Advice Please!!

Ag3nt · 30 Oct 2009 at 19:56

Hi All,

I recently bought this bundle
*OVERCLOCKED* AMD Phenom II X4 Quad Core 955 Black Edition 3.20GHz @ 3.60GHz / Gigabyte GA-MA790XT-UD4P Motherboard / OCZ Platinum AMD Edition 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 1600C7 Bundle

and also

Sapphire ATI Radeon HD 4890 Vapor-X 2048MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card

I am just using the standard CPU Fan which came with the processor.

Can anyone give me some advice about which power supply is needed to run this system, i am currently trying to run it off a 580w PSU.

The board and Graphics gets power ok but there is a red light on the graphics card, and nothing appears on screen. If i leave it on for about 2 minutes it sounds like it makes a noise 4 times quickly then stops.. like its trying to boot from a drive or something maybe this is beeps...

anyone please advise... many thanks in advance.

Ag3nt · 30 Oct 2009 at 20:03

i take back the beeping part... only thing connected to the board is the processor, and ram..power goes in but nothing happens at all.. no beeps etc

Plec · 30 Oct 2009 at 20:13

Ag3nt said:
i am currently trying to run it off a 580w PSU.

What make and how old is the PSU? (it's not a Hiper 580 is it - link?)

Any *quality* 500W PSU should power up the above spec but i personally would get a Corsair 650 or BeQuiet.

Ag3nt · 30 Oct 2009 at 20:26

the power supply is XPower 580w from map lin

i have disconnected all hdd and cd drives so the only thing which is connected is the Motherboard with CPU and CPU Fan, even took out the Ram and there is no beeps or anything from this

Plec · 30 Oct 2009 at 20:36

Try running a skeleton setup outside of the case (cpu, 1 stick memory, gfx) - put the MB on some cardboard.

Try clearing the CMOS.

Additional: Can you get hold of another PSU to try?

If not, these are links from Huddy's site - it has a step by step guide on how to 'Use a multimeter to check your PSU' and one to 'How to check if your PSU is faulty'

Ag3nt · 30 Oct 2009 at 20:44

i dont think the PSU is faulty, i was using it in the same case before with different hardware connected to it, the information at the top to pair in with exisiting dvd drives and hdd's

is the PSU possibly not powerful enough to suit the board?? or if nothing happening could it just be a fauly CPU/Mobo bundle?

Plec · 30 Oct 2009 at 20:49

It's not the best PSU but it should have enough juice to power a skeleton setup if it's funcioning properly.

Have you tried running a skeleton setup outside of the case - as this would rule out a case shorting issue?

Also, i wouldn't rule out the PSU just because it worked in a previous rig. It could be that it was on it's last legs and the move to a more robust system finished it off. I'm not suggesting that it's definitely the PSU at fault but the above test is very quick and would help narrow things down.

Showboat · 30 Oct 2009 at 20:52

PSU has enough power for that setup.

Check with your mobo manufacturer for beep codes on the POST, it's telling you why it's sick!

Ag3nt · 30 Oct 2009 at 21:18

there is no POST beeping

Plec · 30 Oct 2009 at 21:30

Do you have a MB or case speaker? This could be the cause of lack of beeps.

If you've tried a skeleton setup inside the case with zero results, and your reluctant/unable to test the PSU, the skeleton setup outside of the case is the next logical step to rule out shorting.

Ag3nt · 30 Oct 2009 at 21:33

assume case speaker, wire connected to motherboard

not too keen on having everything out on the desk to be honest.

Plec · 30 Oct 2009 at 21:40

Ag3nt said:
not too keen on having everything out on the desk to be honest.

Understandable, but you're running out of troubleshooting options for this type of problem - if you don't have any spare components to hand.

It's possible that the MB is shorting against the case and the only sure way to rule this out is by running a skeleton setup outside of the case.

It's obviously not an ideal but it's a good thing to rule out with your limited options.

Ag3nt · 30 Oct 2009 at 21:54

ok i understand.... i will give it a go.. its been 7 years or more since last built a pc.

i assume i just take out the PSU, Mobo, and run it from just sitting on top of desk/cardboard box.

the Graphics is something which concerns me about the PSU with the Graphics needing a 8 pin and 6 pin power point.. i assume nothing will appear on screen if the graphics card aint powered?

Plec · 30 Oct 2009 at 22:06

Ag3nt said:
i assume i just take out the PSU, Mobo, and run it from just sitting on top of desk/cardboard box.

You can leave the PSU in the case and put it on it's side to help the cables reach - it's up to you.

You can connect the case headers if you want or just use a screwdriver to bridge the header pins to power it up.

Ag3nt said:
the Graphics is something which concerns me about the PSU with the Graphics needing a 8 pin and 6 pin power point.. i assume nothing will appear on screen if the graphics card aint powered?

Usually if the gfx isn't receiving enough power you will get a beep error - but this obviously wont happen if the sytem is failing to boot.

shinester184 · 30 Oct 2009 at 22:20

If you're still not getting any POST beeps, try plugging in your external speakers to the motherboard's 3.5mm audio out jack. For some very strange reason, my mobo has always put its POST beeps through either my speakers or headphones.

Ag3nt · 30 Oct 2009 at 23:15

ok current situation, motherboard has power, fan on cpu is spinning.
only things in case which are connected and got power, cpu/motherboard.

i have tried adding things and taking things out.. when the gfx card is in, and power connected to it, there is a red light on the card (CTF)

tried the Skeleton approach again also no joy

also tried adding speakers to the port in back to listen for beeps, but even with no RAM in there is no beeps

Plec · 30 Oct 2009 at 23:41

Ag3nt said:
when the gfx card is in, and power connected to it, there is a red light on the card (CTF)

Do you have another gfx card you can try?

Ag3nt · 31 Oct 2009 at 09:13

unfortunately not, im going from an old motherboard with AGP, dont dont have a graphcs card to suit.

Ag3nt · 31 Oct 2009 at 10:22

ok sorted one problem out got it now booting..

my next query is CPU Temps..

now that i have managed to get it into bios.

my CPU Temp is 50 and system temp is 43, this is before i have installed anything at all..

i used standard stock fan on the CPU because the one which overclockers provided in the bindle was too big for my case, near touching the side..

is this temp too high.. obviously when i get windows etc installe and a few powerful games how high will this go....

Nocky24 · 31 Oct 2009 at 11:22

Ag3nt said:
ok sorted one problem out got it now booting..

my next query is CPU Temps..

now that i have managed to get it into bios.

my CPU Temp is 50 and system temp is 43, this is before i have installed anything at all..

i used standard stock fan on the CPU because the one which overclockers provided in the bindle was too big for my case, near touching the side..

is this temp too high.. obviously when i get windows etc installe and a few powerful games how high will this go....

Yeh you really don't want to use the stock HSF to be honest. If the coolers too big for your case i'd consider a smaller third party cooler or a bigger case. Using the stock HSF will just end up causing instability. You might be able to ask overclockers to swap the cooler maybe? Providing it hasn't been opened and within 7 days of receipt they might be able to do this, but don't quote me on that.