Computer problems, please help!

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rotteneggz

Limp Gawd
Joined
Apr 12, 2004
Messages
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Well my computer recently crashed while my mom was useing it to talk to her family members overseas. She was useing yahoo messenger when all of a sudden my computer froze, so she pressed the reset button on my pc. But after the pc reset nothing showed up on my monitor, as if the pc wasn't turned on but you could hear all the fans in my pc starting up + all the light lighting up. I thought it was my video card so i put in my old geforce 2 card in and tested it but it didnt work. Then i thought it was my monitor so i tested my computer with another working monitor i had but it didnt work. Now im wondering if its my mobo that broke somehow. I havent installed anything on my computer for a few months so i dont think its any virus. Would it be a wise dicision to buy a new mobo?
Here is my system specs:

AMD xp Barton 2500+
512 mb corsair memory
Abit NF7-S
Geforce 6800 NU
SB live
120gb maxtor HD
Antec 430 truepower PSU

BTW: The same thing happened to my moms family members pc who she was talking to on yahoo messenger... :confused:
 
well.. the thing happening with the other computer is pretty freaky :p

anyways.. open the case and investigate the mobo - look for blown caps or other visible signs of damage.. also try clearing cmos..
 
Yes indeed, happening to the friends as well is awfully curious.

Do you have a friend with a PC that you may take your HDD and install in thiers as slave and scan for virus/any malware?

After doing the checks mentioned by the poster above.

gl :)
 
Yeah I was gonna say the same about blown capacitors. seems odd coming off a tp430, though. if you have another system avaliable, or a friend's just swap parts, (ie... take the ram out of your system and put it in a working system, etc.. although ram would almost definately not be the problem here) Your mobo guess is probably right, but it's wise to check other components like the processor (So you don't order a new mobo and find out you have a dead processor!) first.. If you do have blown capacitors on your motherboard, you'd better be shopping for a new psu along with a new motherboard. (and make sure that bitch is on a surge protector) :)
 
I have a backup pentium 3 computer that i am useing right now. Would it be wise to switch the hard drives from my old pc to my new one? as in haveing it as primary not slave?

Oh and btw how do blown capacitors look like? what exactly am i looking for?
thanks
 
rotteneggz said:
I have a backup pentium 3 computer that i am useing right now. Would it be wise to switch the hard drives from my old pc to my new one? as in haveing it as primary not slave?

Oh and btw how do blown capacitors look like? what exactly am i looking for?
thanks
Click to expand...

http://www.badcaps.net/ - not best pics but you should get the idea...
 
Could there maybe have been a power surge or spike in the area? Did what happen to your mom's family member happen at the same time?

Sounds like the mobo is toast to me.
 
TheMostWantedPolishTwin said:
http://www.badcaps.net/ - not best pics but you should get the idea...
Click to expand...

Thanks for the site, helped me alot in trying to find a blown cap.
So while i was searching i didnt notice a distinct smell or oozeing electolyte around any of the capacitors but i did notice one of the capacitors haveing its top swelled upwards and a few capacitors not being in a perfect 90degree angle. Heres a pic of the capacitor swelled up capacitor:


So should i go ahead and buy myself a new mobo?

Aelfgeft said:
Could there maybe have been a power surge or spike in the area? Did what happen to your mom's family member happen at the same time?

Sounds like the mobo is toast to me.
Click to expand...

I don't think there was a power surge or spike in the area. I was watching tv at the time and nothing abnormal happened.
 
Replace the board. Bad caps = faulty power regulation and unpredictable results.

Usually nothing else gets damaged so everything else should be good still and FOR THE LOVE OF GOD CLEAN UP YOUR WIRING!!!!! It's not just for looks but also allows better airflow and helps keep things cooler.
 
Alright i guess ill shell out the cash and get me a new mobo. Should i also get a new psu while im at it?
What do you guys suggest i do, Get myself another abit nf7-s or go for an ASUS A7N8X-E Deluxe? I'll also be adding in an extra 512mb ram and probably a new cpu HSF. My budget is around 150$ cnd. Any suggestions would be great.
Thanks for all the input, you guys helped me alot :)
 
Try clearing the CMOS? Try another PSU?

I dunno, keep troubleshooting though. You don't want to buy something new when another part was the culprit and the thing still wont work.
 
K i just resetted the cmos, and put in a different working psu i had connected in a different computer. I put in only 1 stick of ram + a working geforce 2 + 1 HDD + the cpu, turned it on and again nothing showed up. I tried without the HDD disconnected but nothing showed up again. The monitor just sits there as if the computer wasnt turned on at all. I really feel it the mobo because of the bad cap that i spotted is NEXT to the agp slot :confused: , But i hope its not the cpu :( .
 
Try turning it on with no RAM in there at all. It will beep if the mobo is still functional. If it doesn't, then it definately sounds like a busted motherboard.
 
nice, thanks for that great peice of information. I'll try that first thing tommorow morning.
 
If your soldering skills are any good and you can find a capacitor of the same farad and voltage rating you could replace the capacitor near the AGP slot. That is definitely where the problem is. I've fixed boards a number of times by doing that.
 
well i dont have a soldering iron but luckily im in a computer + electronics program in college so ill ask one of my professors to help me out with that :D
Thanks for all the input.
 
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