New Build - Booted Fine - Problems installing Windows...

[greight01]

So I received all of my parts yesterday for my first build of a new computer. I put it all together, booted it up and it booted up fine.

So I went in to the BIOS and changed the boot order to boot from my DVD/RW drive, put windows in and restarted. The computer started, Windows came up with the loading files progress bar, It came up with the license agreement and drive selection... All of that was fine. Then it moved on to the actual install.

The first step is Copying Windows Files. This step was almost instantaneous. I dont know if there just isnt much to copy or what but that step took about 1 second. Then it moved on to Expanding Windows Files. At this step, the progress never gets past 0%. It will stay at 0% and then the computer just reboots.

Would the problem with Windows not being about to 'Expand' the files be a hard drive issue? Windows can 'see' the hard drive because I can select it before it does the install. But when it tries to copy/expand the files it makes sort of a skipping/clicking noise for a second or two then stops. I dont remember a hard drive making sounds like that before. One thing to note is the BIOS initially has the drivers for all SATA ports set to ACHI or something like that. I tried setting them to IDE and this issue still persisted. The SATA ports on the MB are 6GB. I dont know if that makes a difference as to maybe the HDD and/or DVD/RW arent compatible?

Also, with the computer just rebooting without actually doing anything, would that be a PSU issue?

I admit, I skimped on a few of the components as I was on a tight budget.

Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

My build:
AMD Phenom II X4 955
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103808

ASUS M5A97 AM3+ Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131767

LITE-ON DVD Burner
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106289

SEAGATE 500GB HDD
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148701

Kingston HyperX 8GB DDR3 RAM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820104266

LOGISYS 575W PSU
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817170017

XFX Radeon 6870 Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150506

 

[wathman]

So I received all of my parts yesterday for my first build of a new computer. I put it all together, booted it up and it booted up fine.

So I went in to the BIOS and changed the boot order to boot from my DVD/RW drive, put windows in and restarted. The computer started, Windows came up with the loading files progress bar, It came up with the license agreement and drive selection... All of that was fine. Then it moved on to the actual install.

The first step is Copying Windows Files. This step was almost instantaneous. I dont know if there just isnt much to copy or what but that step took about 1 second. Then it moved on to Expanding Windows Files. At this step, the progress never gets past 0%. It will stay at 0% and then the computer just reboots.

Would the problem with Windows not being about to 'Expand' the files be a hard drive issue? Windows can 'see' the hard drive because I can select it before it does the install. But when it tries to copy/expand the files it makes sort of a skipping/clicking noise for a second or two then stops. I dont remember a hard drive making sounds like that before. One thing to note is the BIOS initially has the drivers for all SATA ports set to ACHI or something like that. I tried setting them to IDE and this issue still persisted. The SATA ports on the MB are 6GB. I dont know if that makes a difference as to maybe the HDD and/or DVD/RW arent compatible?

Also, with the computer just rebooting without actually doing anything, would that be a PSU issue?

I admit, I skimped on a few of the components as I was on a tight budget.





Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

My build:
AMD Phenom II X4 955
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103808

ASUS M5A97 AM3+ Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131767

LITE-ON DVD Burner
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106289

SEAGATE 500GB HDD
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148701

Kingston HyperX 8GB DDR3 RAM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820104266

LOGISYS 575W PSU
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817170017

XFX Radeon 6870 Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150506

Most likely it is the PSU, but if you don't have a better one that can be subbed in for a test it will be difficult to verify. Personally, I wouldn't trust a $20 PSU for anything more than a paper weight. Look at the output specs: +3.3V@38A, +5V@40A, +12V@25A, -12V@0.8A, +5VSB@2.0A

Why you would need more current on the 3.3v and 5v than on the 12v rail I have no idea. I'm guessing it was just a way to artificially inflate the overall wattage spec. You have a decent video card in there, and a fairly powerful CPU so it's possible that 25A just isn't cutting it on the 12v. Also, a manufacturer willing to fudge their specs that much probably is hiding some other cut corners to reach a $20 price point. For my own piece of mind, I would rather buy a much lower rated PSU from a solid brand than a cheap one with a high wattage rating from an iffy brand. As far as I was aware, Logisys tended to make novelty items, lights, fans and other bling for computers, not really a big name in the PSU market.

This of course doesn't rule out other possible issues. You have 8 GB of ram in the system, it's possible you have a bum module in there. you could try dropping down to one module and see if that changes your ability to install.

 

[greight01]

The PSU was something I was concerned about. I guess I was just hoping for the best and if I was out $20, so be it. Guess that may be the case. When I get home I will try to take out one of the RAM sticks and see what happens. If that doesnt do the trick should I just buy a new PSU and go from there?

Is there any way I can verify if they HDD is at fault as well, or does that not sound like it is the problem? I don't have a spare HDD around or I would swap it out to see.

 

[wathman]

The PSU was something I was concerned about. I guess I was just hoping for the best and if I was out $20, so be it. Guess that may be the case. When I get home I will try to take out one of the RAM sticks and see what happens. If that doesnt do the trick should I just buy a new PSU and go from there?

Is there any way I can verify if they HDD is at fault as well, or does that not sound like it is the problem? I don't have a spare HDD around or I would swap it out to see.

It is possible that you have a bad hard drive, but as you said it will be difficult to prove it without a doubt if you don't have an alternate that works to install in the system. Your best cheap option would be to try to verify everything else in the computer as functional, and if you are left with nothing else wrong, then blame the hard drive. A good option for this is to get your hands on a free and easy to use linux distribution, Ubuntu is a good choice for the inexperienced with Linux. You can download a distribution for free and burn it to disc. Linux distributions have the ability to run as a live CD without a hard drive install so you can verify everything else in the system is in good condition.

Also on the Ubuntu disc, there should be a memory testing program called memtest86 that will help you rule out bad RAM. If your RAM passes memtest86, I'd give it about 95% confidence that your RAM is fine.

 

[greight01]

I think I may head to BestBuy tonight and maybe pick up a new PSU and maybe a HDD. I would rather have a better PSU regardless for peace of mind. I assume Corsair would be a decent brand if say I got a 600W?

And while I'm there I may as well pick up a HDD just in case and if i end up not needing it, I can just return it.

 

[wathman]

I think I may head to BestBuy tonight and maybe pick up a new PSU and maybe a HDD. I would rather have a better PSU regardless for peace of mind. I assume Corsair would be a decent brand if say I got a 600W?

And while I'm there I may as well pick up a HDD just in case and if i end up not needing it, I can just return it.

Corsair is a good choice, that's what I have in my desktop at home. They actually buy their PSUs from 2 other OEM manufacturers, they use Seasonic for their most expensive ones, and another brand for their lower tier but they are still very good. If you are really that interested Tom's hardware wrote a good guide on PSU manufacturers that you can read up on, but it's just easier to say that Corsair is a very solid option.

 

[greight01]

Corsair is a good choice, that's what I have in my desktop at home. They actually buy their PSUs from 2 other OEM manufacturers, they use Seasonic for their most expensive ones, and another brand for their lower tier but they are still very good. If you are really that interested Tom's hardware wrote a good guide on PSU manufacturers that you can read up on, but it's just easier to say that Corsair is a very solid option.

Just an update... I put in a Corsair 600W Gaming Series and it is loading windows like a champ. I imagine the problem before was the PSU was shutting down the computer before it could actually do anything with windows...

Thanks for all the help, it is much appreciated.

 

[greight01]

Best answer selected by greight01.