Bad Power Supply ....... or ?

[tomfool]

Hello,
Pc was lighting fans dimly and turning slowly but not booting. Just sorta sitting there like a frozen car in winter. Checked every possibility including power button. Discovered that if I flip switch on back of psu off then on Before I hit power button pc boots up normally and quickly. Obviosly I need a new psu but I dont understand what the problem is.
Is it something I can fix myself quick and cheap or must I agro psu manufacturer for a new unit ?

 

[icehawk940]

That definately sounds like a failing psu. If you can get your hands on another psu to test your system that would answer alot of questions. How old is the current psu and what model and manafacturer is it?

 

[clutchc]

Probably a failing PSU, but try this first. Turn off/unplug the power to the PSU. Unplug/replug the cord at both ends a few times. Excercise the on/off switch on the PSU several times. Power everything back up as normal and see if the problem persists. If so, replace the PSU.

Also, check to be sure your wall outlet is grounded. That doesn't necessarily apply to your problem, but can cause PSU damage under certain conditions.

 

[bobdros]

I had PSUs fail in two different machines in the past 6 months. Mostly the machines wouldn't always start the first time you pushed the button to turn them on. Finally they wouldn't start at all. The PSU is supposed to be the most common thing to fail. It's more than likely not a motherboard power switch.

I have a Dell XPS 200 that needed a proprietary PSU which came quickly and was really easy to replace. The other machine is one that I built. It has a 650 watt Nexis PSU. It was more work to replace but still not too bad. You just have figure out what the CPU power leads are and what the video power connection is if you need it. Everything else is keyed and pretty easy to figure out. Maybe take a picture before you disconnect everything.

It's not a big deal. (If it's a Dell the PSU might be their down form factor. You have to be sure that what you get will fit. I don't know about the other makes. I think they're pretty standard though.)