System starts at 4th or 5th try...

zer · 3 Jul 2013 at 13:05

Hi everyone! It seems that recently pc refuses to boot when i press "power" button.Nothing happens. So i press it again after 2 sec and still nothing. After 4,5 or 6 tries it finally boots and everything is normal. No resets out of the blue, no BSOD,nothing. So:

Do you think it's the PSU? It's Corsair, 750W, relativelly expensive and bought 2 years ago. Isn't it too early to fail?

Could it be the "power" button? Case is Thermaltake Element V

Any other ideas?

How can i check PSU? Is there a software that i can use?

Rest of the System is : Amd X4 965BE, Nvidia 275GTX, 3 SATA hdd, 4 Gb Ram, Win XP, Xonar DG sound card.

Many thanks in advance!!!

RJC · 3 Jul 2013 at 13:08

Checking psu:

http://www.corsair.com/en/blog/testing-your-corsair-power-supply/

Do you have a multimeter so you check the power button when pressed.

zer · 3 Jul 2013 at 13:28

Thanks for answering! Well, unforunatelly , at age 45 i am not too savvy with all those dismantling- checking-reassembling the desktop buisness... That's why i asked for a software i can d/load and check PSU with.... I take it there isn't... Any other thing i can do to check? Do you think it's the PSU?

RJC · 3 Jul 2013 at 15:17

There's not really any software that will help or give any meaningfull results.

You could try a CMOS reset on the motherboard just in case it's this giving grief, but you may need to try some hands on tests to prove which item is or could be faulty.

Leprechaun312 · 3 Jul 2013 at 15:26

you wouldn't have to dismantle, just take out all the power cables but leave them dangling beside the slot they came from, test the psu and then put the cables back in the slots they came from, it would be a lot easier than dismantling the whole destop. If your case has a reset switch you could also try putting the reset switch in the power switch slot and test to see if the switch is at fault, as the reset switch will do the same thing as the power switch

zer · 3 Jul 2013 at 16:33

Thanks! It DOES have a reset button. So, again, how do i do this? Do i have to "switch cables" or s'thing?

Leprechaun312 · 3 Jul 2013 at 18:04

on the bottom right of the mother board there should be a section with few 2-3mm thick cables go into headers, it probably in a plastic case and the headers that go into the motherboard should be named "power sw" "reset sw" "HDD LED" "PW LED" ...etc switch the pw switch with the reset sw and the press the reset switch, if the pc turns on first time you have a dodgy power switch

zer · 3 Jul 2013 at 23:10

Got that! I'll try it tommorrow and let you know! Thanks!

zer · 4 Jul 2013 at 20:38

Ok. Done that but unfortunatelly no deal....So it's not the Power button.
Then, it has to be a failling Psu? Could it be s/thing else? Should i go ahead and buy a new PSU?

RJC · 4 Jul 2013 at 20:41

Before you do that did you remove the GPU and try with the onboard graphics?

zer · 4 Jul 2013 at 20:47

Nope... Nice idea!
Another thing i just remembered is that it all started when i replaced the stock CPU cooler with Arctic Silver 7 Pro. Could it be that it drains more watt from PSU?

RJC · 4 Jul 2013 at 20:51

The Corsair PSU is a good psu and the AC7 pro cooler would not course the PSU any issue.

zer · 4 Jul 2013 at 20:57

RJC said:
The Corsair PSU is a good psu and the AC7 pro cooler would not course the PSU any issue.

Yes, i see that you have exactly the same Psu yourself with a much much bigger GFX card. I bought it 2 years ago- isn't it a bit early to fail?
But what else can it be?
PS Now PC boots at the 10th or so try..... :mad:

It's getting worse , doctor!!!!!!

Leprechaun312 · 4 Jul 2013 at 21:19

you could try reinstalling the heatsink it might be on too tight and that has been known to cause issues

zer · 4 Jul 2013 at 21:24

Leprechaun312 said:
you could try reinstalling the heatsink it might be on too tight and that has been known to cause issues

Really?

I'll try that as well then!

RJC · 4 Jul 2013 at 21:24

This is were the PSU test above will come in handy as this will re-create what the start button does.

Try the onboard gpu and have a go at doing the PSU test, its not that hard todo

My PSU is around the same age, PSU can fail regardless of manufacturer, its the case of going through the different to prove is the PSU faulty or another component.

Leprechaun312 · 4 Jul 2013 at 21:48

also do try a psu test like rjc says, it will take less than 5 mins and will save you time

zer · 7 Jul 2013 at 18:14

Well, you wouldn't believe how things developed....!
In my desperation i tried entering BIOS, went to PC health tab and enabled CPU FAN SMART CONTROL.Guys, that was it! Pc starts on first try!
I suppose new CPU cooler (Arctic Silver 7) draws a lot of Watts from PSU (150 iirc), probably much more than the old stock cooler, and that crushed my PSU.
Any comments?
Is this a sign of a failing PSU?

Hakanese · 8 Jul 2013 at 01:28

Have you overclocked your cpu before your problems began?

Confused Stu · 8 Jul 2013 at 01:47

zer said:
I suppose new CPU cooler (Arctic Silver 7) draws a lot of Watts from PSU (150 iirc), probably much more than the old stock cooler

Just to put you straight, the Freezer Pro quotes 150W as the maximum amount of power the CPU uses that this fan can cope with. According to Arctic's own figures, the cooler itself uses 0.24A at 12V, which equates to less than 3W. As you can see, your PSU would have to be running VERY close to it's limit for this to be the difference between working and not working.

As to your main question, in my experience PSUs rarely give problems unless they're very cheap no-name ones. Usually quality ones, like yours, will either work or go bang and not work. Your system will be pulling a maximum of 400W from the wall (probably less) so your PSU would be one of the last places I'd be looking as the potential cause. Have you tried resetting your CMOS as RJC suggested? Also, have you checked your motherboard manufacturers website to see if there's a later BIOS for your board?