HELP! MB fried? CPU? both?

[darkride]

Well I decided I need to put the side back on that case
but it needed a serious cleaning out first.. so I blew out what I could and got down n dirty with the alchohol/q-tip..
Even took off the heatsink and cleaned it and it's fan out, put on new heatsink coumpound and got it all back together..

and then...nothing.. dead..

The board is an asus A7M-266, running an athlon XP 1700..
I can power it up, the board power LED comes on, CPU fan spins, video card fan spins, and the Northbridge fan just kinda tries to.. slowly jumping forward a little better each time.. eventually getting a decent spin(I tried cleaning it too, after all this started).
My Asus I-Panel (you know I bought this for diagnostics, WORTHLESS) just lights up the msg led.. doesn't even try to get as far as a msg..
It doesn't beep at all.. never gets there..
The CPU doesn't physically LOOK burnt in any way..but what do I know? only CPU I ever saw killed shattered the core.. that was pretty obvious.
of course all of the cards came out.. and the video card back in..
I've tried more different jumper settings than I care to mention.. voltages, jumper-free, manual clock settings..etc..
I get nothing..

So before I take the 1 1/2 hour drive this afternoon to get new, is there anyway of knowing if it's the MB, CPU, or both that I'll need?
Even just a probability? :help:

 

[endyen]

Suck dont blow. It might be a good idea to take the board out and check everywhere for dust that could be causing a short.Take it all apart, and look in every slot.
Now that it's out connect up only what you need to get a boot screen. No keyboard even, no mouse or drives. Do this on a piece of plastic. From the case connect only the power and switch. Hope you get a boot screen.

 

[Bosse]

dont touch things u dont understand !!!

 

[Turk]

Such as dust?

Well seriously, if nothing on the board starts then it might be the PSU. Try to switch components, one by one, with another computer, if possible. Also unplug EVERYTHING execept the basics such as. Mobo, Ram; CPU and Videocard and keyboard.

GL

Turk

 

[Mephistopheles]

You´re very insightful, Bosse. As always.

 

[endyen]

Really!! If God had ment us to learn about computers we would have been born with cybernetic inplants.

 

[rcj187]

your northbridge fan has failed by the sounds of it and caused the northbridge to overheat. you need a new mobo im afraid :frown:

 

[darkride]

considering I built this PC, and the one that's toast, and my wifes, and several for other people, and repaired dozens in one way or another, I should be able to touch anything I damn well please shouldn't I?

 

[darkride]

Yeah, I think that may very well have had something to do with it.. I had been experiencing some serious slowdowns I couldn't explain, and in retrospect it probably was the northbridge overheating causing it..
Unfortunately, I've transplanted the CPU onto another motherboard now.. same thing.. it's toast..
I'd been under the impression, as was confirmed somewhere, that a dead cpu should still give a bios complaint.. atleast a beep..
guess i was wrong..