Hey computer nerds!!!!

[shochan]

Ok im having a problem with the old PC. It is a rather baffling probem that pisses me off. ok here it is.

The basic problem. Hit power, fans spin, leds come on, but the drives (hd, cd-r, dvdr) wont spin up. One day I went into the kitchen and came back in and the computer was off.

Steps I have taken

first i changed out motherboards with a brand new one. no go.
Then I changed out processors. With a old amd 900 duron that works in this computer.
then i changed out memory with the ddr in this one.
then video cards with the one in this one.
I tried every possible combination.

ok here is the origional specs:
xp 1600+
gigabyte board (dont remimber)
samsung 256mb pc2700
80gb maxtor ata 133
geforce3 ti
toshiba sd-r5002
and some stupid cd burner

then I replaced the mobo with a shuttle ak38 which supports all the above
and used the same parts.

then i added in a geforce 2mx440
samsung 256 pc2100
and a 900 duron
then i mixed back and forth with the two boards until my fingers were bleeeding.

the only thing that wasnt changed out was the power supply.

would that cause the wierd problems that im having.

has anyone ever had these problems?

[disturbed1]

I'd check your cables and devices first.

Connect one device at a time. Start with just the hard drive, no floppy, CD or anything.

If the hardrive works with that cable, try another cable, if it still works, you know your hardrive and cables are good. Start connecting the other drives one by one.

If a drive or cable is bad, it can short out the connections to the other devices and make nothing at all work.

Perhaps your master and slave settings are screwed? That would cause the same problems also.

[bolta]

Hey there . . .

Just a couple of ideas - as "disturbed1" suggests, try plugging in one device at a time, but why not try taking this one step further? Have NO devices plugged into your MB, and try powering that up? If your board does it's POST ok, then there should be all sorts of messages pop up. At the very least, if the MB is ok then you should be able to access it's BIOS and at least check that aspect of the board.

Second, try plugging in ONE device at a time - a HD unit, a CD-ROM drive etc - when you power-up, check that the MB is detecting these items ok. And YES, I've seen a bad power supply do this sort of thing. The basic outputs from a power supply should be 5 and 12 volts, plus whatever goes into your MB. If you know someone who's handy with a multi-meter (or some other sort of voltage meter), check the outputs from the supply.

Cheers,

B.

[trillium]

I noticed you mentioned that the power supply has not been swapped..
What type of supply is it? I notice many a computer problem can be solved by going to a decent power supply

Only two times I've seen symptoms like yours:
On my old Athlon 750 when the power supply just decided to up and go south. Fans would spin, power supply would come on, LEDs would work, rest of system - on vacation. Ran out and picked up another 300 (just to get it work) and it worked...

The second one was with my new system. Factory settings in BIOS for RAM were not set to be aggressive enough for the system to boot. I kid you not, out of the box I has to tinker with memory settings, after I got THAT taken care I've had no problems

you haven't mentioned if you get any blips burps or beeps from the board if it is attempted to post. These beeps can be a key sign to the reason why failure is occurring.

hope we've all given you some ideas to go on!

Goodluck

[Paul_W]

Well, if the computer worked, you left the room and came back to a non-working machine, the problem isn't with bios settings or any other kind of settings unless your computer has a resident gremlin.

Check the power supply.

[trillium]

gremlins....oooh forgot about those!

[Gazorgan]

I have lost 40% of the power supplies at my work place. They were cheap crap. However, a failing powersupply can fry harddrives, cpu and ram. Change out the power supply, that's should have been the first thing you checked.

[wecc]

All,
A good power supply from a reputable manufacturer is a must for the health of the components its supplying juice to and yes, your peace of mind as well.

I highly recommend products from Antec, Enlight and Enermax.

Happy computing.

[gadgetguy]

I had similar problem with my old computer. I was using an older (unkeyed) cable to my floppy drive and had it reversed. Results were exactly as you describe. As soon as it got to the point to read the drive is when it would crash.
Hope it helps.

[doom969]

I would change the power supply before everything else.
Those kinds of problems are caused by the motherboard or the supply, since u changed the board with no result, i'd go for the suplly.

Also, as your comp is a amd Athlon, i'd put at least a 350watt SMART-ATX
, it should prevent power surge and short thus removing the risk of having the same problem.

d0oM!

[zzyzzx]

I have lost 40% of the power supplies at my work place. They were cheap crap. However, a failing powersupply can fry harddrives, cpu and ram. Change out the power supply, that's should have been the first thing you checked.

I'm still using a power supply (and case) that I bought in 1994 and it works just fine. I think I may have replaced the fan in it once due to noise.

[zzyzzx]

Well, if the computer worked, you left the room and came back to a non-working machine, the problem isn't with bios settings or any other kind of settings unless your computer has a resident gremlin.

Vague 70's reference follows:

[shochan]

let me add in that I did put one part in at a time. It really baffles me. I really hate this damn computer. Im prob going to check the power supply and see if that is the proble. Thanks for the help. Keep the suggestions coming.

[Nelson37]

Rule #1 - Minimize the variables. Mobo, Processor, fans, - Check for beep codes, if necessary, add memory, then video. You got a totally dead box, the drives are not the problem unless you have a dead short. But disconnect them anyway. Bad PS probably no beep code at all, but it will spin the fans. Which brings me to -

Rule #2 - When replacing parts, start with the cheapest and/or easiest to replace, taking into account the symptoms. Which indicate PS or mobo, anyway. If you set the two computers close enough, you can connect the cables from the good machine to the bad one without even taking it out of the case. Did you happen to check the voltage setting on the back of the PS? Some machines will react this way if set to 220 volt.

On the power supplies themselves, I really see no advantage to the expensive units over standard, inexpensive models, as long as you get enough wattage.

[MOVIEGEEK]

I had the same problem(after spending $150)...it's your PSU(power supply),make sure to get one with a min. of 350watts.

[shochan]

Solved.... It was the damn powersuppply nothing more. it was jacked up giving just enough juice for most everything but just not enough.

Parts are kinda expensive herein korea so I wound up having to pay $100 for a 500w(better damn be enough).

oh and the 220 swith is set right.... 220

thanks for the help.


"Computers are like wives, treat them right and they are still a bitch"