Having problems with a new build? Try this.

[Grakmor]

The problem is solved.

[Padaxus]

10) Use a small screwdriver to momentarily short the power switch connector on the motherboard.


Im a little confused as to what the power switch connector is.

Is this the long bracket power lead for the motherboard??

Whta exactly should i do in simple steps would be nice.

Thnx

[HAL9000]

Since you have built out of the case, unless you can get the power switch leads from the case to reach your motherboard, you need some way to close the contacts on the motherboard itself. Identify the pinouts for the power switch and momentarily bridge them with a screwdriver (or whatever) to start the system.

[Padaxus]

well the power lead will reach so ill just plug it in and switch on

thnx Hal

[Padaxus]

Got back to working on comp today followed what u posted and removed the MB etc etc

hooked up the power switch jumper and the little speaker jumper

pressed power and turned it on

still nothing
no picture no beeps nothing

so now what?? as im stumped oes this mean something is expensibly wrong???

its not the Gcard cos im using it now!
i just get nothing on start up

I also set eveything to Default.

[glc]

No beeps at all, the CPU isnt starting. Some boards require that a CPU fan be plugged into the correct header on the board - but if that's OK, you have a bad CPU, bad mobo, or bad power supply.

[Padaxus]

ok so the question is now, how do i find out which it is??

The fan spins on the Heatsink and the Green LED lights up.

as for the correct header im using the only one thats close enough to the fan.
So now the Mobo or the CPU how can i find out what has gone poof.

In order to hear beeps im assuming the speaker lead needs to be pluged in correct???

Should i try reseting the Cmos?? or will this not help at all?

[mike breck]

In order to hear beeps im assuming the speaker lead needs to be pluged in correct???

Yes, unless the mobo has a little onboard piezo speaker, you will have to connect the PC Speaker.

ok so the question is now, how do i find out which it is??

When the mobo is out of the case, the first thing to do is reseat the CPU/Heatsink Fan (HSF), making sure the Heatsink is on the right way and sitting perfectly level on the CPU. Also reseat the Video Card and Ram.

"Some" mobos won't boot unless the HSF is connected to the Fan header on the mobo. The mobo manual or manufacturer's website should tell you.

Some mobos won't boot if the HSF draws too much power off the Fan header on the mobo or gives a bad signal to the mobo. In that case, you need to connect the HSF directly to the PSU instead of the mobo.

With your mobo manual in one hand and a magnifying glass in the other, chech and double-check all the jumpers and dipswitches on the mobo are set correctly. If in any doubt about a setting, then just ask. Someone's bound to know.

Once you have stripped the system down to the Mobo, Cpu, Video card, and Ram, you can try narrowing the troubleshooting even further by taking out the Ram. If the Mobo and Cpu are healthy, you should usually hear "missing ram" beeps from the mobo.

If you hear nothing, then you have probably narrowed it down to the CPU or Mobo.

However, the only effective way to to determine which part is faulty is by substituting "known working parts" for each in turn.

You try different Ram, a different video card, a different PSU, another working CPU with the mobo, or the CPU in another working mobo.

When it comes to substituting Ram or a PSU, there is no point in substituting cheap generic Ram or a cheap PSU; otherwise you may just be replacing one problem with another. Go with good quality Crucial Ram and Sparkle, Enermax, or PC Power and Cooling PSUs. By using good-quality parts, you will have a solid base for troubleshooting.

If you do not have spare parts to do this, then you can either get a local PC shop to do the testing for you (this will cost you a fee unless you bought the parts from them) or as most people seem to do, just send the parts back (RMA them) and have them replaced.

HTH

[Padaxus]

Well

I removed the ram and started the board with just CPU and fan still no beeps im not even sure if the speaker works but ill assume it does.

Ill trya few more variations and get back to ya all

[gladiator]

AAhh the sweet smell of success

Thanks HAl for the guidance

My second comp build went without a problem at all.

MSI-KT3-ULTRA2 "bios 7.00"
AthlonXp1800- FSB133@1533MHZ
512DDR PC2700- Samsung
Chaintech-TNT-32mb
WD407200BB

MSI MB came with on board sound that sounds excellent just on 2 channel I can up it to 6 channel if I buy a adapter

It also came with PChealth where i can see the CPU temp and fan speeds and all voltages.
and it came with fuzzy logic where I can adjust fsb-voltage etc. without going into the Bios- so cool
Me and my 13 yr old son built it together.

right now I'm running bios defaults except I upped the FSB to 133
I left it on all night and it was running smooth this morning

[wickedstyle]

THx alot dude!!!

[Rusty1]

This is my first attempt at building a computer and I am having some problems just getting it boot up.

I bought a barebones kit with these parts:

AMD Athlon XP 1700+ Processor
K-byte premium 128 MB PC2100 DDR 16X64 266MHz
Soyo K7ADA DDR Socket A barebone w/300W AMD PS
Seagate 40.8GB EIDE HD 5400/2MB/8.9/ATA-100
Speeze Socket A/370 Cooling Fan up to 1.4 GHz

We assembled the unit and started it up, we have no display or beep sounds. We have double checked switches, jumpers and wiring. We tried the test of removing the motherboard, we still have no display or beep sounds. The mother board will power up even though I have not shorted power pins. When we had the system first assembled the system would come up as soon as we turned on the power switch on the back of the computer. The power switch on the front will not turn system on or off, the dvd rom drive will not open or close, we suspect our cpu is faulty. Any suggestions would be most appreciated.

[catch23]

The only problem I've had like that with socket A mobos/cpus is when a motherboard shorted, and fried the CPU in it...would not give any display, though it would turn on...then fried another CPU when it was put into the motherboard...

You may want to go down to a local computer store and ask if they can test the mobo and CPU.

[highrisemech]

Rusty1 it sounds like you may have a power supply problem....
I say this because the cd drive is not funtioning properly which is not system dependent for it's door funtion.

[Rusty1]

highrisemech,

What do you think is not getting powered? How can I check it?

[highrisemech]

There are ways to check it but I'm on my way out the door right now. But it does appear that you have a faulty power supply.
I would try another. You need a quality one for AMD's

[progex]

I hope I can butt in here quick.

I just have a brief question: I just built my first computer (btw, it's does not POST. So I'm going to RMA it)... And the Hard Drive LED doesn't blink/light up. The HD is up and running and is spinning.

So, what I'm asking is: Even if the computer won't POST, will the HD LED be active or not?

Thanks.

[highrisemech]

Progex,
You probably need to reset your cmos either by jumper or with the computer unplugged take out battery for a minute, then put it back in. Power up.

[udayagiri_ramana]

Hi
I assembled the new pc from the parts. I am trying to setup the software part of the assembly. when I turn the power switch, i see the fan in the power supply and fan on the CPU are rotating. But as the manual says there is no display on the monitor but there was some beeping sound. IS there any thing i should do to enter in to BIOS?
I am using S2390/Trinity KT (from Tyan) mother board and AMD Duron processor.
Could some body suggest me some idea.
thanku

[kilim1376]

P4S8X and Kingston 512MB DDR PC2700 333MHz 184pin DIMM KVR333X64C25/512
Like the title: P4S8X and Kingston 512MB DDR PC2700 333MHz 184pin DIMM KVR333X64C25/512 are they compatible.

I jumped and Bought myself the Asus P4S8X and the Kingston 512MB DDR PC2700 333MHz 184pin DIMM KVR333X64C25/512.

Has any1 here tried that and find out anything wrong or is it working well?


I am a newb here so pls help me out.
Ok...I just tried to put it all together.

turned it on w/ just Mobo, Systems states no CPu..ok
Turned on w/ Mobo & CPU, states no memory...ok
Turned on w/ mobo, CPU & my stated above memory, states NOTHING...Not a thing!...Bad

I guess its either the memory socket is bad ( need replace mobo) or its the Kingston memory is nt compatible

Gonna get just a 256 ddr at this CPU show n sale tomorrow and hopefuly that will do it.

I am a noob here so bear w/ me.

When I log everything on, video monitor dont even tun on!


What could I be doing wrong?

heres what I have:

20GB HDD IBM (Master)
40GB HDD WD (Slave) (edit) I have both drives in one cable and put in IDE 1)
3.5 Floppy
Sound Blaster Audigy gamers
Ge Force 4 MX 4400
Intel 2.4 MHZ 533 FSB Processor (w/ included retail HSF)
CDRW
DVD/CD-Rom
Thermaltake TT-420apd PSU
Xaser II 5000 Case

and the P4S8X w/ the 512 kingston pc2700 333mhz ddr ram.

like I stated I tried to see what is wron by turning it on parts by parts and find out what is wrong via the asus help voice thing.

it runs ok until I put the Kingston memory in.

what could I be doing wrong?
I am thinking either bad memory socket (hence replace board...hope not) or bad kingston memory stick.


please help me out.


PS: How can u manually change all that u are stating when my Vdeo dot even turn on (my monitor just stays in amber mode)

(edit) And like I said, once I power on, amber monitor and that is it.

green power light is on in the mobo, fans working, power light on in the case...
HDD & CD/DVD seems to be humming on.

[ur4dr]

thanks for good list, Ram stic is neccessary because I solved 70% of my fault by cleaning Ram stics. battary is also important 10% of my fault solved by battary.

[wickedstyle]

thx alot man!!

[Toolman35]

ok, I have just dont this and I get just a shot of power and thats all. after turning it off and doing it again I get same results everytime... That all I get just enough power long enough to just spin the fans. I never actually hear the ps running...(My last build was with AT board so I know nothinh about these ATX boards)
Man I need some help here....
thanks.
..

[geeoh]

Maybe of some help

After using the valuable information posted in this forum (thanks HAL9000 for starting the tips and tricks) I had a situation that was a variant of several different ones. I am putting a computer together using a couple of older computers and there parts with a "new power supply" and a newer amd athlon 1.4 and ddr motherboard. These parts all worked on there own in there respective cases but when I assembled them in the "Best Of Parts Case" all that worked was the light on the cdrom and the case fan (the cdrom drawer would open and fan on the power supply was working) but there were NO beeps and the monitor stayed in its sleep mode. After going over the various parts as HAL9000 and other forum members suggested I connected a different PSU and now the computer starts and runs. Somewhere in changing out the new PSU (during testing) in one case to the better case one of the 20 Pin connector wires failed as I have checked it for continuity and it is where it is attached inside of plastic housing onto the metal connector. Hope this may help someone else.

_________________________

Remember Murphys Law "the last thing you replace is the first thing that goes bad"

[Truth]

There is one little item I haven't seen posted, and this may help. Check the voltage switch on the power supply. If set wrong it may keep the PS from powering up. Yep, I learned this myself a few years back.

[Andrewxcav]

Hal, what about attching a pc speaker?
my mobo tries to tell me htings with that about what components arent working.

[glc]

Yes, attach a speaker if you can. Some new motherboards have an onboard piezo speaker and you don't need a case speaker with those.

[ILLPHIL]

after I short the power connectors to turn it on, how do I turn it off afterwards to move into case?

[Alfie]

You can turn it off by the switch on the back of the psu or simply unplug it.

[ur4dr]

You can also turn off pc by pressing powerswitch for 30 second