Mysterious Boot Problem

[wielder]

Hi

I have a problem that i cant trace the root of. Maybe 80% of the time when i boot up, i get no beep, no LED light for the HD and nothing on the monitor. But if i keep resetting (holding in power button) eventually it will boot as normal.

Initially i thought it was a HD problem so i bought and installed a brand new one but still had the same issue, though i did start getting the LED light go on at boot. Then i changed the graphics card to an older one but still same problem, except once more i lost the LED light.

Its bugging me cause once id got a new HD i was sure it had to be the graphics card, which is probably a couple of years old. I even get a low whistling sound from the unit for a brief time until the computer has been on for an hour or so, that comes and goes with changes on the screen. But as changing that didnt solve it, i don't know what to try next and i keep thinking the next time i go to boot up it just won't go at all! :(

Any help would be much appreciated.

Specs -

Athlon2000 cpu
Gigabyte GA-7DXE mobo with AMD 760 chipset
768MB DDR mem
Asus V92500 FX 5200 graphics card

[saphalline]

Sounds like the PSU might be going bad on you. Do you know where the whistling sound is coming from? Is it coming from a drive or a fan or what? If you can pin-point the source, that would help us a lot.

[wielder]

Hi

I pulled out the unit and gave it a fresh restart. In truth, i couldnt swear to where the whistle was precisely originating, but it definately wasnt the graphics card (cos i replaced that for the test), so your theory about the PSU may be right first time.

In truth, i never even considered the PSU as it was the newest thing in there. Also, the fact that even on a failed start i still get power to the unit (mobo light comes on, cpu fan works). I assumed that as there was power for one thing there had to be power for all. But i'll get hold of one and give it a test to make sure.

As a sidenote, does anyone else seem to have so much trouble with PSUs? I've gone through so many over the years - it rare for me to have one that lasts much longer than a year or so. I confess, i DO run my computer a lot and sometimes for 24 hr spells at a time, but have i just had bad luck with them or are they commonly so unreliable?

Thanks

[mjc]

Cheap ones are well...cheap.

The problem is twofold, actually. Low to mid price ones generally have low quality fans that tend to fail...when the fan fails, the rest of the PSU soon follows due to overheating.

The other part of the problem is the quality of electricity being supplied to it. If your power is subjected to frequent outages, 'brown' outs, spikes, etc it makes the PSU work harder...especially if the source is 'noisy'.

I've seen cases where just putting the machine on an uninterruptable power supply increased the life expectancy of the PSU dramatically.

[saphalline]

Agreed. It's uncommon to go through so many PSU's, unless one of those two is true. And if both are true, well... ;) I myself haven't turned off my main gaming system in well over a week. I usually have it on for a week or two at a time, then shut it down for a night to give it a rest. The PSU I have now (older Antec 400W) has been going like this for, what? Just over 2 years now?

In general, a UPS is a good idea anyway, and it might just help with your problem. As for the PSU you have now, it may be new, but is it cheap? Give us the make & model on it.

[mjc]

My father-in-law has an older eMachines (who are notorious for cheap PSUs) that has been plugged into an UPS since day one...and it is still on the original PSU.

[saphalline]

That is impressive.

[wielder]

Hi

Ok, been offline for a bit as the problem has got worse. But i can confirm that it is NOT the PSU. I switched mine into another PC, and it worked fine; then i took theirs and put it into my computer and i had the same problem.

So far, i have confirmed that it isnt the Graphics card, the HD or the PSU.

Any other ideas?

Thanks


PS - i got my lights wrong. The HD light comes on every time; the power light only comes on sometimes, though whether it comes on or not doesnt affect the problem - it may come on and still not work.

[Sylvander]

Sylvander’s Diagnostic Flowcharts
Download a copy of my diagnostic flowcharts from here
www.erniek.eclipse.co.uk/downloads/sylvanderdiags.zip
and print them to leaf through.
Begin on the STARTUP chart.
-----------------------------------------------
NO POST, NO BEEP, NO VIDEO
www.pcguide.com/vb/showthread.php?t=39685
-----------------------------------------------

Try a "bare-bones boot" with no RAM.
If you hear warning beeps it means the POST is running and testing and warning, which is a good beginning.