Question new PC build gone wrong?

[mmhendrie]

Folks - looking for some help. Building a new pc for my son. It's been 15yrs+ since the last time I've done this, but the basics seem the same. I thought I was in good shape. Everything turned on, ran, and windows began to install. I figured it might take a bit, so left it, came back 5 minutes later, and it was off, and won't turn back on. I've tried unplugging a bunch of stuff, checked the switch itself, but I can't get any rans spinning or any booting sounds etc. - i'd think the PSU was toast, but, the keyboard and mouse light up. Greatly appreciate any help, here's what I have:
Ryzen 7 3700
Gigabyte B550
HD m.2
16gb ram (8x2)
rx 560 (all i could find!)
650w PSU

Only thing out of the ordinary - when i got back to the pc, i noticed one of the connections on my fan hub had come lose, i re-plugged it in. I've now tried basically unplugging everything, and plugging in just the mobo and cpu and hitting the power switch, but nothing
Any thoughts?
thx, Matt

 

[VirtualLarry]

Only thing out of the ordinary - when i got back to the pc, i noticed one of the connections on my fan hub had come lose, i re-plugged it in. I've now tried basically unplugging everything, and plugging in just the mobo and cpu and hitting the power switch, but nothing
Any thoughts?

Was the power on or off when you re-plugged the fan in? Normally, mobo fan ports are not really supposed to be hot-pluggable to my knowledge. I don't know about the particular fan controller.

Have you tried powering down, unplugging from the wall, and removingthe fan controller from the build? It may have shorted somehow, and now the PSU is going into failsafe shutdown mode on the +12V line (though, why not also the +5V line if that were true?). Or the mobo is just fried.

 

[mmhendrie]

I removed the PSU, it comes with a testing adapter which basically mimicks the paperclip trick, i tried it, and nothing happens at all...so i assume the PSU is faulty. There was a heavy chemical smell from it when i opened the box. I thought it was a decent unit, but perhaps I just got a bad one, its a EVGA Supernova 650 GT, 80 Plus Gold 650W. Of course, it has this ECO mode that there doesnt appear to be a way to disable - is there another way to trigger it? I tried plugging a SATA cable in and an old 3.5 HD I had, and I don't feel it spinning up...is that a good enough test to determine its the PSU?

 

[DAPUNISHER]

I removed the PSU, it comes with a testing adapter which basically mimicks the paperclip trick, i tried it, and nothing happens at all...so i assume the PSU is faulty. There was a heavy chemical smell from it when i opened the box. I thought it was a decent unit, but perhaps I just got a bad one, its a EVGA Supernova 650 GT, 80 Plus Gold 650W. Of course, it has this ECO mode that there doesnt appear to be a way to disable - is there another way to trigger it? I tried plugging a SATA cable in and an old 3.5 HD I had, and I don't feel it spinning up...is that a good enough test to determine its the PSU?

Return it for replacement. I have that model in one of my systems and it has been trouble free. Not a fan of the old school braided cables, but those are easy to replace.

 

[Arkaign]

I second Punisher. Also, GJ Dad, that will be a great PC for your son. With the RX560, you might try to help him optimize his games as the default settings for many will be a bit choppy.

Try for 1600x900, 16X AF, medium textures, low shadows, and disable AA if necessary. That is the general way I get RX460/560 GPUs to achieve fairly smooth performance.

Once the GPU crunch is over with, that Ryzen box will absolutely fly. Maybe keep an eye on our FS/FT section for something like :

GTX980
GTX1050ti
GTX1060
RX470/570
R390

Any of which would be a huge upgrade from the 560. The 560, much like the 1030, is really pushing it for a lot of titles. Helping him find less demanding games is also helpful. I don't know if he's old enough for the Doom games, but they run pretty well with modest settings on the 460/560. The modern Assassin's Creeds run pretty terribly on them (Origins, Odyssey, Valhalla). Horizon Zero Dawn and Cyberpunk run pretty badly as well. Witcher 3 and GTAV are a couple popular titles that can run very well with the right settings.

Oh yeah, Overwatch and Rainbow Six Siege also can get smooth performance there.

 

[mmhendrie]

thanks so much guys!!! I have a replacement PSU coming via Amazon, arriving today apparently, so hopefully fans start whirling soon! I'm covid-unemployed, so am on a budget - I was able to use Prime-day/newegg to do all that in the list in my first post, plus a tower, modest gaming keyboard, and mouse for just under $800. I'm pretty happy with everything except the GPU. Being out of the loop, it was a shock to see what was going on in GPU market, and depressing to realize I couldn't afford to complete the gaming system for my boy. The RX 560 was the only thing I didn't buy new, and it will just have to see us through for now and possibly the next year until pricing calms down. Thanks so much for the advice on settings for games, I'm not a gamer myself, so that will help me tremendously!
Ok, back to pacing by the door waiting for amazon!
cheers,
Matt

 

[Arkaign]

Nice! Hey, an extra tip, when you get the PC up (or even on your current one for now), create a new email account and set up the Epic Games store using that account. Check it every week, they give away a TON of games, some of which are great. I set my son up with my Epic account, and he's gotten so many games there. Just recently Hitman, Among Us, Control, and Sonic Mania. And tons of others. Look at this list of titles that have previously popped through :

Epic Games Store Free Games List - Schedule, Current and Upcoming Games

progameguides.com

Frostpunk
NBA2K21
Alien : Isolation
Rage 2
Metro Last Light Redux
Metro 2033 Redux
Tropico 5
Star Wars Battlefront 2
Ghostbusters
Watch Dogs 2
Etc Etc

You don't have to install them at the time, just redeem the free purchase to the account (no credit card or other nonsense required), and download/install whenever you want.

 

[mmhendrie]

thats awesome - thanks so much, I will get on that! It's a whole new world out there for me to learn!!!

 

[mmhendrie]

got the new PSU, and all is working well!!! Looks fantastic! Sadly the used RX 560, one of the fans makes a hum, but that aside, everything is perfect. thanks for all the help!!!

 

[Arkaign]

Good to hear it! Like I said, maybe put some cash away slowly and place an ad in our FS/FT section like so :

"For partial trade, RX560 (model and specifics) and cash for a midrange GPU". If you give it a little bit of time, you can probably get a huge step up for not a lot of investment. I know things can be tight, I'm living through that situation currently, but something to keep in mind. I've got to come up with a replacement GPU for my older son, who has a dying 7950.

 

[mmhendrie]

ok, big win on craigslist today - I got a GTX 1060 OC for $175, and then a Dell 28" 4k monitor for $25 (yes, twenty five bucks!) - its flat vs curved, and 60mhz, so not ideal, but still, it looks terrific - think I'm now in great shape!

 

[Shmee]

Nice find, especially the monitor. I would however recommend that you use the 4k monitor for yourself, and your son can use a lower res one. Though a GTX 1060 is a good upgrade from an RX 560, it will likely struggle at 4k, especially if it is only the 3GB version.

 

[mmhendrie]

yeah, so my understanding is I can set the resolution for games for 1080p? Hopefully that works out..