Older pc is fried? - no boot...

[katzdvd]

My older pc shut down abruptly yesterday, (2004 build) nothing labor intensive going on, just surfing the 'net. I tried a known good PS in it, & it powered up long enough to boot windows & then shut down again.

I guess I have deeper problems at this point; what are we thinking; cpu/mainboard? I wanted some input before I started spending $$$ on replacement parts...

[locoeng]

The best suggestion I have is to just give it to me and I'll see if I can salvage it for parts...

But on a serious note, I think this might be one for chewy...both PSU's work in other PC's with no issues?

[katzdvd]

Yeah, PS are known good; my fears are that the mobo or cpu is done for. I just plunked down $$$ on my new build & haven't recovered enough to do a second one!

Plus, the video card that I put in that pc recently is agp, & I know alot of the newer boards are pci express/other... don't want to sit a perfectly good vid. card on the shelf when I just recently bought it...

[locoeng]

I feel your pain...I wish I knew more about the nitty gritty of a PC, but I don't.

[katzdvd]

Well, I do know a wee bit about the nitty-gritty, & that is what concerns me at this point; it can't be much else other that the major stuff I listed...

Bad part is, since it is older technology, much of it can't really be salvaged...

[jm1647]

You could try a bare bones boot, I HDD, I stick of RAM and see what happens. Then if it don't swap with another stick of RAM maybe in a different slot too and see what happpens. Also make sure everything is seated properly

Good Luck !!!!

[katzdvd]

Well, I might have lucked out on this one.

Running absolutely barebones; 1 stick ram, main boot HD, & it will boot & run fine, as long as I don't call on it to do anything heavy-duty, such as gaming, etc. I am using a very old 250 wt. PS from an old HP that we were getting ready to throw out, & it just doesn't have any extra juice to spare!

So, off to newegg for a new thermaltake! Better than plunking down $$$ for a new mobo/cpu/ram, so I can live on borrowed time for a little longer!

[PrinceBytore]

May want to check the fan on the CPU. I had one that kept rebooting everytime I tried to play a game. The fan on the CPU was spinning, but only at about 1000 RPMs rather than the 4000 to 5000 that it was supposed to. Bought a new heatsink/fan combo and slapped it on and things have been great ever since.

[Chewy]

old power supply, new vid card, old fans with increased resistance/load

minimal boot with fewer components usually is power supply, every now and then a bad cpu, especially one that's been redlined(run hot)

any fan that's noisy or dirty/slow will pull the voltage rails too low to boot

I had an old 486cpu fan on a vid card that kept me from booting

drop of wd40 and 160 psi air and 10k rpm can give you a few weeks/months

PS's get real crappy as you can't clean them out easily?

[katzdvd]

Thank to all for the input;

@ Chewy: I don't run that pc "hot" so hopefully the cpu is okay. Good info. on the old fans/etc., that kind of thing is easy to overlook. It has the original intake fan, should probably replace it.
I am "limping" along w/ an old 250 wt. PS in it now, just ordered 500 watt Xion from newegg, will be here in a few days, then pc will be "happy" again!

[dazuk1972]

My older pc shut down abruptly yesterday, (2004 build) nothing labor intensive going on, just surfing the 'net. I tried a known good PS in it, & it powered up long enough to boot windows & then shut down again.

I guess I have deeper problems at this point; what are we thinking; cpu/mainboard? I wanted some input before I started spending $$$ on replacement parts...

This might be a different issue but twice I've had problems where I couldn't boot-up and when I left my PC off und unplugged for a day or two things went back to normal. On the other hand you might have a serious problem that can't be sorted with my method. The first time it happened to me was when a lot of static electricity got in and the second when my monitor blew-up the other day but it only need a day to rest things out for my PC.

At the moment I'm getting a little worried about my PC because it's making a different sound at times and it starts doing that sometimes about two hours of use and I'm worried about it overheating. I've cleared the fans from any dust but it still does it. It might be the hot weather causing too much hot air getting in and too much for the PC to handle.

By the way, does your PC shut itself down as soon as you press the power button or does it do it a few minutes after boot-up?

Darren.

[doctorhardware]

@katz I have several ps that I can send out to you free I am being yelled at I have too much stuff. The offer is there.

[katzdvd]

Hi dr.

I appreciate your offer(s) , & one of these days I am going to take you up on them!

However, I ordered a 500 wt. Xion from newegg a couple day ago, & it arrived yesterday; installed & everything is running like a dream!

Newegg is the best - I have never had such fast shipping from any company in the past, other than vitacost.com (nutrition store).

[Chewy]

time and time again people neglect the importance of POWER

I am bad about cutting corners there myself

[katzdvd]

time and time again people neglect the importance of POWER

I am bad about cutting corners there myself

Well, I have learned a couple things on here...

We all want to save $$$; I was bad about buying cheap ram, esp. off of ebay; I would take a gamble, & most times it did work, I only ever received one "dead" stick, which the seller replaced. But being a member of this fine forum, I have learned the value of quality ram, & for that matter, quality components in general. When I look back at some of the builds I have done...

I guess I just got lucky