Prepare to Defibrillate! CLEAR!

[vaxocentric]

My computer decided to get the Death again. Similar issue as before- it is sitting there, being all happy, nothing going on, then *poof* screens black out, PSU fan kicks into high gear, and everything locks up. Warm rebooting (via reset button) does not work- the video does not init and the BIOS does not POST (the HDDs do not boot the OS, as

Comments

[b_phil]

Heh, my friends make fun of me for my bad luck with expensive electronics. Had a Dell Lattitude laptop, borked something up in it trying to dual-boot Linux and Windows, and managed to screw it up in such a way that Windows would not reinstall, but Linux would, so I ended up running on that until Dell shipped me a replacement hard drive with the OS pre-loaded. I switched the drives out, got everything running, and gave it to my mom as a birthday gift

[vaxocentric]

Some days I feel like that- where all technology is out to get me. Particularly when things that shouldn't break do. Like my land telephone line. Or my keyboard just quits working (that was thanks to Vista, though). Or motion-detection flood light doesn't work. What the hell, world?

[insideyourhead]

I believe at the time I gave it a 65% chance of being a PS issue... The good news is that by investing in a house you have virtually eliminated the possibility of it being a voltage problem from the wall outlet.

[insideyourhead]

On second thought, actually the problem is that it's possessed... The only solution is to give that computer to me and get a new one.

[twinbee]

Try holding down the power button to turn off instead of pulling the power from the back. If the PSU does not power down after 5 seconds of holding, it is definitely a PSU issue. Otherwise, it could be PSU, motherboard, or even memory related. Best bet though is that you're underpowered.

Another thing you can try is to run Prime95 on a fresh boot (it works fine for at least a few minutes, right?). See if it causes your trouble on cue. If it does, you are underpowered.

[vaxocentric]

Oh, I can get it to shut off no problem by holding the power button. Works like a champ. The PC just won't POST when I turn it back on unless I completely discharge the mobo/psu (I flip the master power switch off, and press the power button to 'turn on' the PC, wait a second, then flip the power back on and press the power button to really start it. That used to only work 10-20% of the time, now it's working 50% of the time

[twinbee]

AH.

Did you use the "extra" 4-pin adapter from the PSU to an ATX motherboard? Motherboards that need that can usually force a kick in the PSU fan speed. It sounds like it might be a motherboard issue, or a PSU / MB non-nicety.

Also, PSU ratings differ greatly.. I only trust ratings from brands like Antec, and I am always suspicious of high ratings. Its kinda like how tires are.. the ones with really insanely high ratings are always some of the worst ones, bc they're often just exaggerated to sell.

[vaxocentric]

Yes- It is connected. I'm also thinking it could be something fuckity between the PSU/mobo- that would make sense. And OCZ is far from prestigious. If the problems persist, I'll swap out with another brand. Mobo is Asus though, so one would think it would be compatible with just about anything. Thanks for your input! I'll let you know what I find if I have to do any more troubleshooting.

[iheartoothecae]

Crap! They forgot to stop by my place to pick up their Key to the Genera of Adult Ceratopogonidae in Costa Rica! Now they'll never be able to identify those tiny biting gnats. :(

[vaxocentric]

You didn't hear them banging on your door at 4 this morning?!! They're going to be so disappointed. Might as well cancel the trip.

[vaxocentric]

Only on rare occasion. I got it for my trip to Europe to help me rapidly adjust to the time differential. I can't say that it affects me the same way it affects you, though!