Which is broke MOBO / CPU / Memory or power ?

[aloodb]

I have a very sick machine and I'm convinced its the MOBO thats gone, but reading other threads I'm now not so sure. Its an Athlon XP 1900+
PC Chips M830LR mobo,
2 x 256Mb PC2100 DDR ram,
300 Watt Powerman PSU ( rated 3.3v + 5v 150W max)
Geforce III 200TI
USB 2 adapter,
Netgear MA301 / MA401 wireless
60Gb H/D
CD RW
DVD
Running Windows XP professional

Originally a prebuilt system but with the Wireless and USB cards added. Been running fine for 18months and then .....
the video signal stopped, monitor went into standby, system wouldnt respond to system power button or reset button. Powered off with PSU power switch. On restart it would go thru POST and then loose video, restart again would get part way thru booting and reboot. Figured the video card was duff so tried it in another m/c, it worked fine. Since then its getting steadily worse now symptoms include POST taking upwards of 2mins before the first beep during which there is random clicking from DVD and CDRW. Loss of video when in BIOS configuration mostly if I try to set FSB to 133 but occasionally when viewing the hardware monitor.
Again system power and reset buttons are inoperative only the PSU power switch will work.
Tried removing all the devices and powering on as suggested in other threads and it doesnt complete POST at all ( no beep ), reconnect the devices and we are back into the long delay before POST completes followed by looping reboots before system boot starts or the system starts booting and either looses video or auto reboots. On very rare occaisions the system has started in safe mode and I have been able to login.
Have tried different combinations of the memory sticks but it makes no difference

It is a very very sick machine .....

the question is where should I start splashing the cash .... new mobo ? new CPU ?

 

[Grunt2002]

Hi,

I think it is likely to be the mobo.
Before buying a new one, I would test the rams on another system too (or other rams on yours). But it is likely that among the 'different combinations of the memory sticks' you have tried each stick separately, and I would say there is little risk both became crap at the same time.
I think the cpu is not involved.

I'd go for an Asus mobo (most reliable, most upgradeable, most supported... best manufacturer). The a7n8x deluxe is the best buy at the moment.

 

[techgeezer]

You've a connundrum there alright.You don't say which MOBO you have but it seems to me if it will boot even if it takes forever and several trys it may still be functional. Personally I would first try a different power supply.XP probably prevents starting with minimal components as it is tied to the configuration of the computer with all components. I would also check to see if the cpu cooler is functional as a hot cpu does some really strange things. If your ram works in another computer and the cpu cooler woeks and power supply change is ineffective then I'd go for a new MOBO. You will probably have to reinstall xp or run a repair after a MOBO change so I'd check the power supply closely. Some boards know the cpu has been out even though they've not had power but you may want to simply remove and reinsert the cpu just to see if renewed contacts may solve this problem. Can't say for certain what will work but this is what I would do. Let us know how it turns out.

One can help many- many cannot help one!

 

[Kocky]

I first would try removing all pci cards from your system and just leave the AGP video card inserted and then try to boot. When it boots ok and the system runs steady add one piece of hardware at a time until you encounter the same problems again. Then you know it is that piece of hardware that is not working.

If that doesn't work try resetting the CMOS chip or go into BIOS and load the "fail/safe" settings.
You can also test your memory with memtester which you can download at

http://www.memtest86.com

.

Good luck bringing this baby alive again !!

 

[norty303]

@techgeezer

which bit of PC Chips M830LR mobo didn't you get! (only joking )

I'd suggest that if you have the opportunity then rather than taking stuff out of your system to test in another one, try swapping components that you know work into your system to see if it makes a difference. If you've stripped it down to bare bones and tried diff gfx card, memory, processor and headsink/fan combo, psu then you'll be left with only one thing really....the mobo.

With the price of the PC chips boards now it's almost not worth the trouble tho. If you suspect it's the mobo more than 50% i'd save the time and just change the board.

 

[BadBigBen]

The symptoms described make me think that the BIOS maybe shot... Reflash BIOS...

could also be that the CMOS battery is flaky...

Ben

 

[aloodb]

Thanks for the hints folks, tried some out but its still not getting any better, seems the more I remove from it the less it wants to work, put it all back together and at least it completes POST and attempts to start!
Reflashing the BIOS made no difference so I'm still not certain what to do .... so I'm gonna bite the bullet and buy a new mobo. Been checking out the ASUS A78NX Deluxe and it seems to fit the bill except the AGP slot is 1.5V and I'm not sure what my Geforce III TI200 card requires, I'm guessing its probably a 3.3V card so I'm gonna have to buy a new one of them too. Can anyone confirm that ?

 

[SYAR2003]

The board autosence if it's 1,5 or 3,3 .
There is no problem having a GF3 on the ASUS A7N8X .

The thing to concider buying a mb is the AGP rate 2X,4X ...
GF3 Ti200 is a AGP4X card .
And the motherboard you want to buy must support your
current gfx-cards AGP .
(All new mb support AGP 4X )


SYAR

 

[mainegeek]

Inspect the capasitors on the mobo for bulging or split tops.

 

[aloodb]

The bulging capacitors has convinced me its the mobo thats gone, 3 of the little suckers with curvy heads. Installed a A7N8X deluxe and its all coming back to life .... just reinstalling windows.

Thanks to all who helped resolve this.

 

[howa25]

I have a nearly identical machine and was having the same kinds of problems until I beefed up the cooling. Added another case fan and improved the cpu cooler, also went to streamlined IDE cables though I just like the look of them really. Problem solved.