[poppyal]

Sounds good to me. I will probably retire for the night, but I will check into this in the a.m. to see if there is any more info on the subject - and I will just wait for a post rather than bother you. Is there any way to check the P/S?
Hope you have a super Thanksgiving.
poppyal1.

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There are ways to check the PSU if you have a volt meter handy. You can check that all three legs are steady and within a tenth of a volt or so from specified voltage, but this doesn't really give you how it behaves when a load is applied. I usually swap them out with a known good one as a test.

When you turn the machine on, is there ever a system beep or series of beeps?

[wannabe1]

There are ways to check the PSU if you have a volt meter handy. You can check that all three legs are steady and within a tenth of a volt or so from specified voltage, but this doesn't really give you how it behaves when a load is applied. I usually swap them out with a known good one as a test.

When you turn the machine on, is there ever a system beep or series of beeps?

[poppyal]

Yes, there were some beeps with the secondary P/S installed.

[wannabe1]

The beeps were with the new PSU? Was it just a steady beep-beep-beep or was there a pattern or long and short ones?

[poppyal]

wannabe1!!! I just installed the second P/S and booted. The fan acted like it was going to blow, but I just stood back and waited. Well, the stupid thing actually booted - with video and all. I need to reset BIOS and all, but I can do that. I'm getting a message that the "system battery voltage is low". Is that just changing the battery, or is there more to it than that?

[poppyal]

Can I assume that the original P/S is defective?

[poppyal]

I just shut the system down and the P/S fan continues to run and when I try to boot I get nothing. So I unplug the unit for a minute and plug it back in. I boot and the P/S tries to blow up, but I get nothing. The green light does not come on. Do you want some time to figure on this, or should I try to sell her another mobo and P/S?

[wannabe1]

Yep...weird combination of problems

Let me think on it a bit....

Edited by wannabe1, 22 November 2006 - 11:10 PM.

[poppyal]

O.K. I goota hit the hay. These three a.m. shticks are getting to me (wish I were 35 or 40 years younger) so I better not do that again. Like I said, I'll check in the a.m. and see if you have posted anymore on this matter. If not, I will just wait for a post. I know you will try to get to the bottom of this, and, once again, I Thank You. Maybe I can get you to 9000 posts??? Later.
poppyal1.

[b1caez01]

Sorry for the interruption...wannabe1 is on a roll...

Was there ever an attempt to "overclock" the system...this will fry everything if not done carefully and by someone who really knows what they are doing...

You apparently are familiar with "flashing" so I will assume that you are also familiar with overclocking...and you speak of an increase in RAM, so I will also assume that your were concerned about processing "speed" at one time, and were trying to do what you could to boost your parameters at minimal cost...

Does any of this ring a bell...?

[poppyal]

b1caez01, thanks for the reply. The mention of ram was not involved with this particular issue. It was an add-on for wannabe1 about a previous issue. And no, I am sure that the owner has never tried to overclock - she barely knows how to boot the system. Any other thoughts would be appreciated. I'll check for further posts in the morning and proceed accordingly. Thanx.

[b1caez01]

Sorry, lost focus ...assumed it was your unit by the time I got to the end...

Nope, can't think of an issue that might be of help... wannabe1 appears to be technician, as oppose to myself who tests software as a hobby, and how they affect the OS... there are not too many problems that I have not got myself into and out of...

9/10 I chicken out, and just reformat...its much easier If it can't be fixed by maintenance software, reformatting, or F-disking, re-installing, ...then it is always a hardware issue...for my money

Edited by b1caez01, 22 November 2006 - 11:51 PM.

[wannabe1]

Tell me about the system beeps you hear (or heard) on startup. Is it a single short beep? A single long beep? Is it a series of short beeps? A pattern of short beeps? Some short - some long?

Now let's go back a bit. What was the problem with the machine that required fixin'? Was it the racing PSU fan or was the system hanging or shutting down unexpectedly? Were there other anomalies present as the machine began to act up?

Does the machine seem more likely to boot up if it has been off for an extended period?

How many RAM modules are installed?

Let's do some more physical inspection...

Examine the CPU cooler...are the fins clogged with dust? Check the fan(s) on the cooler...power the machine up and watch the CPU fans spin up. Do they seem to start with little effort and reach a good, steady speed very quickly?

Check all the connections, including the IDE cables to ALL the devices that connect to the motherboard. Make sure they are all seated firmly...both ends.

Let me know on the above...

Happy Thanksgiving!

[poppyal]

Hi, wannabe1. O.K. From the beginning. As for the beeps, they went away after I reset CMOS.

The first prob was the racing Power Supply Fan, I thought. It is the CPU fan.

Then the system wouldn't boot.

Then I used another P/S and the unit beeped (that's when I reset CMOS). Then the second P/S raced and I let it go. I then got a boot. The second P/S is not SATA capable, so I could not connect the hard drive - therefore I could not get past the post-boot screen. When I shut down with the second P/S the P/S fan continues to run by itself after shut-down (I have not let it run any length of time to see if it stops running by itself).

The only malfunctions have been due to the P/S not working - as in no boot and beeps due to CMOS appearently needing to be reset.

There are two ram modules installed.

With the original P/S, the machine seemed to boot better after an extended period of time. Now it will not boot at all with the original P/S.

The remaining fans and connections all appear to be operating properly and/or seated properly.

Should I power up with the second P/S and shut down to see if the fan will turn off by itself?

Does that message about the system battery voltage being low have anything to do with this?

Now then, I just reinstalled the second P/S and booted. The CPU fan raced for several moments but the system never booted. When I forced a power off, the CPU fan and the P/S fan quit running. The light on the power button stays solid amber (when powered on), and the diagnostic lights on the rear of the cabinet do not light up at all.

I think that the CPU fan is the one that has been racing all along. But still, the original P/S will not do anything when powered on. All I get is a flashing amber light on the power button. Nothing else.

I hope that this gives you enough proper info to get a grip on this situation. If not, please let me know what else you may need. Thanx.

poppyal1.

[-OCM770-]

Hey wannabe1 seems you graduated as an electrical engineer, the thing those guys most hate are intermittent problems, works then doesn't the it does for a while and boom no go.

As for this case, try removing the new RAM chip and see if it does anything, does anything look burnt or fried on the MOBO? or any resistors or caps green or leaked? do you live in a humid area were corrosion could have something to do with it? Did you do any recent changes to the MOBO before this occurred(added a PCI card, PCIe or similar)?


-OCM770-