[Jake26]

My inspiron 6400 will not turn on, when i push the power button the lights light up on the no 9 , the A and the downward arrow in locks for a few seconds then only the no 9 stays on and the other 2 flash on and off. This continues for about 20 secs then it turns itself off?
any ideas on whats gone wrong?

the power lead seems to wobble a bit in the socket? could this be the problem?

cheers

[rshaffer61]

Hello Jake26.... Welcome to GeeksToGo,

I'm sorry to hear about your issue. We will try to help you resolve this as soon as possible.
Please understand we are all volunteers and we are not here all the time. Sometimes it may be a extended amount of time to get back to you. If it has been more then 3 days please shoot me a PM and I will try to get back to you quickly then.

It sounds to me like you have either a PSU or a Motherboard problem.
Did this just start or were you getting intermittent startups or shutdowns?

[Jake26]

it just started today, was working fine last time I used it a couple of days ago.
thanks for your reply, apreciate any advice. thanks

[rshaffer61]

Since the power seems to start with the LED's lighting up I would say it is more of a MOBO problem.

Is the system under any warranty at this point?

[Jake26]

the warranty has expired unfortunately. sorry MOBO? is that motherboard?

[rshaffer61]

MOBO = Motherboard
Sorry for the confusion.
How old is the system?
Have you tried to disconnect and test just the MOBO?
If not do the following.

Disconnect everything from the Motherboard except

• keyboard
  
• mouse
  
• video output
  
• 20+4 powercable
  
• 4/8 pin 12v wire both coming from the powersupply,
  
• Cpu fan wire
  
• power and reset button to the case
  
• case speaker

Now you should have NOTHING connected to the motherboard except what was listed above.

The goal here is just to test the mobo:

[Jake26]

ok, ive not really done anything like this before but ill have a go, thanks

[rshaffer61]

No problem. Let me know if the system will start then after disconnecting everything.

[Jake26]

good news! Just checked the warranty to make sure and it is still under warranty, so I have got dell on the case now they think it could be a memory problem or the motherboard like you said so will see if they can sort it. thanks for your help sorry to waste your time. cheers

[rshaffer61]

Good doing the double check.
Not a waste of time as this is what we all are here for.
I'm happy to be of help and please let me know what they discover.
BTW just a FYI, in most cases a memory error would create a series of beeps.
MOBO problem is what I'm betting you have.

[ronaldspartan1989]

Jake26, on Oct 12 2009, 09:43 AM, said:

My inspiron 6400 will not turn on, when i push the power button the lights light up on the no 9 , the A and the downward arrow in locks for a few seconds then only the no 9 stays on and the other 2 flash on and off. This continues for about 20 secs then it turns itself off?
any ideas on whats gone wrong?

the power lead seems to wobble a bit in the socket? could this be the problem?

cheers

[ronaldspartan1989]

i have just the same problem as you,
so if your laptop is repaired plz let me know what was the problem,
was it the motherboard or the memory.

thanks
cheers

[robsix]

Same problem as described.

Cleaned the motherboard, and got the 3 millimeters of dust out of the heatsink...

Turned it on and the lights started blinking.

Will reversing the RAM modules correct the problem?

WHere is the best place to get a replacement motherboard for the Dell Inspiron 6400? IS there a way to tell if its the RAM or the motherboard?

Any help will be greatly appreciated.

Thank you,

Rob

[robsix]

Gentlemen,

It was a hair stuck in the RAM module...

Such relief...

I was so depressed last night I almost couldn't sleep. Now? ELATION!!