Resolved No power PERIOD... won't boot at all

Hi all!

My mother has a custom build machine that runs Windows XP SP3. Not sure on all the Hardware specs, as it is not sitting in front of me, but I know the machine overall was built right at about a year ago with a very basic version of a TidalWave MOBO.

The problem timeline is as follows:
-Computer working fine
-Power button starts failing to work, only works every couple of presses to activate the machine
-Power button stops working all together and only way to kick on the machine is to switch the PSU off and back on from the back of the tower
-PSU switch fails to boot computer after about a week of using...

I swapped PSU's and Power cables with ones I had laying around at home that I knew worked... same Output power and all. The LED on the MOBO comes on when the PSU is switched on and the fans and lights flash once, then nothing. The front power switch still has no effect at all.

I was looking for similar problems on the forum, but couldn't find one... Can you guys give me some typical solutions to this sort of problem?? As I mentioned, I've swapped PSU's already to no avail. I've unplugged all hardware not needed for boot and still no response from the power button. The computer hasn't moved from the spot it was placed when first built and there haven't been any surges in power from storms or construction. Even if there was, they are using a surge protector plenty capable of protecting their system. Could the MOBO itself have gone bad after a year of checking email and reading news?? (they are very basic when it comes to technology) They shut the computer down every night and have a Virus/Malware program installed along with Auto Updates on... A friend of mine had a similar issue and they couldn't figure out the problem, so they removed the hard-drive for their data and threw the machine out.

Any help or comments are appreciated!! I'm ****!!

 

Good information, the power button is usually abbreviated to be the Pwr Sw. If you look on the motherboard at the front panel header with a magnifying glass (for us with older eyes) and a flashlight, many boards have the names of each connection printed right on the motherboard for you to see. That makes it easy to find those two pins.

 

That motherboard is made by PCChips which is one of the worse manufacturers of motherboards, if not the worst. I have dealt with a few of them and all failed.

You say if you rap on the back and it started then I would suggest that the motherboard was not properly installed in the case with the standoffs in the incorrect locations or it wasn't tightened down. This could allow the motherboard to short against the case and cause this intermittent startup problem.

 

I was going to cut the wires to the PWR SW and short it that way, but your way was WAY less destructive, thank you!

It worked... shorting the MOBO PWR SW kicked the machine right on... is there a way to fix the switch without replacing the whole case?? I'm sure I can find a spare case somewhere, I just don't like doing it.


Whiskey: I ran into that problem on another machine, the MOBO was shorting against the case. That was one of the first things I checked on this machine. Thanks for the idea though... seems more common than it should that the MOBO doesn't get installed properly to the case.

 

Sad

I swapped cases and am still having the issue... the red LED on the Motherboard doesn't always stay on when the computer is off... If I switch the PSU off and then back on after a few minutes, the LED on the motherboard will come on and I will be able to boot using the power button on the case... the computer runs fine, no errors, no lagging... updates run and programs run... no trouble connecting to network... etc. So long as power stays on, the computer is golden. Once I tell the computer to shut down, it shuts down then the LED on the Motherboard shuts off and I am unable to power back on. If I let the thing sit for a while with the PSU switched off, then switch it back on, it will boot up. I would have loved if it was as simple as a case switch, but it appears to be deeper than that.

I hope it's not the motherboard, but if it is, it is better I get them a decent one rather than give this one back to them temporarily fixed. Any last thoughts before I make a trip to MicroCenter for a new motherboard??

 

Possibly a contact in the power-on sequence expands when heated up and causes a break in the circuit? Is that actually possible?

 

Yea... old PSU is fine... I'm thinking it's the motherboard. I'm not sure how to check capacitors... my knowledge ends where the soldering begins. I deal with the basics of hardware, what goes where. As much as I want to learn how to custom build or repair components, I am clueless as of right now.

Thanks for the information and all the help. I've learned a lot and got plenty of experience playing with it all!! I'm marking this thread as resolved.

I am replacing the motherboard... If that doesn't fix the problem, I'm telling them to buy a laptop, for what they do on a computer, a cheap little netbook would be fine!!