Windows 7 freezes at Starting Windows screen

[patio]

What? Why didn't you say that before?   
Now I would recommend a daily dose of Prosac.

What the heck is this supposed to mean ? ?

[Geek-9pm]

What the heck is this supposed to mean ? ?

I was thinking getting a replacement power unit for a SFF can lead to severe mental depression. Depending on the brand. He might find none of as low as $20 at new egg. If so, my panic reaction was impulsive and out of order. Hope a new PSU is the cure for his problem.

[patio]

Fair enough...

[dexedcp1]

Don't waste your money.
Just find or borrow a PSU with same or higher W  that will power up the computer and see if it will let you install the OS.
The last thing you want to find out the Motherboard was bad and having wasted your money and a wimpy PSU.
 
The problem is letting your friend buy a eMachine.

[patio]

Actually not a bad idea for testing purposes as the PSU can stay outside the PC just to see if thats going to solve his issue...

NOTE: The last thing you want to hear when your rig is down is sarcasm...even if it's eMachines so we try not to use that here.

[sjn2009]

Thanks for the tips, I'll see if my spare power supply works and get it testing.

[Geek-9pm]

I doubt it is the motherboard. If you get into BIOS, the motherboard is mostly good. Does it boot a floppy?

I will try to say something positive here. You can get very good service from a SFF machine if you understand that expansion is very limited. Don't let it overheat and it can outlast the warranty period. Kept it vertical and well ventilated.

When these units overheat, the PSU and hard drive takes the beating. But a bad motherboard can happen.

New egg and others with sell you a refurbished e Machines SFF for an attractive price, warranty tetra. If he likes the machine, he might consider buying another one and keeping the old old for spare parts, it ever needed. 

Under $240  warranty extra.
Dual core Emachines Intel (or AMD)
Windows 7 Home Premium 64-Bit
500 GB HDD
Keyboard & Mouse  NVIDIA graphics

Picture is from Newegg.

[sjn2009]

Well I tried using my computers 500w psu, but alas the freezing still continues. Guess that means its the motherboard, so should I tell him to just find a new rig?

[Geek-9pm]

Well I tried using my computers 500w psu, but alas the freezing still continues. Guess that means its the motherboard, so should I tell him to just find a new rig?

No. It is not final yet. You mentioned at the onset the problem started after you installed a certain program. Please elaborate. Exactly what was the program and why was it installed? Is it a recommended program for Windows 7? It may be a coincidence, but before you throw in the towel check it out. There is a program with a name like that with a unstable history.

[sjn2009]

It's called pro tools. I'm not sure how that can be causing the problem if I put a fresh install on the hard drive. I even tried using my hdd and psu in his motherboard and had the freezing problem. If its not the psu, hdd, cables, or memory what else could it be?

[patio]

the audio mixing app by Avid ? ?

[sjn2009]

Yes by avid, its Pro Tools LE 8  to be specific

[JJ 3000]

Have you tried clearing CMOS?

http://www.computerhope.com/issues/ch000976.htm

[Geek-9pm]

Yes by avid, its Pro Tools LE 8  to be specific

Must be a fluke. I think something has either reset your CMOS settings or else alter the MBR of the drive. Reset the BIOS defaults on the sick computer. Check the time and date also.

Did not mean to bad mouth Pro Tools LE 8. There is another program I was thinking about.

Best guess is the CMOS settings got lost. Coincidence.  Should not happening to a machine less that two years old. But maybe the battery is dead.

EDIT: JJ 3000 Didn't see you post. Pardon me.

[patio]

It's called pro tools. I'm not sure how that can be causing the problem if I put a fresh install on the hard drive. I even tried using my hdd and psu in his motherboard and had the freezing problem. If its not the psu, hdd, cables, or memory what else could it be?

Well thats your issue right there...
He's running a Celeron...it calls for 4 6 or 8core CPU's
It will run on 2G but they recommend 4G

It's clear from what i read you are asking the PC to do something it's not even close to being capable of...
Hope you got a good deal on it because you will need some hardware upgrading.