PC won't boot, please offer your input as to what might be the cause!

[axemanxt40]

Hey guys,

I just built a new machine for my mom...closed it up flipped the switch on and it doesn't boot!

Heck it doesn't even power up, it flashes the system on LED for a brief (less than a second) moment along with spinning the fans then everything dies. Trying to hit the power switch again does nothing. So I turned it off with the on/off switch on the power supply, then turned it on tried again...same thing.

So my two ideas for problems are that I didn't mount the motherboard properly and it is shorting out somewhere...or that I have a defective motherboard.

Specs:

AMD Athlon XP 2800
Abit NF7-S2
1024 Kingston Value RAM
Antec 300 watt PSU included with Antec 2600SLK case
80 GB Western Digital HDD
nVidia Geforce 4 TI4400
DVD burner
floppy drive
shuttle 6 in 1 card reader

Thanks!

 

[krcat1]

This sounds like the symptoms of my bad MB. Yes, check to make sure your MB is installed correctly.

 

[Nocturnal]

I would remove everything. Take your mobo out of the case, place it on the anti-static baggy. Just leave the memory, video card and cpu on the mobo. From there, try turning it on. If it still does it, I'd try replacing the PSU and if it still does it, then I'd narrow it down to the mobo being bad.

 

[Lalakai]

Try re-seating the ram first. If your ram chips aren't fully set, system won't boot. Go back through and check all connections. You didn't say if you were running 2 or 1 sticks of ram; if running two, try just one, then switch; might have bad ram. Try the simple stuff first, before yanking mb and working from there. But if you are sure the ram is good, and that the ps is reaching the mb, then high probability that your mb is the problem
good luck

 

[axemanxt40]

If it is bad RAM it would at least show the BIOS screen though, correct?

It is not even fully powering on the system so I doubt it could be the RAM.

Also I rebuild the machine outside of the case and same deal so I am RMAing the mobo and the power supply to be sure that those two aren't the culprits.

 

[fatty4ksu]

Your mOBO is too tight onto the case.

 

[osage]

try this, unplug the AC cord to the PSU,use a short piece of wire to jumper between the GREEN wire on the power connector to any BLACK wire on the connector. Plug the AC cord back into the PSU.
This should power up the PSU, I've had a few boards over the years that for whatever reason would not power up at first, after doing this then they have been fine.

 

[fragwhore]

if the LED flashes for a second then everything shuts off, it's definitely a short somewhere. take the board out of the case and only plug in the PSU and try again.