Which is favourite to RMA - PC won't boot

Marse

Marse

Marse

Associate
Joined
6 Jul 2007
Posts
464
Location
Northumberland
I've got a new build, main items all new, which won't boot.

There's power to fans etc. I don't have a spare PSU or much of anything useful spare to try swapping kit around.

I could go in to the full details but I've done all the testing I can think of and the motherboard (Asus P6X58D-E Intel X58 MB) 'MemOK' switch shows red no matter what I do.

Any thoughts on what is most likely to be cause of the problem ie in which order should I consider RMA.

1..Motherboard
2..PSU
3..Ram
4..CPU

Each time I get it wrong I think could cost me around £30 - £35 a shot and a lot of downtime.
 
Lian-Li B25FB
Intel Core i7 950 3.06GHz (Bloomfield) (Socket LGA1366)
MSI GeForce GTX 460 Cyclone 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card
Asus P6X58D-E Intel X58
Corsair HX 750W ATX Modular SLI Compliant
Prolimatech Megahalems Rev B CPU Cooler (Socket 775/1156/1366)
Patriot Viper 6GB (3x2GB) DDR3 12800C8 1600MHz Low Latency Triple Channel (PVT36G1600LLK)
 
If it doesnt work with any of the 3 sticks of ram and you have tried disconnecting all additional components such as hdd and optical drives etc then all thats left is the motherboard, cpu, graphics and psu.

Most likely I would say is graphics, then motherboard, then cpu then power supply.
 
Ram installed in recommended slots ie A1,B1 and C1.
Each module inserted one at a time in slot C1, other slots empty, which seems to be recommended if you have problems.
Per ASUS Forum IIRC.

I've tried with the GPU, Drives etc disconnected/removed
All leads to the case front panel disconnected - except speaker

Dismantled, examined and reassembled

and still the same - it won't boot
 
Last edited:
DO the components power up at all and do the fans spin ie signs of life but no boot? Are all power connectors ie 24/8/4 pin connectors connected properly to motherboard?
 
welshdragon said:
DO the components power up at all and do the fans spin ie signs of life but no boot? Are all power connectors ie 24/8/4 pin connectors connected properly to motherboard?
Click to expand...

Yes to all - (one x 24 pin & 1 x 8 pin to motherboard) ;)
 
Bubba said:
Are you sure this motherboard will POST without a GPU? Some of them wont.
Click to expand...

It certainly won't post with it connected.

I must have seen that recommended somewhere although not necessarily with my combo.

I've tested with & without.

Edit: If it won't boot without a GPU then the GPU is still a possibility.
If it should boot without then I can eliminate the GPU.
It would be nice to know which way it is.
Assuming there's only one faulty component.
 
Last edited:
first thing ill do is take it apart completly and rebuilt, perhaps u'll have better luck.

also, when u press the power button, what happens, nothing, or do the fans jolt at all ?

at this point its unlikly to be ram or gpu, if they were broken/missing, u would still get power, just no post.

think without a cpu u'll still get the fans spinning up, so either the motherboard or PSU is most likly.
have u tryed a different power cable ? perhaps the fuse has gone

have u made sure the power switch is plugged in correctly into the motherboard ?

althou check the reset bios jumper is not enabled.

and do u get any lights on the motherboard at all ?
 
Cycrow said:
first thing ill do is take it apart completly and rebuilt, perhaps u'll have better luck.
I've stripped it down and rebuilt it once - but thanks - I'll think about that
also, when u press the power button, what happens, nothing, or do the fans jolt at all ?
All Fans spin normally - power to DVD & HDD's etc
at this point its unlikly to be ram or gpu, if they were broken/missing, u would still get power, just no post.

think without a cpu u'll still get the fans spinning up, so either the motherboard or PSU is most likly.
MB & PSU in that order to me
have u tryed a different power cable ? perhaps the fuse has gone
I get power to the PC & the circuit is ok
have u made sure the power switch is plugged in correctly into the motherboard ?
Yes - several times - also 'powered' up from switch on MB
althou check the reset bios jumper is not enabled.
Will do
and do u get any lights on the motherboard at all ?
Yes
Click to expand...

Thank you
 
I can't find a 'reset bios jumper'.
There is a BIOS reset button on the back of the PC so perhaps one isn't fitted ?.

All other jumpers ie CPU/DRAM Bus/QPI etc all seem to be per the manual.
 
I'd try to populate 2 memory slots only (to minimise possibility of one memory stick fault) and do CMOS reset first. If it helps - go to BIOS at first boot and set up all your hardware & do save.

If you can't find CMOS reset - remove battery for longer while (5 mins).
 
I've tried each of the memory modules one at at a time in C1 which seems to be recommended in this situation.

That could suggest either they're all faulty or the problem is elsewhere.

Presumably that's a better option than 2 at a time ?.

I can't help thinking it's unlikely they're all faulty - perhaps that's wishful thinking.

I've had the CMOS battery out for at least 15 minutes although I'll probably try again.
 
have u got a speaker plugged in ?

not all cases come with one, but it can be useful to determine the cause, as u get a sequence of beeps to tell the problem.
 
The speaker is on its own short lead and I've always had it plugged in - I hope it works.......Thanks
 
I haven't although I have tried removing all the connections to the front of the case and powered up from the power switch on the motherboard.

Presumably trying it outside the case would eliminate any possible shorts inside the case.

I'm sure I haven't created one but that doesn't mean there aren't any.

If nothing else crops up I'll give that a try before any RMA.
 
i have seen a couple of threads regarding that motherboard not working. Nothing on the scale of the whole OCZ gold saga, but is doesnt seem to be the RAM, psu is unlikely as it is powering, and i would have thought the board would have beeped if it was the GC at fault.

If it were me, id pick the motherboard.
 
It sounds like a similar problem I had a while back. Different motherboard tbh, but very similar symptons. Everything powered up, couldn't get it to post at all. Tested the ram/gpu/cpu/psu, bought a replacement mobo. Problem solved. Turned out a bus for the PCI-e had blown and was stopping everything else from booting. (still wondering if there is a fix I could try for that actually *hint hint*)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom