Re: Computer won't boot up - mobo?

Pete Zahut wrote:
> I built a system for a friend about three months ago (all components brand
> new at that time) and it won't boot up now. When the button is pressed,
> everything "comes to life" as you would expect, ie, ATX PSU fan, CPU fan,
> case fan and hard drive all spin up but two or three seconds later it all
> shuts down. It never even gets as far as POST - it literally is no more than
> two or three seconds before it shuts down.
>
> I've disconnected everything I can - hard drive, DVD drive, case fan,
> keyboard, mouse, monitor, speakers and even taken out the RAM (motherboard
> has integrated VGA and sound so can't remove those cards) so that all that's
> left is the PSU feeding the mobo/cpu (and it's fan of course), but it still
> happens. Using one of these ATX PSU testers:
>
> http://www.quietpc.com/gb-en-gbp/pro...s/x-psu-tester shows
> the following values:
>
> +5V = 5.3, +12V1 = 12.5, +3.3V = 3.3, -12V = 12.0, +12V2 = 12.3, 5VSB = 5.1,
> and PG = 290ms
>
> which all looks OK to me. Interestingly, I can leave the PSU connected to
> the tester for 5 minutes or more and those readings hold steady - it's only
> when I connect the PSU back to the motherboard that it cuts out within 2 or
> 3 seconds.
>
> Given my limited knowledge of these things, I reckon I've proved it to be a
> motherboard problem and I should now send it back to ebuyer.com for a
> replacement under warranty - but am I correct or should I try anything else?
>
> Mobo is a Gigabyte GA-MA69VM-S2
>
> TIA,
>
> Pete
>
>

Check the clip on the CPU heatsink. If you're using an Arctic Cooling
heatsink, the clip may have snapped off the plastic tab. The heatsink is
now loose.

Paul