wierd startup problem

[MIXPIX]

Im not sure what section of the boards this should go under but heres my problem.

Randomly....very randomly....my comp will freeze when it starts up...but it freezes even before the CMOS bootup screen. I turn the comp on, it checks my 2nd cdrom twice and then stops doing anything...doesnt even turn the monitor on...but the HD LED stays lit. It does this very randomly though...without warning and with no explination. To get it start back up i turn off the PSU and let it sit for like 5 or 10 minutes....
What could be the deal here? it an XP boot problem? bad mobo? i have no idea. Ive checked all the CMOS settings ive fiddled with other stuff, i even changed the IDE cables for for my hds and cdroms! im at a complete loss

heres my specs
1.4ghz athlon Tbird
512megs pc2100 ram
Shuttle AK31a (KT266a)
40gig 7200RPM western digital HD
8gig 5400 HD
24x10x32 acer CDRW
8x dvd
32meg DDR radeon ve
WINXP pro





"I used to be with it, but now what im with isnt it and what is it is wierd and scary to me" -abe

 

[Zlash]

XP's not even loaded at that point, since you are turning your power supply off i might suspect that or the mobo. Tried using the default cmos settings too?

<font color=red>:</font color=red> <font color=white>:</font color=white> <font color=blue>:</font color=blue>

 

[Zoron]

I had a customer that had the exact same problem. I replaced his power supply, and he reports it's been running good ever since. Power supply would be the first thing I'd check, it's one of the easiest components to swap out.

<font color=red> If you design software that is fool-proof, only a fool will want to use it. </font color=red>

 

[monkeyspank]

I'd say power supply too.


-- There are no answers to find in the bottom of a glass. But you can have fun looking for them.

 

[CALV]

have a similar prob with my system, it will turn on, it will reset, but if I power off for a few seconds, it WONT power on, I need to wait about 2 mins, if I just power off and back on, it does the same as you mention, drives spin up etc. it did this when I had my el cheapo 300W psu, still does it with my enermax 431W, I've also tried another psu in the meantime and it does the same, no great problem for me as i very rarely turn off and then back on again!!


If they squeeze olives to get olive oil, how do they get baby oil?

 

[Zoron]

Another potential problem is the 'Power on after AC power loss' setting in BIOS. If you shut your computer down, then either unplug it or shut off the power bar it's connected to, the BIOS detects this as an AC power loss even if it's shut down. I don't know what happens exactly, but it seems as if the BIOS gets 'confused'... sometimes the computer won't power on at all until you unplug it and plug it back in again... weird.

<font color=red> If you design software that is fool-proof, only a fool will want to use it. </font color=red>