I was playing Warcraft 3 the other day and my computer just randomly shut off and now it wont turn back on. I tried plugging it into different outlets and swapping the power supply with my roomates and niether worked. I unplugged everything to the power supply so my motherboard was the only thing getting power and when i do this the fan turns on and spins for like a second, maybe two then shuts off. If I try and turn my computer on again it wont get any power at all, not even to spin the fan but when i flip the switch on the back of the power supply off and on again, it gets another 2 seconds of power to spin the fan and shuts off. Any ideas on what the problem might be? Thanks alot for your help.
You might try using a 3rd power supply as a test. Maybe reset the CMOS, too. If that doesn't work, then something may have gone belly up with RAM, video card, motherboard, or chipset.
check that the cans(capacitors) on your motherboard are flat topped & not domed. remove the cpu to see if problem still exists or not
The classic fan twitch. You turn it on and only get a twitch from the fan and nothing else. The MB LEDs even stay on. Sorry but Dead MB. Try to get a replacement that matches your current one as much as possible. If the MB is still under warranty see if they will honor it for this. Do not tell then you had any power surge, spike or brown out as that will void the warranty. Also invest in a UPS. Seems like you have brown out issues in your area. Brown outs are a computers worst enemy. And get this, using a UPS will lower your power bill a little (assuming on 24/7). -Del
I'm not that familiar with removing the cpu or checking the cans (capicators). Do you think you could give me a little more info on it or a brief walkthrough so i could try that. Also i forgot to mention that my LEDs don't stay on. The one LED comes on for a short second and turns off along with the fan. Also, i didnt have a power outage, my Computer just shut off. Everything else in my room, including my monitor remained on with power. Thanks guys for the help, keep it coming
Not the LEDs on the fromt of your case. Newer MB have tiny LEDs on them. Those are the ones I am referring to. If those are the ones you say turn off then try another Power supply first. A brown out is when you have a slight to sever power drop. The power does not fully go out. This can happen without you being aware of it. They damage things because different items require different power. So you could have enough power for your 5 volt components but not the 12 Volt ones. This means you could have some things still on and other things go off. The Power supply takes a hit as well since it loses power strength and some things in it will quit running but still send weak power to the MB. All this can cause the computer to shut down. Of course when the brown out is finished you have full power again. Surge protectors will not protect against these or spikes and peaks. Now you know what a brown out is. I have them often at my home but have the UPS to buffer it out. -Del
Okay, i might have had a brown out because i do have issues with blackouts so maybe i had a brown out this time. As far as my MB have LEDs, i can't see any and the LED i was referring to was that on the outside of the case next to the starter button.
on your motherboard are different size can shaped objects mounted on your motherboard, those are capacitors. if they are domed topped instead of flat topped or are leaking a brown/black substance than you need a new motherboard unless can get old board fixed
CyberPower has a line of UPS that have AVR (automatic voltage regulation) besides the battery backup with controled shutdwn if the power stays off. Plus there price is lower than most UPS.
Okay.....I think im going to have to face that my MB is shot. I looked at the cans and i found that two of them by the fan leaked a brown substance. Thanks for all your help guys I really appreciate it. I'm gonna head to Frys sometime this weak to get another MB. Let me know if i should try anything else before i go and get a new MB. Also if my MB is shot, does that mean my video card, sound card, HD, CD-RW, Power supply are shot as well? Thanks again for all your help guys, I really appreciate it.
you might be all right. try installing 1 component at a time to see if powers up ok even tho nothing will be on screen till cpu, ram & video card are installed
Okay im gonna head to frys tomorrow and pick up a new motherboard, I'm keepin my fingers crossed that thats the only thing that got fried. Thanks again for all your help guys! Consider this post closed
