Help? I'm stumped.

[Zedix]

Ok, my turn to post a computer problem. I've got this computer to fix. Here's the situation:

- The computer was randomly shutting down during the past couple weeks, with an error message saying that Power Management was shutting down the computer. At one point the computer wouldn't want to boot anymore, so they brought it to me.

- I booted the computer, and it shutdown during POST, like they said it would. When that happens, I have to manually shutdown the power to the computer (via the power supply), wait like 10 secs, reopen the power and reopen the computer. If I don't do that, the PC won't reopen.

- I manage to get into the BIOS... I check the CPU temps and they are at ~70degrees and climbing steadily to 75+ while idle. The CPU autoshutdown temp is @ 95, so I was guessing the computer could easily reach that temp if the computer was left on during an extended period of time (the heatsink actually burnt me when I took it off).

- So I remove the heatsink, clean it all (it was extremely dusty), reinstall the heatsink, and the temps are now around 40ish degrees. Ok, problem solved I think. Nope! The computer still doesn't get past POST. That's with no hard drive plugged in or anything, only the strict minimum. (There's also this buzzing sound, I removed every fan and it still does it, I have no idea what it is, but it's annoying).

- So I think, this must be a case of a bad power supply, so I head out and buy a new power supply. Install it, nope! same thing.

- CPU overheated and malfunctionned ? Installed another CPU and heatsink. nope! same thing.

- Sometimes the computer will get passed the POST, then hang on a black screen when the Windows Xp screen should be loading. Nothing else I can do now but restart.

- Tried with a new hard-drive, I try booting from a CDrom of Windows XP or Windows ME, it doesn't boot either, just says there's no System disk...

I'm totally out of ideas, short of the motherboard being broken, but I don't know how that could've happened, or how to test if it's really the motherboard... (Short of installing a new motherboard, I don't really have one handy )

Does anyone have any idea what this could be, or have heard of anything regarding this ??

I'm stumped

 

[waddles]

Look for shorts under the motherboard, try resetting the CMOS (you probably did this but you didn't mention it so I'm just making sure), also could be RAM possibly, try switching that out with different sticks if possible or switching around the DIMMs and modules, that kind of thing

 

[Zedix]

Tried resetting the CMOS a bunch of times, tried swapping the RAM around different slots, but I haven't tried actually swapping it for another stick... I'll try that right now. If that doesn't work, I'll try looking for shorts under the mobo.

Thanks.

 

[Zedix]

Nope that's not it... No visible shorts under the motherboard, tried with new RAM, still no change: it gets to the screen where Windows XP would usually display it's loading screen, and it either shutsdown right away, or just hangs there doing nothing. Again, it doesn't recognize a bootable Windows disk.

 

[waddles]

Well my first thought when you talked about heat issues was CPU, but you say that's ok so that doesn't leave much else besides the motherboard. If there are no shorts underneath and you've tried resetting the CMOS, sounds like the thing is just busted. The only other idea I have is PSU, maybe the new one you bought just *happened* to be a dud... you could try checking with a PSU that's known to work. After that, I'm out of ideas.