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Dead CPU or Motherboard?

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I have a donated HP Pavilion a1610n PC. ASUS A8M2N-LA motherboard, AMD Athlon 64 X2 4200+ 1GB (512x2) PC2-4200 RAM.

When I went to power it on to check it out, it turned on, and the cpu fan immediately spun up to what seems like full speed, but that's it. No video (the monitor's light stays orange), nothing. No beeps either.

I went through the usual steps for this kind of thing...stripped it down to just the PS and 1 RAM stick. Didn't work, so I took out the RAM to get a beep code, but there's no sound. I swapped the DIMM's between slots in case one was bad. Nothing. Then I changed the PS to a 290W (it had a 180W). Didn't work either. I suspected a dead VGA port, so I stuck in a PCI video card, and that didn't work. I added a HDD, and I can hear it spin up and try to work (there's no OS on it), but no luck there. I know all of the stuff I put it works (came from other working machines).

The MB looks good physically. I'm not sure about the CPU, and I can't test it as I don't have any AM2 CPU's or MB's laying around. So I'm at a loss here. I did clear the CMOS as well, but it didn't work.

I was hoping to fix and sell this machine (I do that frequently when I get free machines), but it's looking like a lemon. Again, everything powers on, but no video on the monitor, no beeps.

Is the cpu dead, or the motherboard? I also tried taking the cpu out and reseating it to no effect.

Ant suggestions our input would be great.

Thanks!

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Thanks for the reply. I have heard others having the same problem. My HP Pavilion laptop (Dv6485) also has a bad motherboard, and I know of another friend of mine who had one go out. I just want to be sure it's the MB because I can sell the CPU and don't want to sell someone a dead processor. I suspected a bad CPU because there was no beeps, even with the RAM out, which usually causes a beep code, and a sure sign of a bad processor is the absence of any beeps.

Usually the CPU has a longer lifespan.
I have replaced my motherboard two times and the Pentium 4 CPU I have is still in good condition.
Try testing that CPU on a different motherboard and see if it works.
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CPUs Master
Motherboard Master

CPU's almost never fail. You have to severely abuse them with high voltage from overclocking and extreme heat (from either overclocking or just in general) to kill them.

99.999999999% of the time, it's the motherboard or PSU that causes a "no boot" situation (in a system that was previously working).

Right. The thing is that I don't know if this machine was working before I got it. My boss got it from a client years ago and it was sitting around his house when he gave it to me. I don't know if it had the factory PS in it or not...I'm thinking it was since it has SATA plugs and the machine had SATA drives. I suspected a PS, which is why I replaced it with one I knew was good. Still no boot. So I am deducing it's the mobo. Anyone interested in a 5 year old AMD Athlon 64 X2 4200+? : )

I am going to try another PS tomorrow. If that doesn't work then the mobo is going to be a decoration! I have doubts though as I just tested the suspected PS in another machine and it worked just fine...

Best solution

Mobo. CPU's don't really fail. Its like an HDMI cable, the picture is there or it isn't. With a CPU, they work or they don't. Personally I'd sell what works and build a G540/H61 based system if you require a basic box like the HP.
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