in my own system until I replaced it 3 weeks ago, and it still works in that system (tested on Sunday).

The whole time, I've been "breadboarding" on a foam pad on top of mobo box - case is too cramped to work inside. Working only with the basics: PSU (both 20+4 and 4-pin plugs), monitor, keyboard, RAM, CPU & HSF, Power/LED/Reset switch (bundled), and case speaker. No HDD, optical drive, or any other peripherals attached yet.

I've done each of these multiple times:

Different sticks of RAM 1 at a time in each slot.
Disconnected & re-connected all power cables/cords, including power to PSU.
Cleared CMOS by removing the battery and jumping the pins

I've also done the following, with the same results:

Pulled PSU from my working system & tried it.
Pulled new RAM from my working system & tried it.
Removed & reseated the CPU, after removing & replacing thermal paste.
Tried booting ONLY CPU/HSF w/no RAM.
Tried shorting Power pins w/screwdriver (no power LED flash with this one, obviously).

Is it time to return the board?

Here's my response to the sticky checklist:

1. Did you carefully read the motherboard owners manual?
(yes)

2. Did you plug in the 4/8-pin CPU power connector, located near the CPU? (yes)


3. Did you install the standoffs under the motherboard? Did you place them so that they all align with the screw holes in the motherboard, with no standoffs touching the board in the wrong place?
(n/a - breadboarded on the foam pad and mobo box, as case is a tight fit)


4. Did you verify that the video card is fully seated? (may require more force than a new builder expects.)
(n/a - using onboard video)


5. Did you attach all the required power connectors to the video card? (some need two, some need none, many need one.)
(n/a)

6. Have you tried booting with just one stick of RAM installed?
(tried three different sticks in each slot)


7. Did you verify that all memory modules are fully inserted?
(yes)


8. Did you remove the plastic guard over the CPU socket? (this actually comes up occasionally.)
(yes)


9. If using an after market CPU cooler, did you get any thermal paste on the board?
(used stock cooler, and was careful with the new paste when I re-seated the CPU)

10. Is the CPU fan plugged in?
(yes)

11. If using a stock cooler, was the thermal material on the base of the cooler free of foreign material, and did you remove any protective covering? If the stock cooler has push-pins, did you ensure that all four pins snapped securely into place?
(yes, thermal paste looked good on stock cooler, heard the snap for each pin, and looked underneath to verify)

12. Are any loose screws laying on the motherboard, or jammed against it?
(breadboarding - n/a)

13. Did you ensure you discharged all static electricity before touching any of your components?
(yes, though I suppose anything's possible)


14. Did you install the system speaker (if provided) so you can check beep-codes in the manual?
(yes)


15. Did you read the instructions in the manual on how to properly connect the front panel plugs?
(yes, and shorting the pins w/screwdriver gave the same results for the HSF, obviously no flash of the power LED, since it wasn't connected)

16. Did you turn on the power supply switch located on the back of the PSU? (yes, and switched wall sockets with the monitor to verify house electricity)


17. Is your CPU supported by the BIOS revision installed on your motherboard?
(yes, since the first version of the BIOS)


18. Have you tried resetting the CMOS? The motherboard manual will have instructions for your particular board.
(yes, both by jumping pins and removing battery)

19. If you have integrated video and a video card, try the integrated video port. Resetting the bios, can make it default back to the onboard video.
(integrated video only).

Tried CPU & HSF only - same results

Swapped PSU from working system - same results

Swapped RAM from working system - same results

RAM for this system works fine in working system

I appreciate any help you can provide.

Thanks for the quick reply, Proximon. The RAM sticks I've tried are rated at 2.1v and 1.8v. Even though I've run the 2.1v RAM at 1.9v with no problems in another system, I know some boards can be picky. That's why I figured if the RAM was the problem, the 1.8v should POST.

Looks like I'm taking the board back after work tomorrow. I'll try to remember to follow up this weekend when I have time to try the new one.

Thanks again!