PC boots then shuts down within a couple seconds

[Aunnix]

Hello,

I am having an issue (possibly with the PSU) in my computer. First of all...

SPECS:
- MSI K9N SLI mobo
- 3.1 dual core amd athlon 6400
- 2 x 2GB OCZ SLI ready RAM DDR2
- Radeon HD 4650 1GB
- (was running) old Dell 300W PSU and upgraded to Corsair Pro HX650
- (was running) 160GB IDE Western Digital (Caviar I believe) HD and upgraded to 320GB SATA Western Digital (Caviar as well I beleive) HD
- Cooler Master Elite series case

Now.. the PROBLEM. (and no, I am not running the SLI mode as I was told it's not worth it with my CPU and mobo)

I installed the new SATA hard drive and realized my PSU didn't have enough SATA power plugs. Next day, I buy the Corsair PSU (I wanted to upgrade anyway) and installed it. The new HD and PSU worked fine after installing... I was able to install windows 7 and the computer ran fine (no smells, smoke, extreme heat, etc.).

It ran fine all through Sunday, and my girlfriend was on it Monday afternoon while I was at work. I came home and there was a blue light on on the front of the case but nothing was running inside. I pushed the "on" button on the case and everything lit up, fans started, and I'm quite sure everything was spinning, but then it died about 2 seconds after being on. Nothing comes up on the monitor (running dual 22s actually) and I heard no beeps or boops..

Wondering if anyone has any ideas before I return the PSU. I've yet to put the old PSU back in to see if everything will boot. (I have found a peripheral to SATA power adapter for the new SATA HD so I plan to try it tonight...)

 

[roadkill922]

I would say try the old PSU again before jumping to any conclusions, but if it does the same thing after switching it out, you most likely have a bad motherboard. The new PSU could have shorted out the board.

 

[Aunnix]

I would say try the old PSU again before jumping to any conclusions, but if it does the same thing after switching it out, you most likely have a bad motherboard. The new PSU could have shorted out the board.

Thanks. I had a feeling I'd need to test the old PSU before getting many replies, lol. I just found it pretty crazy that a top of the line brand with twice the wattage caused a problem when the shitty Dell PSU ran fine for the last 3-4 years..

Let's say it continues to shut off with the old PSU... is there a way to test the mother board to make sure it is the problem and not the processor or RAM? Also, what are the chances that the video card is causing the problem?

 

[roadkill922]

Thanks. I had a feeling I'd need to test the old PSU before getting many replies, lol. I just found it pretty crazy that a top of the line brand with twice the wattage caused a problem when the shitty Dell PSU ran fine for the last 3-4 years..

Let's say it continues to shut off with the old PSU... is there a way to test the mother board to make sure it is the problem and not the processor or RAM? Also, what are the chances that the video card is causing the problem?

Are you able to get into the bios at all?

 

[Aunnix]

Are you able to get into the bios at all?

Nope. I can't access anything. Nothing comes on screen. Everything (inside the PC) powers on but when it seems like it's about to beep and show something on the monitor, it dies...

And, I do not have to unplug the PSU from the power supply or anything for me to try to restart it. As soon as it dies, I can press the power button again and everything lights up, spins, etc. then dies within like a 2-3 second window.

I will post the PSU results in a few hours after I get home and do the testing.

 

[roadkill922]

Nope. I can't access anything. Nothing comes on screen. Everything (inside the PC) powers on but when it seems like it's about to beep and show something on the monitor, it dies...

And, I do not have to unplug the PSU from the power supply or anything for me to try to restart it. As soon as it dies, I can press the power button again and everything lights up, spins, etc. then dies within like a 2-3 second window.

I wouldn't know how to test the memory then besides trying to reseat it or looking for a stick to borrow from someone else or an old system. The board is more likely to be the problem than the processor. In my experience, it would be the first thing to go in a situation like this.

 

[Aunnix]

I wouldn't know how to test the memory then besides trying to reseat it or looking for a stick to borrow from someone else or an old system. The board is more likely to be the problem than the processor. In my experience, it would be the first thing to go in a situation like this.

Well, the processor and RAM aren't going to matter much if it's the board... I'll have to replace the whole system. If this is the case, I need to figure out if I should keep the PSU, lol. I dont want to buy another rig and find out the PSU fried my board again..

I've been wanting to upgrade to Intel "i" series rig anyway, but I really just don't have the cash, lol...

 

[broseephus]

Reseat the motherboard power connections and try and run the system with bare minimum components.

One stick of ram, only the boot storage device, use mobo video if your mobo has it, and nothing else.

Insure that your 4 pin mobo Power connector is also seated properly.

If it was me, I would hope you can't get it working. You need a new computer like 3 years ago.

 

[Aunnix]

Reseat the motherboard power connections and try and run the system with bare minimum components.

One stick of ram, only the boot storage device, use mobo video if your mobo has it, and nothing else.

Insure that your 4 pin mobo Power connector is also seated properly.

If it was me, I would hope you can't get it working. You need a new computer like 3 years ago.

Yeah, the mother board went obsolete within the first year of me buying the setup, lol. And, it was basically just a budget build because I had a few parts already and needed a bit stronger of a computer. I'm not much of a gamer so that's why this rig has lasted. I do web design, but I do have a few games I keep my eye on so I want to build something that is still rather strong for gaming.

 

[Aunnix]

So, I wasn't able to do any testing last night (due to daddy duty, lol) so I plan to test the old PSU tonight.

In case the mobo is done, anyone care to take a look at a couple CPU/Mobo combos and give some opinions on the specs? I figured I'd go ahead a do some shopping to get an idea of pricing. I'm trying to go quality as cheap as possible, lol. I'd like to keep the mobo, CPU, and RAM all under (or around) $400. I will be using the current Radeon card I have for a while, but maybe around this Christmas I'd like to upgrade to the Geforce GTX 550 (or 560, I'm not sure which would be a better pick).

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=2580686&CatId=6982

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=2580691&csid=_61

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=2580692&CatId=6982

I'm not too sure as to which is a better brand, Gigabyte or Biostar. I've always felt they are about the same quality considering everything I've heard about them.

The 2nd link... that board seems nice because it has 4 3gbs and 4 6gbs SATA headers while the other two only have 2 6gbs headers. But, this board only has 1 "PCI Express X1" Slots but 3 "PCI Express X16" Slots while the other two boards have 2 of each kind of "PCI Express" slots... I'm not sure how many PCI slots I will need and the difference between each different PCI slot.

Also, these were basically the best combos I could find on tigerdirect to TRY to keep me in this price range... I'll still need to spend money on the RAM, so the closer to $300 I can keep the mobo/CPU the better...

I've found this combo on Newegg that seems pretty solid...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.1017683

 

[broseephus]

If you have a Micro Center around you that would be awesome. The 3570k is only 189.99 and if you combo it with a Mobo you get an additional $50 discount. Only catch is they only do pickup instore for that price.

http://www.microcenter.com/

I actually just bought a 3570k and a Gigabyte Z77-UD5H for 340 and change after tax.

If you're not so lucky, I would stay with one of these boards if you're going the Ivy Bridge Route

$115 As-Rock (used to be a division of Asus) Extreme 4 - Great budget board with some nice OC features has awesome reviews.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157293

$135 Biostar XE3
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138355

People will tell you to stay away from them because they are made in Taiwan. I have actually owned 2 of them and they were both rock solid. Great features for the price.

$150 Gigabyte UD3H- Gigabyte reputation/quality and still priced relatively inexpensively.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128544

NewEgg has the 3570k for 230 but they have a $15 off code valid until 8/2/2012. So even with the most expensive of the ones I suggested you are looking at $365 which leaves you enough money to get a nice 8GB kit of ram for not too much more than your budget.

Gskill Ripjaw X for $46 would put you at $411

If you're trying to save money def go for the Extreme 4. Puts you at $376 total for cpu/mobo/ram. All those products have free shipping too!

 

[Aunnix]

If you have a Micro Center around you that would be awesome. The 3570k is only 189.99 and if you combo it with a Mobo you get an additional $50 discount. Only catch is they only do pickup instore for that price.

http://www.microcenter.com/

I actually just bought a 3570k and a Gigabyte Z77-UD5H for 340 and change after tax.

If you're not so lucky, I would stay with one of these boards if you're going the Ivy Bridge Route

$115 As-Rock (used to be a division of Asus) Extreme 4 - Great budget board with some nice OC features has awesome reviews.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157293

$135 Biostar XE3
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138355

People will tell you to stay away from them because they are made in Taiwan. I have actually owned 2 of them and they were both rock solid. Great features for the price.

$150 Gigabyte UD3H- Gigabyte reputation/quality and still priced relatively inexpensively.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128544

NewEgg has the 3570k for 230 but they have a $15 off code valid until 8/2/2012. So even with the most expensive of the ones I suggested you are looking at $365 which leaves you enough money to get a nice 8GB kit of ram for not too much more than your budget.

Gskill Ripjaw X for $46 would put you at $411

If you're trying to save money def go for the Extreme 4. Puts you at $376 total for cpu/mobo/ram. All those products have free shipping too!

Hah, very convenient you mention Micro Center... I do have one near and was about to go chat with them on my lunch break to see if I can get something today... I may just buy the products, go home and test the PSUs, then install all the new *** if the old PSU doesn't boot me up.

Thanks much for the suggestions! I'll check them out.

Any advice on the PCI slots? Do all of the PCI slots accept any form of PCI card? I don't really know what the different speeds (x1 or x16) do/are for and what I should consider in regards to the PCI connections when buying a new board.

 

[broseephus]

All the newer mother boards will have PCI-E 3.0 slots and possibly some PCI-E 2.0 slots. Nothing out there yet actually requires PCI-E 3.0 but everything is backwards/forwards compatible.

You'll probably only see a tangible result out of PCI-E 3.0 over 2.0 if you are SLI/Xfire multiple video cards.

This is also where the x1,x4,x8,16 comes in.

That is the designation of how many Lanes of bandwidth are available.

So if you have one PCI-E 2.0 card plugged into a board, that one card will have access to ALL 16 lanes of bandwidth. If you SLI and use two cards. Most boards will then allocate one PCI-E Slot 8 lanes of bandwidth and the second slot the other 8 lanes. This is the reason why you used to hear people talk about SLI/Xfire not scaling well. Meaning just because you add an entire other card you do not get that ENTIRE card's performance increase.

3.0 is superior to 2.0 because, even though there are still only 16 lanes of bandwidth. 1 lane of 3.0 = 2 lanes of 2.0 . The only Video card on the market even coming close to fully saturating (utilizing) all 16 PCI-E 2.0 lanes is the GTX 690. And that is a $999 video card.

tldr: if you get a board with 2 PCI-E 3.0 slots you will be future proof for video cards for a long time.

 

[Aunnix]

All the newer mother boards will have PCI-E 3.0 slots and possibly some PCI-E 2.0 slots. Nothing out there yet actually requires PCI-E 3.0 but everything is backwards/forwards compatible.

You'll probably only see a tangible result out of PCI-E 3.0 over 2.0 if you are SLI/Xfire multiple video cards.

This is also where the x1,x4,x8,16 comes in.

That is the designation of how many Lanes of bandwidth are available.

So if you have one PCI-E 2.0 card plugged into a board, that one card will have access to ALL 16 lanes of bandwidth. If you SLI and use two cards. Most boards will then allocate one PCI-E Slot 8 lanes of bandwidth and the second slot the other 8 lanes. This is the reason why you used to hear people talk about SLI/Xfire not scaling well. Meaning just because you add an entire other card you do not get that ENTIRE card's performance increase.

3.0 is superior to 2.0 because, even though there are still only 16 lanes of bandwidth. 1 lane of 3.0 = 2 lanes of 2.0 . The only Video card on the market even coming close to fully saturating (utilizing) all 16 PCI-E 2.0 lanes is the GTX 690. And that is a $999 video card.

tldr: if you get a board with 2 PCI-E 3.0 slots you will be future proof for video cards for a long time.

Thanks for the break down. I asked the Micro Center tech about it before buying the new board.

If the old PSU does confirm that my current mobo is done for, the new rig will be...

Radeon HD 4650 1GB Video Card
8GB Ballistix Sport (by Crucial - heard before its a good brand) RAMM 1600MHz
320GB SATA HD (6.0gb/s)
Corsair Pro HX650 PSU
Intel i5 3.4GHz (3.8 turboed) Quad Core 3750K CPU
Asus P8 Z77-V LK Mobo with 2 PCI 3.0 slots
Cooler Master Elite 430 Series Case

Also, the Mobo, CPU, and RAMM all only ran me like $360. And I have a $20 rebate on one of the products, so all in all not too bad of a price. I'll keep you guys posted on the tests and if I actually ended up building the new rig.

 

[Aunnix]

So, I did some testing last night. I reseated the Video card and the HSF, made sure the RAMM was tight, and also ran the computer with just the basics (RAMM, CPU, PSU, and video card (to see if anything displayed)) and nothing worked.

In comes the old PSU... Hooked it up to everything. Computer seems to boot fine. I forgot to plug in the SATA wires to the mobo so my OS wasn't booting, but I got a display on the monitor and can get into the bios without any issues.

I'll be returning the Corsair to Micro Center today and will probably try another series / brand. I just wish I knew why it was shorting out so that the next PSU I buy will not do the same thing.

Another thing I found weird though, is the manual for the Motherboard recommends a 450W or higher PSU. The old PSU is a Dell 300W or 350W. I don't understand why it works fine but the Corsair didn't...

 

[broseephus]

PSU's are dead on arrival probably more than any other component you can buy. Not uncommon to get a bad one fresh out of the box.

But it's weird that you got power for a second or two and then it shut down, and that it worked fine all day until your g/f used it.

It's a shame your old computer still works. You would be amazed at how much faster a computer using current generation tech is.

 

[Aunnix]

PSU's are dead on arrival probably more than any other component you can buy. Not uncommon to get a bad one fresh out of the box.

But it's weird that you got power for a second or two and then it shut down, and that it worked fine all day until your g/f used it.

It's a shame your old computer still works. You would be amazed at how much faster a computer using current generation tech is.

Hahah, yeah I wonder why the PSU worked for the day or two that it did. All my girlfriend uses the computer for is a little bit of facebook, and searching for jobs so I don't believe it was anything she did...

And, you'll be glad to know, I'm actually thinking of keeping the new rig since I got a pretty decent deal through Micro Center. I have a friend who will possibly buy the old one so he can use it for Battlefield 3 and some media sharing. I'd like to maybe build a small server or storage box out of it, but selling it to him for a couple hundred bucks will get me a chunk of my money back on the new rig, lol.

 

[Rugger]

The Cosair HX PSUs are top notch. Did you reseat all of the power connections? To me it sounds like something just wasn't seated properly; that would explain the initial good indication that eventually failed.

 

[Aunnix]

The Cosair HX PSUs are top notch. Did you reseat all of the power connections? To me it sounds like something just wasn't seated properly; that would explain the initial good indication that eventually failed.

Sure did. Made sure the 24pin plug was tight on the motherboard, and plugged in the drives a couple times. I was wondering about the 4pin plug (near the CPU) so I completely removed it and plugged it back it. All of the latches clicked and the plugs seemed to be in pretty tight.

One thing I did notice, was that one of the peripheral power connectors on one of the case fans is a little loose... I took a picture with my phone, but I'm not seeing anything to where I can upload it to the thread to show you guys. But, what I don't understand is why (possibly) that power connector would cause problems with the Corsair PSU and not the Dell PSU. (And, yes, I tested the Corsair without that fan plugged in.)

 

[Rugger]

Out of curiosity did you check for bad caps on the mobo? Good reference site: http://www.badcaps.net/pages.php?vid=5
Pics: https://www.google.com/search?q=bad+caps&hl=en&biw=1513&bih=988&prmd=imvns&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=HFoRUP2KGIGe8QSe94E4&ved=0CG8QsAQ
That mobo is old enough to have gotten some of the shoddy Chinese caps that were rampant a few years back and I've seen PSU swaps cause errors to start in borderline mobos. Check epecially carefully around the CPU socket. The caps don't have to leak...bulging on the sides or top is bad enough.

 

[Aunnix]

Out of curiosity did you check for bad caps on the mobo? Good reference site: http://www.badcaps.net/pages.php?vid=5
Pics: https://www.google.com/search?q=bad+caps&hl=en&biw=1513&bih=988&prmd=imvns&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=HFoRUP2KGIGe8QSe94E4&ved=0CG8QsAQ
That mobo is old enough to have gotten some of the shoddy Chinese caps that were rampant a few years back and I've seen PSU swaps cause errors to start in borderline mobos. Check epecially carefully around the CPU socket. The caps don't have to leak...bulging on the sides or top is bad enough.

Yeah, I saw on another post somewhere about looking to see if they are split open or anything... I did look around (and mainly around the CPU), but I didn't see anything that looked damaged. They all looked the same to me, but I wasn't really looking for bulges. Mainly just breaks (or splits).

 

[Aunnix]

I've returned the Corsair, and I think I've decided to just build the new rig and see if I can get some cash out of the current computer in question. I went with a little bit of a cheaper PSU so I could buy a new case and not have to switch out the components...

I'll be running...

8GB Ballistix Sport RAMM 1600MHz
320GB SATA HD (6.0gb/s)
Intel i5 3.4GHz (3.8 turboed) Quad Core 3750K CPU
Asus P8 Z77-V LK Mobo with 2 PCI 3.0 slots
A new Cooler Master Case (a big honker of one as well.. plenty of room, lol)
OCZ Mod Xstream-Pro 600W PSU

I may need to buy a graphics card though. I'm looking at the GTX 550 (for budget) then Micro Center techs recommended the GTX 560 or 570 if I'm willing to spend closer to $200 mark. I'll probably go with a GTX 550 Ti, but I'm worried about how long the card will be relevant for gaming..

Any thoughts, ideas, suggestions? Especially on the new PSU...

 

[Rugger]

The Modxstream Pro 600W is a decent PSU. If you paid around $50, then I'd go for the Seasonic M12II-520 at Newegg: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151093&Tpk=m12ii%20520 Awesome PSU at a great price...can't believe you can get it for under $50 with free shipping. It actually has 40A on the 12V rail and the OCZ 600W only has 2A more. M12II also has 2 more years of warranty and is 80+ Bronze certified.

GPU...if your budget is around $200, then you should be able to find an HD6950 or a GTX560ti in that price range; especially if you're willing to wait for a rebate. On a multi-monitor gaming setup you'll appreciate the extra power of the 6950/560ti.

 

[Aunnix]

The Modxstream Pro 600W is a decent PSU. If you paid around $50, then I'd go for the Seasonic M12II-520 at Newegg: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151093&Tpk=m12ii%20520 Awesome PSU at a great price...can't believe you can get it for under $50 with free shipping. It actually has 40A on the 12V rail and the OCZ 600W only has 2A more. M12II also has 2 more years of warranty and is 80+ Bronze certified.

GPU...if your budget is around $200, then you should be able to find an HD6950 or a GTX560ti in that price range; especially if you're willing to wait for a rebate. On a multi-monitor gaming setup you'll appreciate the extra power of the 6950/560ti.

I paid $75 for the OCZ, but there is a $25 rebate on it. So, basically the same price (with the wait of a rebate).

I am heading back to Micro Center to check out a CPU power wire adapter (I'm hearing that the OCZ wire is a little short), and I will ask about the Seasonic mentioned in comparison to the OCZ. I see it has less wattage than the OCZ. I don't think I would have to replace within the next couple years, but I am also trying to make sure I buy one strong enough to power the rig for a good few years.

 

[Rugger]

I have the M12II-520 and I'm powering a rig with an HD 6950 with absolutely no issues. Review of the non-modular version of the PSU at one of the top PSU review sites: http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story&reid=185 The only difference is the modular cabling on the M12II-520. Total wattage isn't as important as quality. Additionally, modern PCs draw 85-90% of their power on the 12V rails and the M12II has almost as much capacity on the 12V as the OCZ 600W.