Machine Won't Power Up

lankymorley

lankymorley

lankymorley

Associate
Joined
4 Jan 2008
Posts
178
I'm having a problem with my main rig where it often fails to power up. Basically, I have the PSU switched on, see lights on the motherboard etc, press the power button and nothing happens. This mostly happens from a cold boot, but I've also seen the machine power down completely and the exhibit the same behaviour when attempting to reboot.

Please note that the problem is intermittent and most of the time the rig POSTs without issue and I can use it as normal. I've had the machine ~2.5 years and the specs are as follows:
  • i5 2570k
  • GTX 660Ti
  • Asus Maximus V Gene
  • 8GB Kingston HyperX Genesis
  • Corsair AX650W
  • Crucial M4 256GB
  • 3TB Seagate HDD

I have ensured that all my components are seated correctly and also tried the the power button soldered onto the motherboard to rule out some failure with my case's power button.

I did have a small CPU overclock and at first I assumed that the problem was due to the weather getting hotter. Clearing CMOS made the rig boot again, but I found myself having to keep doing this even though I was leaving the CPU at stock clocks. For a while, clearing CMOS was a consistent workaround, but it's now reached the point where that isn't working either.

Can anyone give some insight into what the problem might be or the best way to approach diagnosing it?

Thanks in advance!
 
Last edited:
You could try updating the boards bios if its not on the latest.

Taking the GFX card out and using the onboard to ease the load on the PSU.

Memory setup correctly XMP set etc?

Got a SSD?
 
Thanks for the quick response. I do have an SSD and HDD in there (updated OP). Unsure whether I'm on the latest BIOS, but I'll check once I can get it up and running again.

Just tried removing the GFX card and it didn't help. Also tried running with each of my two RAM sticks individually and detached all of my SATA devices for good measure.

I haven't done any memory configuration since I started clearing CMOS. Shouldn't the default memory voltages after clearing be enough to at least allow the rig to power up?
 
Yes the standard setting for the ram should be enough before setting them up via XMP for their proper speed.
 
Latest fw for the m4 ssd? They do suffer from a 5400 hour usage freeze bug

But cold boots are usually ram or IMC voltage related
 
The LED post code on the board what is this showing or stuck at when no post. This will be a big help in diagnosing the fault.
 
@wazza300: I believe I flashed my M4 firmware when the news of 5400 hour bug came out, but the issue persists with the SSD detached.

@8 Pack: There is no output from the LED post display at the bottom of the mobo when it gets into this state.

@Threepwood: Tried shorting the power pins with no luck.

During playing around, I did get it to boot once (randomly), but I shut down to reconnect my SSD and it's stuck again - it's just inconsistent.
 
I suspect that the motherboard is on it's way out but it could also be the PSU. Do you have another power supply or power supply tester(they are quite cheap and handy) to test if the PSU is the culprit?
 
So I borrowed a PSU tester and plugged my 24 pin connector into it. After spending some time toggling my PSU power switch, I'd say roughly 1/10 times the tester lit up and reported voltages - the rest of the time the tester remained unlit despite the PSU power switch being in the on position. Additionally, I noticed the tester flash on momentarily several times when switching the PSU off.

To me, this confirms that there's some problem with the PSU. Lucky there's a 7 year warranty on the Corsair AX units! Would you guys agree with this evaluation?
 
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