computer switched off - won't boot - oh, yea burning smell

[supavillain]

in my hour of need, again.

i had my computer on nearby while we were watching a movie on tv and we both turned and noticed when my PC shutdown by itself. i went over to investigate and we smelled a slight burning odor. i opened up the window and the case and didn't see any smoke rise from the case at all. the smell was definitely there so i assumed that something got fried. my question is "what" exactly. i tried to start her up again after the movie ended but it didn't even get to the first video card info splash. all the lights came on as far as i know and each of the fans spun like they were supposed to but i couldn't get any farther than that. no info on the mobo either. is my computer done for? what do i need to do next? i hope it's not going to be that bad because i can't afford to get another, let alone try and replace some parts.

please help!

 

[ivwshane]

To diagnose the problem, start removing every component and reboot. So boot with only the mobo, cpu, and one stick of ram. Listen for any beep codes and check to see if all your fans are spinning, if you don't hear beeps and your fans are fine then add the video card, reboot. If you don't get a video out signal clear your cmos on your mobo and try again. If you still don't get any video on the screen it could be your video card. If you get video on the screen start adding back in components one by one and rebooting after each install. Start with adding the second memory stick, then hard drive, then cd drives, then pci cards.

 

[supavillain]

okay i just finished that now. i booted with the barebones mobo, cpu, and single stick of ram. there were no beeps whatsoever. i reinstalled and tried the videocard and rebooted. no beeps and nothing on the screen. i cleared the cmos, rebooted, and again no beeps and nothing on the screen. there wasn't even that single friendly beep that lets me know that it's working, so that really worried me. is it safe to say it's the videocard then? are there any other tests i can try?

 

[deathwalker]

Ah...the sweet smell of a toasted Power Supply...dont ya just love it?

 

[CrispyFried]

do you have a multitester? check the PSU voltages, probably 3.3v or 5v is gone.

 

[ivwshane]

If you can remove the power supply you can isolate it and smell it. Burning electronics has a very distinct smell. You could also open up the ps and see if you notice anything unusual like burn marks.

 

[supavillain]

update:

I switched out the videocard for another videocard and it's still not working. I took the PSU to two different places, the first of which told me that the PSU could be bad and wasn't delivering the correct voltage. The second also tested the unti told me that the PSU was working fine and that maybe it could be the videocard. I went to the friendly neighborhood BB to see if they were right, but I'm still stuck in the same exact situation. I could try replacing the PSU next, but what else can I do in the meantime? The PSU didn't smell funny at all. The only thing the first service guy noticed was that it wasn't providing 5v or something and he tested it twice. The second service guy tested it once and said that it should be fine, as long as the mobo was receiving power.

 

[Severian]

my money would be on the PSU, it's the most likely culprit here. The simplest way of diagnosing this would be to borrow another PSU from a different machine, one that you know works, and test it in your machine.

 

[daveybrat]

Definitely sounds like a bad power supply to me. And that second 'tech' guy who told you as long as the mobo was receiving power means it's a good power supply was incorrect. I've had many dell systems that received power to the motherboard just fine but still had a bad power supply. Whenever i'd attach a power supply tester to them, the 5v line was dead but all other lines were still working. Replace the power supply and everything always worked fine.

 

[supavillain]

okay so it's been a minute since i've updated but here's what i did so far.

1. changed the videocard to see if that was the problem but to no avail. still nothing when i startup. just power on but no beeps.
2. brought my psu back to the store for an even exchange. they gave me a "replacement" that was supposed to be the same make but this one was missing the 12v plug for the mobo. i don't know if that can qualify as a replacement test because i don't know if not having that plug would cause a problem. regardless, there was no change. still getting power to the mobo but with no startup.
3. after this last test i can tell that the smell is coming from where the cpu is. i say it smells like formaldehyde, my gf says it smells like somethings burning.

i figure i should definitely get a proper replacement for the psu, but now i'm concerned about this smell from the cpu. i never needed to pay any attention to the smells before so now i'm overly concerned and i could probably use a little more help because now i'm thinking this problem has escalated into a mobo/cpu problem.

is there any hope? what do you guys think is up and what should i do?

 

[supavillain]

bump for help

 

[Bignate603]

The smell is coming from where your CPU is? That doesn't sound good. I would almost expect you've got a fried core... That's no good at all. What kind of cooler do you have on this system? Is the cooler clogged with dust? You may need to just pull of the cooler off to inspect the core. If something smells like it's burning from there you might find scorch marks.

 

[supavillain]

it's the cpu.