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My PC is dead, No power :-( 2

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DieHandvatsel

Programmer
Oct 2, 2003
6
GB
Hi

I know this is probably a very common problem. But I am desperate! I don’t know what is wrong?

My PC worked fine for a while, when last night when I tried to switch it on… Nothing. Not even the fan on the PSU. Nothing.

I opened the case to discover that the MB light is glowing when the PSU is switched on. But switching on the machine still has no results. I have a Lanparty NF II Ultra MB which has an on and reset switch situated on the MB for testing purposes. Pressing these buttons also creates no joy!

The PSU I use is a generic 400W. What could the possible cause be? I have checked the voltage selection and that is correct.

Please I’m desperate for my PC to work again! Any suggestions and advice would greatly be appreciated
 
Your's are the classic symptom of a failed power supply.
But it can also be the M/B. The only way to know for sure is to use a voltmeter to check the power activation line going to the PS. That would be pin 14 (usually green) and what is normally +5 or so goes to 0 volts when the power switch is pressed.

Ed Fair
Give the wrong symptoms, get the wrong solutions.
 
Thanks for your reply

I just came back from the vendor (luckily it was still under warrantee) so they gave me a new PSU. I hope you are right. I hope it is the PS and not the MB. I will check it out tonight at home. If it still does not work, is it possible for me to test to see what component it creating the problem?

 
Other than at the connector it is pretty hard. You end up trying to trace circuitry through the board to find the problem. That gets to be difficult without diagrams, which of course, no longer come with boards.

Ed Fair
Give the wrong symptoms, get the wrong solutions.
 
Ok thanx.

I will just hope that it was the PSU and install the new one. Fingers crossed! What could have caused it? I do remember accidently plugging in the power cable while it was switched on at the wall socket and the switch on the PSU. Could that have caused a problem? And if so? Why does the light on the MB shine?
 
The led on the m/b is to indicate the the keepalive power is there. Kinda to warn you to turn it off before you plug something in. You plug some cards in with power applied and you blow them.
Powering up with the power cord shouldn't have affected anything. In theory. In real life it seems that things break for no apparrent reasons.

Ed Fair
Give the wrong symptoms, get the wrong solutions.
 
I had a similar problem, and luckily all it took was to replace the power supply. We had updated/installed some stuff on the computer prior to this, and figured that maybe those items all ate up some wattage that the power supply couldn't handle. So after installing a 400W power supply, everything works great!
Good luck!
 
Well. It turned out it was not the PSU. But actualy the MB. It was still under guarantee and they gave me a knew one. Installed it last night and it worked fine! I still dont know what could have caused the MB to go. I am running a 400W supply? Hope it wont happen again!
 
Don't be fooled by the 400watt tag! that doesn't mean diddley squat! we are having a spate of 400watt PSU failures ATM with a certain line of cases we sell, one of the reasons we retail this particular case is that in the past (with the same brand 350watt PSU) it had proved to be very reliable) now with the uprated? 400 we are having a high percentage failure rate.
My advice, go branded! (quality) over cheap, so called power.
Antec, Enermax, Sparkle, Vantec etc Quality.
Martin

Replying helps further our knowledge, without comment leaves us wondering.
 
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