PC doesn't boot, have i fried something? Video within.

martinoheat

martinoheat

martinoheat

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After stupidly trying to connect a hard drive (sata) to my PC while it was on, my PC immediately cut power. Since then, i have been unable to boot.

The computer starts up when i press the power button, but then after a few seconds it cuts the power, and then starts up again.On the second 'power on' (after it has reset itself) it stays on, but i get no picture on my monitor - not even BIOS screens.

What kind of damage could i have caused by trying to connect a sata HDD to the computer while it was on? Could i have fried something?

Here is a video of the computer's behaviour.

If anyone has any ideas as to the cause, please let me know!

I have already tried clearing CMOS using the jumper pin, to to avail. (The video was recorded after i had tried that).
 
I've removed both my graphics cards, just in case they were the issue, and now the problem is even worse - it turns off as soon as I turn it on, and then it doesn't turn back on.

Here's a quick video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WrQSPUerM8U&feature=youtube_gdata_player

I checked all the connections, and they seem fine
I really don't think the problem is with any connections - the PC died as soon as I connected the HDD, it was immediate, it definitely seems to me like it was the direct act of connecting the hard drive that made my PC turn off.

As my PC is now, I can't tell whether or not my hard drive spins up.
 
DarkBahamut said:
If you still have the old PSU you could check if that one works? Assuming you didn't replace it due to it being broken of course.



Poor Asus motherboard design? :p

Several (about 8 in total) of the VRM chips under the heatsinks had big lumps on them and had discoloured. This also killed the i7 2600k that was in the system at the time.
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I did replace it because it was faulty - it still worked, just struggled under load. I tried hooking it up to the old PSU and the same thing - it looks to me like something causing a short circuit making the PSU trip to avoid blowing itself up. I'll go over everything now to see if I can find the culprit.

Wow, that sounds like an expensive fault.
 
Kotu said:
I just thought I would add that I connect/disconnect SATA drives from my PC all the time while its on without issues. Usually when stuff blows on the motherboard, you would know straight away from the noise/smell.

It could just be a coincidence. Did you have to pull or move around the power cable? Was there anything else connected to the same SATA power cable?
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I didn't smell anything, and after inspecting my motherboard, it looks fine to me.

My PSU is modular, so I just plugged a new cable into the PSU and plugged the other end into the HDD.there was nothing else connected to the sata cable, I wasn't even trying to do any cable management, I just wanted to test my HDD, so I ran a cable from the PSU to the HDD.
 
Jay85 said:
Wow I feel for you! Not something you wanna be doing in the early hours of the morning :(. Have you tried disconnecting everything except your primary hdd. Disconnect the fans as well, only have your essentials connected. Also check your power/reset headers on your motherboard. I had a similar issue once which turned out to be a loose header. Pushed it in and it came back to life!
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I've literally disassembled it to the point where only the CPU, cooler, and RAM are installed, and only the 24pin motherboard and 8pin CPU power cables are connected.

But still, all I get is this.
 
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I should add, that I've tested both RAM sticks individually, reseating them, trying to post without either RAM module, etc.

I'm really stumped as to what's wrong, and what caused it.
 
Jay85 said:
Hmmmm it really sounds like a borked motherboard to me. If I was you I would go to maplins tomorrow and get a cheap mobo to test. Once you've found the fault you can refund the mobo at maplins as they have a really good returns policy.
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That sounds like a plan.

Would you expect my motherboard to be covered under warranty for this fault, if I find that it's the culprit?

Also, my PC is a year and a half old - are motherboard warranties often longer than 1 year?
 
Shivy011 said:
H77 will be compatible, no overclocking/less features though - it probably isn't the successor, no.
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Ah, right. I do want overclocking, so I'll keep looking.
My P8Z77-V seems to be discontinued, but I'm looking for at least an equivalent replacement. I do like the idea of getting a cheapo motherboard just to test with, but if I'm going to return it anyway, then I might as well test with a motherboard that I can keep if needed.

Does anyone know which motherboard is the successor to mine?


phazari180 said:
Have you tried it with just one of your graphics cards, with a single DVI/DP connected to the monitor?

I've got the deluxe version of the same board and I've had issues before which seemed like a dead board, but turned out removing the display cables from my graphics card and connecting with only a short length DVI cable to the monitor sorted it.

Sounds a bit bonkers but if you haven't tried it, I'd definitely give it a shot before rushing out to buy a new board.
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Tried, but to no avail, :(


Jay85 said:
Motherboard warranties are usually only 1 year i think.

How did you get on with this? Have you resolved the issue yet?
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Still no success.


darael said:
Use less thermal paste on your CPU - that looks like you've iced a cake. :D
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Haha, I know, I know. I'll bear that in mind next time.
 
Any more ideas before I buy a new motherboard to test?

Also, looking for replacement motherboard is pretty confusing...
My P8Z77-V seems to be discontinued. The P8Z77-V LX isn't too expensive, but I'm struggling to spot the differences.
If you were in my shoes, what motherboard would you get? - I'm under the impression that Z77 is the latest motherboard that would fit my 3570K?
 
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Shivy011 said:
Correct, get a Z77 board
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I'm trying to RMA my mobo, as I think it might still be under warranty. If that fails, then I'll need to buy a new one, and choice seems pretty slim - I narrowed it down to these two, but both seem like steps down from my current P8Z77-V:

Option 1:
Asus P8Z77-V LX £86

Option 2:
ASRock Extreme 4 £85

I can't find a like for like replacement for my P8Z77-V anywhere online, only used from the auction site.
 
Jay85 said:
Get a maximus 5 gene, cant go wrong with that. If you're gonna spend, go all out.
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I can't even find that motherboard for sale, but I can guess that it'll be out of budget. Lol

If I do end up having to buy a replacement motherboard, I want to pay as little as possible, as this is a really unexpected expense.
 
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