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Author Topic: built new pc wont power on  (Read 4545 times)

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mstrssofposeidon

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    built new pc wont power on
    « on: March 30, 2010, 09:58:48 PM »
    Hey there, Im a first time computer builder here and Im having some problems.
    Here is the hardware I have:
        
    Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 ST3750528AS 750GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
    ASUS DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS Black SATA 24X DVD Burner - Bulk - OEM
    COOLER MASTER Elite RC-310-OWR460 Black SECC ATX Mid Tower Computer Case RS-460-PSAR-J3, Elite 460W Power Supply - Retail
    ASUS M4A785-M AM3/AM2+/AM2 AMD 785G HDMI Micro ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail
    AMD Athlon II X2 245 Regor 2.9GHz Socket AM3 65W Dual-Core Processor Model ADX245OCGQBOX - Retail
    CORSAIR XMS2 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Desktop Memory Model TWIN2X4096-6400C5C - Retail

    So I assembled everything, I think correctly. Two things I noted that were weird were:
    1.The power supply has 2 cables to connect to the motherboard. One is a 4 pin the other a 20 pin. However the motherboard has a slot for a 4 pin and a 24 pin. It does state in the manual that you can still use the 20 pin though. Unless there is maybe an additonal 4 pin Im missing to add to the 20 pin? But P1 is the 20 pin and P2 is the 4 pin as labeled. (I bought these as a combo deal from newegg so I know they are all compatable). There are extra power cables that I dont have a connection for, numerous larger 4 pin white component connections, one 6 pin black one (3 on top of 3), and on extra 4 pin white (2 square over 2 square) one.
    2. I know the hard drive is a bare drive and the dvd burner is OEM bulk but the motherboard came with 2 sata cables and also an ide cable. Ive installed hard drives before but always used an ide cable. This one doesnt have that option, neither does the disc drive so...

    I have the dvd drive hooked up to the motherboard via sata. and to the power supply via power.
    I have the hard drive hooked up to the motherboard via sata and to the power supply. But there is an extra 4 pin slot I think may be missing a cable. I did not hook up the hard drive to the dvd drive in any way at all. Dont know if I need to do that.

    Anyhow, I plugged it all in and turned it on and the power button flashes for a second and the fan spins for a second and then nothing. Except the light on the motherboard will stay on and green.

    The power supply that came with the case is 460W power supply and the motherboard claims to only need 300w.
     
    And once I finally get this up and running, is it easy to install windows on a totally clean system? What does BIOS mean?

    I know, I need help. Thanks :) This is my new hobby!

       



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    Re: built new pc wont power on
    « Reply #1 on: March 31, 2010, 07:59:25 AM »
    1.The power supply has 2 cables to connect to the motherboard. One is a 4 pin the other a 20 pin. However the motherboard has a slot for a 4 pin and a 24 pin. It does state in the manual that you can still use the 20 pin though. Unless there is maybe an additonal 4 pin Im missing to add to the 20 pin? But P1 is the 20 pin and P2 is the 4 pin as labeled. (I bought these as a combo deal from newegg so I know they are all compatable). There are extra power cables that I dont have a connection for, numerous larger 4 pin white component connections, one 6 pin black one (3 on top of 3), and on extra 4 pin white (2 square over 2 square) one.

    The motherboard is designed for a 24-pin main connector but can also accept a 20-pin. My PC for example has a 24-Pin connector going to the motherboard and an additional 4-pin connector going elsewhere on the board to power the CPU. The "Extra cables" are molex connectors that you would plug into hard drives and other peripherals as you add them. The 6-pin black connector is probably for newer graphics cards that require it (I assume you are using the integrated graphics on the board?) and everything else is SATA and floppy connectors.

    Quote
    2. I know the hard drive is a bare drive and the dvd burner is OEM bulk but the motherboard came with 2 sata cables and also an ide cable. Ive installed hard drives before but always used an ide cable. This one doesnt have that option, neither does the disc drive so...

    You don't need to have any IDE devices installed; in your situation I would not even have the IDE ribbon cable in the computer at all.
    Quote
    I have the dvd drive hooked up to the motherboard via sata. and to the power supply via power.
    Good.
    Quote
    I have the hard drive hooked up to the motherboard via sata and to the power supply. But there is an extra 4 pin slot I think may be missing a cable.
    From the sounds if things the hard drive has three plugs: one for the SATA connector, and two for power. but you only want to use one for power or it will blow up. (well, not really, but I doubt it can end well). Basically it gives you a  choice between using the newer SATA form factor power connector or the older Molex plug; some pwoer supplies don't have any SATA power plugs so this design makes sense.

    Quote
    I did not hook up the hard drive to the dvd drive in any way at all. Dont know if I need to do that.
    Sounds like you did it right to me. Your thinking of IDE, where each ribbon had a connector for the master and the slave driver (or, in more politically correct circles, the Primary and Secondary drives) and you had to set jumpers and so forth. This is no longer the case with SATA, since each drive gets a connector all to itself. (it makes things easier too, no fiddling with jumpers like on IDE drives)
    Quote
    Anyhow, I plugged it all in and turned it on and the power button flashes for a second and the fan spins for a second and then nothing. Except the light on the motherboard will stay on and green.
    Interesting; This is a very common issue with a kazillion different causes; almost anything in the PC can cause it. First, did you plug in the 4-pin connector you mentioned as well as the 20-pin connector? Usually a four pin square connector is used for providing power to the CPU (I have no idea what would happen if it wasn't plugged in, but your symptom wouldn't be an unheard of result) Also, try removing all your RAM sticks, and only trying one or two in the slot closest to the CPU (unless they are labelled, in which case go for lower numbered banks first.

    Also, did the motherboard come with a CPU already installed or did you need to install it yourself? If so did you remmeber to apply thermal paste to the heatsink before installing it?

    Quote
    The power supply that came with the case is 460W power supply and the motherboard claims to only need 300w.
     
    Should be fine :)

    Quote
    And once I finally get this up and running, is it easy to install windows on a totally clean system? What does BIOS mean?

    Installing windows is pretty much just placing the disc in the drive, turning on the computer, and following the prompts (the sticking point for many folks is getting their PC to boot from the disc, but this is usually easy to resolve too).

    The BIOS is the core set of instructions the computer has; when you first start up a computer it will often show a memory count or a logo such as that of the motherboard manufacturer or something. these are displayed by the BIOS during it's Power-On-Self-Test (POST) which can be described sorta like a role call. "memory? Check. CPU? Check. Video Card? Check, etc. It's main job, however, is to get the Operating System booted from disk. It turns over control of the computer to the code it loads from the boot sector of the first drive it finds with a valid boot sector and slinks into the shadows.


    Quote
    I know, I need help. Thanks :) This is my new hobby!

    Hope this helps :)
    I was trying to dereference Null Pointers before it was cool.

    mstrssofposeidon

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      Re: built new pc wont power on
      « Reply #2 on: March 31, 2010, 01:53:53 PM »
      Well that somewhat helps in that it seems everything is in order but then why isnt it working?
      No I did not put that heat paste on the processor when I installed it so I will need to get some of that assuming it didnt come with the processor already when I bought it.
      I have tried every possible configuration of the power cords and the one I had originally tried is the one that works best in that it at least causes the fans to spin for one second.
      I do not know if the processor is graphics on board or not but I think it does since it has sound output jacks, monitor input, ethernet, etc on the back. But not having a video card still wouldnt cause it to not boot up right?
      Here is a video I took of the system so maybe someone can help me out more:

      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oJGC3IbAiW8


      Although I just noticed the quality is not so great so perhaps you wont be able to decipher anything from it.

      Thanks again!

      Katrina

      BC_Programmer


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      Re: built new pc wont power on
      « Reply #3 on: April 01, 2010, 05:14:32 AM »
      No I did not put that heat paste on the processor when I installed it so I will need to get some of that assuming it didnt come with the processor already when I bought it.

      That is almost certainly the problem.

      if you're lucky you didn't destroy the processor; the automatic shutdown is the processor overheating and the computer shutting off the protect it. Thermal paste is usually included with the CPU. Just a small dollop in the center of the CPU and then install the heatsink on top which should spread it out.
      I was trying to dereference Null Pointers before it was cool.

      patio

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      Re: built new pc wont power on
      « Reply #4 on: April 01, 2010, 08:54:38 AM »
      " Anyone who goes to a psychiatrist should have his head examined. "

      mstrssofposeidon

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        Greenhorn

        Re: built new pc wont power on
        « Reply #5 on: April 01, 2010, 01:08:06 PM »
        Ok I will try that I just ordered some off ebay so it would get here quickly. I didnt notice anything in the processor box. So Ill let you guys know how it works out!

        mstrssofposeidon

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          Re: built new pc wont power on
          « Reply #6 on: April 01, 2010, 01:16:58 PM »
          Actually according to the processor install guide: "Thermal interface material is required for all AMD processors. The head sink/fan provided with your retail AMD processor has pre-applied thermal interface material."

          So it looks like that is not the issue...

          mstrssofposeidon

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            Re: built new pc wont power on
            « Reply #7 on: April 02, 2010, 12:55:22 PM »
            ALso, now that I have taken off the heatsink fan, do I need to replace the thermal pad? And I did buy some thermal grease but I heard that AMD only uses the thermal pads and if I use the grease then I void my warrantee.
            I bought the white stuff too which I heard is not very good right?

            BC_Programmer


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            Re: built new pc wont power on
            « Reply #8 on: April 02, 2010, 01:42:06 PM »
            you should have mentioned that the heatsink came attached to the processor. Personally I've never seen that before. I merely assumed that they came separate, and therefore when you said you didn't put  thermal paste on the processor I thought it implied "I put the heatsink on the CPU without thermal paste".

            You could either replace the thermal pad, use the ceramic thermal paste, or even get another kind. Personally I've gone with Arctic Silver, I have a nice big syringe of it... even though I only used it on a CPU and for re-pasting a Graphics card, Always prepared! :P.

            I was trying to dereference Null Pointers before it was cool.

            mstrssofposeidon

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              Re: built new pc wont power on
              « Reply #9 on: April 02, 2010, 01:48:52 PM »
              I did not mention that the cpu came attached to the heatsink because it did not.
              I attached them and installed them however according to the manual, the thermal pad did come already attached to the heat sink. 
              Now that I have removed the heatsink to double check, I do see the residue.
              So when I installed the heatsink, viola! It already had thermal protection.
              So are you all out of answers for my computer sorrows?

              patio

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              Re: built new pc wont power on
              « Reply #10 on: April 02, 2010, 02:18:09 PM »
              Not yet...
              Borrow a known good PSU of the same or greater wattage and swap it in ther overnite...you'll know right away if this could possibly be the issue...
              " Anyone who goes to a psychiatrist should have his head examined. "

              mstrssofposeidon

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                Re: built new pc wont power on
                « Reply #11 on: April 02, 2010, 05:45:08 PM »
                Ok Im glad you said that.
                So the only other psu's i have here at home are of lower wattage but according to the motherboard I only need 300w. Anyhow, I tried my 300w and it didnt work. That 300w psu I know works.
                So I took the psu out of the computer that is not working (the 460w one) and put it into my older computer. It started up just fine. So that power supply is working.

                Sooooooooo then I took BOTH power supplies and hooked them up to my new system. One to the components and one to the motherboard. And it still did the same "try and start" bit.

                However, with that extra power, the fans spun a little bit longer.

                SO Im thinking that maybe I just need a super dookie power supply?

                Is there a way to test the cpu to see if that is the problem?

                Computer_Commando



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                Re: built new pc wont power on
                « Reply #12 on: April 02, 2010, 06:09:38 PM »
                ...
                1.  ... I took BOTH power supplies and hooked them up to my new system. One to the components and one to the motherboard. And it still did the same "try and start" bit.
                2.  However, with that extra power, the fans spun a little bit longer.
                3.  Im thinking that maybe I just need a super dookie power supply?
                4.  Is there a way to test the cpu to see if that is the problem?
                1.  Bad idea!  Creates more problems than it solves.
                2.  I'm pretty sure you've missed plugging in all the required connectors to the motherboard.
                3.  I doubt it.
                4.  No.

                mstrssofposeidon

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                  Re: built new pc wont power on
                  « Reply #13 on: April 02, 2010, 07:15:08 PM »
                  Ok returning the cpu and the motherboard to newegg. I did go buy a 680w power supply just to be sure and the system still didnt power on.