Computer in constant boot loop ,please help totally lost to as what it could be

chris-82 · 1 Sep 2018 at 14:43

So as title really,my pc is in a constant boot loop ,it can make it to the windows repairing screen (not always)but then boots again,it won't boot in safe mode ,if I try to re install windows(windows 7 disc) it loads the two bars but then crashes as soon as I see a pixel of the windows sign come up,it won't boot from usb(windows 10),I can get into BIOS and everything seems fine,we managed to get ultimate boot cd to boot but only to the main menu ,the linux distro parteepmagic wouldnt boot and then crashed ,and in a recent development it can't even see my boot drive now .

I was using the pc to stream to my steam box ,I was watching Netflix and suddenly it all crashed ,I went downstairs to check the pc and it had crashed ,I had a message (can't remember exactly ) saying something along the lines of a voltage spike/issue ,in a few of the early boot loops I also had a few messages regarding failed overclock however at this point I had reset the bios,so should have been running stock.

So far I've :

Tried another PSU.(Corsair GS 700)
Removed the GPU.
Removed and tried the ram in different slots.
Had the ram and CPU tested(working fine apparently,he said he booted into windows and did some stress tests and all was fine)
Tried my ssd boot drive in two other PCs and worked fine.
Changed case.
Reset bios within bios,reset by connecting pins on the motherboard ,and then by removing the cmos battery and connecting the pins.
Changed motherboard(original is a Asus z170k,new is MSI tomahawk z270k)

Pc spec:
Seasonic x series psu
I5 6600k
Asus z170k mobo/MSI tomahawk z270k
Kingston hyper X ddr4 ram 8gb (2x4gb sticks)
120gb SanDisk Extreme boot drive
Armour 1070

I'm at a total loss as to what is going on here and I'm hoping someone here could shed some light on the matter before I pull out all my hair! ,any help is much appreciated .

chris-82 · 1 Sep 2018 at 14:57

I have a armour 1070,when I removed the GPU I used the motherboards HDMI port,it still posted however i believe we got no signal,but when we used DVI it posted we got signal and could go into BIOS and such.

I have updated my post with my pc specs.

chris-82 · 1 Sep 2018 at 16:04

Sorry I should have had that in the description ,it's 2x 4gb ,I have tried them in all slots one by one ,with no joy ,they have also been tested along with the CPU at the local computer shop.

chris-82 · 1 Sep 2018 at 20:43

It does it with or without the GPU installed ,it does it with two different motherboards,two different psu's ,in my mind it has to be ram or processor ,however they have been checked and from the test results are deemed to be working fine.

It's absouletly bizarre and am at a loss to the problem.

chris-82 · 1 Sep 2018 at 21:57

It is a possibility ,I shall format the drive tomorrow on the missus pc and re install windows and re-try it,I haven't tried the GPU in another rig yet so will also install the 1070 into her rig and see what happens ,however when it's out of my rig it still boot loops.

How do you mean rest CPU?

I sadly know nobody with any ddr4 memory or a 1151 socket cpu ,that's why I ended up taking it to the local shop to be tested.

Thanks for the suggestions,I will give all the things mentioned a go and report back!

chris-82 · 1 Sep 2018 at 23:21

Yeah I have a few other drives I can try ,but will try my missus os drive before I try my storage drives ,yeah I've got a few days cables I can try and got some new ones I recieved with my new mobo,so will give them a try also tomorrow.

I will have a look into using Rufus to make a windows 10 usb stick also if the above doesn't help,only problem I've found is it won't boot from usb ,but will give it a try.

Thanks for advice everyone ,will give everything a try that's been suggested and report back,thanks again.

chris-82 · 2 Sep 2018 at 18:53

okay ,so ive tried :

3 different sata cables - no change.
removed gpu and used onboard graphics through hdmi - no change.
tried the missus os drive - no change.
used my psu in her pc - everything worked fine .

we tried ultimate boot cd for testing mem and such and it wouldnt even start and some operations made it crash,
i will look into making a bootable memtest and running it on the computer and see how it goes .

no luck with anything i tried sadly ,the only things i havent personally tested is the cpu and ram and at this point im really leaning towards it being the cpu tbh.

so looking for a i5 6600k or 6700k ,dont suppose you know anyone selling one?!

chris-82 · 2 Sep 2018 at 19:25

okay will give that a shot j smoke, i feel at this point though the chances of getting a brand new motherboard that would have the same faults as my old mobo would be incredibly rare,im just lost and frustrated and need my computer working.

chris-82 · 5 Sep 2018 at 00:52

So no change ,it's still in a boot loop,managed to get a stick of ddr4 memory and installed it into my mobo ,same result as before with no changes to the boot loop.

I think at this point it's getting pretty safe to say it's the CPU as it's the only component not changed ,so think replacing the CPU is the next step ,I shall keep my beedy eye on the market place and hope a cpu pops up soon.

Thanks for all the help ,will let you know if when I get a cpu if it fixes the issue.

Thanks again.

chris-82 · 7 Sep 2018 at 17:16

it looks like the guy they employ at intel targeted my cpu for destruction!,installed the new cpu and everything booted up fine,glad the pc is working now its been a long two weeks of messing about!

chris-82 · 10 Sep 2018 at 15:05

i ended up having to buy another cpu ,cant say im very happy with my local computer shop who supposedly tested the cpu ,charged me for it and told me it was fine...just glad i got it sorted in the end.