A very very bizarre problem *plz help*

[Black Wolfie]

ok...this is gonna be a long one.

let me take you back to just after christmass whe i built my
comp.......
after having spent a day putting my new comp together and making sure
everything was postioned correctly (i was being VERY careful) i went
and tried my comp. It worked! (to my relief) it carried on like this
for about 2 months then one time when i went to turn it on it turned
on and began to POST ( the diagnostic LED's told me so) but then after
about 3 seconds the computer powered off....so i tried again, same
thing happened and again. so i lay the comp on its side and tried to
see if i could see anything like if any of the fans weren't
spinning...i pressed the power button and the comp POST'd and got
into windows.....very puzzling i thought so i went to stand my comp
back up and just as i reached the vertical, off it went the PSu just
cut power but in an odd way so much so it looked like the
transformers had just lost power cause the main power light was still
on and the DIMM power light was still on then as the residual power
was used they faded, so i imediatley looked for somethignthat could
be short ciruiting against anything but there was nothing and besides
i figured if it was going to short something it would damage a
component but it booted into windows so everything was obviously
working.
the i tried taking it out of the case to chack if there were any
protruding bits of metal that were causeing it to short...but there
were none. so i htowired my PSU (faking the signal the mobo sneds to
it by connecting the green wire and black wire furthest away from it
on the same row), it powered up fine and it twisted it and turned it
and still no signs of it being un happy even the voltages were stable
+12V @ 11.98V and +5V @ 4.87V. so i set my comp up on the desk and it
ran fine. again i put it back in the case this time puting the
non-conductive foam the mobo was on in its anti static bag, behind it
on the mobo tray. and started adding stuff and testing with only the
cpu + cooler (-fan) and the RAM in the mobo it worked but as son as i
started adding stuff it would do the same thign again and again, even
when i stripped it back down to the same level again it would shut
off after a few seconds. but i finished putting it back together and
tested and would you believe it the same thing happened. so i tried
it on its side and it worked, tried it upside down and it worked
finally i tried it on the other side and it worked only when it was
at about 80 degrees to the horisontal did it shut off again....

i have run out of ideas....i am on the verge of taking it to PC world
(were satan lives) to have them steal £30 off me just to tell me its
not working....i have a feeling it could be the mobo but i though i
might as well try posting here to see if anyone had any ideas...also
the amount of time before it shuts off changes it can be from 2-7
seconds..

the pc's spec is:
AMD Athalon XP 3200+ @ 2420Mhz 210FSB x 11.5
DFI LanParty NForce2 Ultra B
512MB PC3200 OCZ Enhanced latency @ 1:1 FSB
Antec NeoPower 480W
160Gb seagate
DVD-rom
DVD-rw
Sapphire X800 Pro VIVO

i'm using a Aerocool deepimpact DP-102 HSF on the CPU and a Arctic
cooling ATI silencer on the X800.....

hope someone out there can help!.....PLZ

 

[Papa]

I suggest you try a different power supply.

 

[JAD]

what about the power cord/ swap it

ok...this is gonna be a long one.

let me take you back to just after christmass whe i built my
comp.......
after having spent a day putting my new comp together and making sure
everything was postioned correctly (i was being VERY careful) i went
and tried my comp. It worked! (to my relief) it carried on like this
for about 2 months then one time when i went to turn it on it turned
on and began to POST ( the diagnostic LED's told me so) but then after
about 3 seconds the computer powered off....so i tried again, same
thing happened and again. so i lay the comp on its side and tried to
see if i could see anything like if any of the fans weren't
spinning...i pressed the power button and the comp POST'd and got
into windows.....very puzzling i thought so i went to stand my comp
back up and just as i reached the vertical, off it went the PSu just
cut power but in an odd way so much so it looked like the
transformers had just lost power cause the main power light was still
on and the DIMM power light was still on then as the residual power
was used they faded, so i imediatley looked for somethignthat could
be short ciruiting against anything but there was nothing and besides
i figured if it was going to short something it would damage a
component but it booted into windows so everything was obviously
working.
the i tried taking it out of the case to chack if there were any
protruding bits of metal that were causeing it to short...but there
were none. so i htowired my PSU (faking the signal the mobo sneds to
it by connecting the green wire and black wire furthest away from it
on the same row), it powered up fine and it twisted it and turned it
and still no signs of it being un happy even the voltages were stable
+12V @ 11.98V and +5V @ 4.87V. so i set my comp up on the desk and it
ran fine. again i put it back in the case this time puting the
non-conductive foam the mobo was on in its anti static bag, behind it
on the mobo tray. and started adding stuff and testing with only the
cpu + cooler (-fan) and the RAM in the mobo it worked but as son as i
started adding stuff it would do the same thign again and again, even
when i stripped it back down to the same level again it would shut
off after a few seconds. but i finished putting it back together and
tested and would you believe it the same thing happened. so i tried
it on its side and it worked, tried it upside down and it worked
finally i tried it on the other side and it worked only when it was
at about 80 degrees to the horisontal did it shut off again....

i have run out of ideas....i am on the verge of taking it to PC world
(were satan lives) to have them steal £30 off me just to tell me its
not working....i have a feeling it could be the mobo but i though i
might as well try posting here to see if anyone had any ideas...also
the amount of time before it shuts off changes it can be from 2-7
seconds..

the pc's spec is:
AMD Athalon XP 3200+ @ 2420Mhz 210FSB x 11.5
DFI LanParty NForce2 Ultra B
512MB PC3200 OCZ Enhanced latency @ 1:1 FSB
Antec NeoPower 480W
160Gb seagate
DVD-rom
DVD-rw
Sapphire X800 Pro VIVO

i'm using a Aerocool deepimpact DP-102 HSF on the CPU and a Arctic
cooling ATI silencer on the X800.....

hope someone out there can help!.....PLZ

 

[Ruel Smith]

First, try making sure that all wires are correctly connected. A short could
cause something like this. You might even go so far as to disconnect all
wires, one at a time, and reconnect them. Do this for internal wires,
particularly Molex connectors and fan connectors, as well as external wires
such as those on parallel and serial ports. Those ports particularly are
not hot pluggable and an arc will shut the power supply down.

Second, if solution one doesn't fix it, change out the power cord. It could
be shorted internally, and cause it to kick off.

Third, if that doesn't work, swap out the power supply itself. Make sure you
get a good one, too. I highly recommend Antec. You won't regret it. Power
supplies are one of the most overlooked components, yet one of the biggest
culprits of system instability. 350 watt PSU from Mad Dog does not equal a
350 watt PSU from Antec. There is a huge difference in output, despite
equal claims of 350 watts. My Antec SmartPower 350 watt puts out 21 amps on
the +12V line. I have the original that came with my Soyo barebones kit
that's also 350 watts, but only puts out 12 amps on the same line. Big
difference.

Lastly, try reseating your HSF combo, CPU, memory, graphics card, sound
card, etc. one at a time and testing to see if any of that helps. If all of
that is negative, try swapping them for a known working component, one at a
time.

 

[GlowingBlueMist]

ok...this is gonna be a long one.

let me take you back to just after christmass whe i built my
comp.......
after having spent a day putting my new comp together and making sure
everything was postioned correctly (i was being VERY careful) i went
and tried my comp. It worked! (to my relief) it carried on like this
for about 2 months then one time when i went to turn it on it turned
on and began to POST ( the diagnostic LED's told me so) but then after
about 3 seconds the computer powered off....so i tried again, same
thing happened and again. so i lay the comp on its side and tried to
see if i could see anything like if any of the fans weren't
spinning...i pressed the power button and the comp POST'd and got
into windows.....very puzzling i thought so i went to stand my comp
back up and just as i reached the vertical, off it went the PSu just
cut power but in an odd way so much so it looked like the
transformers had just lost power cause the main power light was still
on and the DIMM power light was still on then as the residual power
was used they faded, so i imediatley looked for somethignthat could
be short ciruiting against anything but there was nothing and besides
i figured if it was going to short something it would damage a
component but it booted into windows so everything was obviously
working.
the i tried taking it out of the case to chack if there were any
protruding bits of metal that were causeing it to short...but there
were none. so i htowired my PSU (faking the signal the mobo sneds to
it by connecting the green wire and black wire furthest away from it
on the same row), it powered up fine and it twisted it and turned it
and still no signs of it being un happy even the voltages were stable
+12V @ 11.98V and +5V @ 4.87V. so i set my comp up on the desk and it
ran fine. again i put it back in the case this time puting the
non-conductive foam the mobo was on in its anti static bag, behind it
on the mobo tray. and started adding stuff and testing with only the
cpu + cooler (-fan) and the RAM in the mobo it worked but as son as i
started adding stuff it would do the same thign again and again, even
when i stripped it back down to the same level again it would shut
off after a few seconds. but i finished putting it back together and
tested and would you believe it the same thing happened. so i tried
it on its side and it worked, tried it upside down and it worked
finally i tried it on the other side and it worked only when it was
at about 80 degrees to the horisontal did it shut off again....

i have run out of ideas....i am on the verge of taking it to PC world
(were satan lives) to have them steal £30 off me just to tell me its
not working....i have a feeling it could be the mobo but i though i
might as well try posting here to see if anyone had any ideas...also
the amount of time before it shuts off changes it can be from 2-7
seconds..

the pc's spec is:
AMD Athalon XP 3200+ @ 2420Mhz 210FSB x 11.5
DFI LanParty NForce2 Ultra B
512MB PC3200 OCZ Enhanced latency @ 1:1 FSB
Antec NeoPower 480W
160Gb seagate
DVD-rom
DVD-rw
Sapphire X800 Pro VIVO

i'm using a Aerocool deepimpact DP-102 HSF on the CPU and a Arctic
cooling ATI silencer on the X800.....

hope someone out there can help!.....PLZ

I have run into similar problems in the past. As one has mentioned the AC
power cord on the back of the power supply was partially defective and the
computer would quit depending on how the cable was bent, as in horizontal to
vertical chassis position.

Another intermittent problem was tracked down to be an internal power or
ribbon cable flexing and blocking a fan motor, causing a thermal or other
safety shut down.

I have even seen the power button cable have a loose connection where it
plugs into the motherboard. Lightly wiggled the cable at the connector and
the unit would power off.

And as others have suggested I have run into defective power supply that had
a bad soldering job on a heavy capacitor that would flex enough to quit
working.

 

[David Maynard]

First, try making sure that all wires are correctly connected. A short could
cause something like this. You might even go so far as to disconnect all
wires, one at a time, and reconnect them. Do this for internal wires,
particularly Molex connectors and fan connectors, as well as external wires
such as those on parallel and serial ports. Those ports particularly are
not hot pluggable and an arc will shut the power supply down.

Second, if solution one doesn't fix it, change out the power cord. It could
be shorted internally, and cause it to kick off.

Third, if that doesn't work, swap out the power supply itself. Make sure you
get a good one, too. I highly recommend Antec. You won't regret it. Power
supplies are one of the most overlooked components, yet one of the biggest
culprits of system instability. 350 watt PSU from Mad Dog does not equal a
350 watt PSU from Antec. There is a huge difference in output, despite
equal claims of 350 watts. My Antec SmartPower 350 watt puts out 21 amps on
the +12V line. I have the original that came with my Soyo barebones kit
that's also 350 watts, but only puts out 12 amps on the same line. Big
difference.

I find all the talk about cheap PSUs, and you recommending Antec, kind of
interesting since his equipment list said he was using an Antec NeoPower 480W.

 

[David Maynard]

ok...this is gonna be a long one.

let me take you back to just after christmass whe i built my
comp.......
after having spent a day putting my new comp together and making sure
everything was postioned correctly (i was being VERY careful) i went
and tried my comp. It worked! (to my relief) it carried on like this
for about 2 months then one time when i went to turn it on it turned
on and began to POST ( the diagnostic LED's told me so) but then after
about 3 seconds the computer powered off....so i tried again, same
thing happened and again. so i lay the comp on its side and tried to
see if i could see anything like if any of the fans weren't
spinning...i pressed the power button and the comp POST'd and got
into windows.....very puzzling i thought so i went to stand my comp
back up and just as i reached the vertical, off it went the PSu just
cut power but in an odd way so much so it looked like the
transformers had just lost power cause the main power light was still
on and the DIMM power light was still on then as the residual power
was used they faded, so i imediatley looked for somethignthat could
be short ciruiting against anything but there was nothing and besides
i figured if it was going to short something it would damage a
component but it booted into windows so everything was obviously
working.
the i tried taking it out of the case to chack if there were any
protruding bits of metal that were causeing it to short...but there
were none. so i htowired my PSU (faking the signal the mobo sneds to
it by connecting the green wire and black wire furthest away from it
on the same row), it powered up fine and it twisted it and turned it
and still no signs of it being un happy even the voltages were stable
+12V @ 11.98V and +5V @ 4.87V. so i set my comp up on the desk and it
ran fine. again i put it back in the case this time puting the
non-conductive foam the mobo was on in its anti static bag, behind it
on the mobo tray. and started adding stuff and testing with only the
cpu + cooler (-fan) and the RAM in the mobo it worked but as son as i
started adding stuff it would do the same thign again and again, even
when i stripped it back down to the same level again it would shut
off after a few seconds. but i finished putting it back together and
tested and would you believe it the same thing happened. so i tried
it on its side and it worked, tried it upside down and it worked
finally i tried it on the other side and it worked only when it was
at about 80 degrees to the horisontal did it shut off again....

i have run out of ideas....i am on the verge of taking it to PC world
(were satan lives) to have them steal £30 off me just to tell me its
not working....i have a feeling it could be the mobo but i though i
might as well try posting here to see if anyone had any ideas...also
the amount of time before it shuts off changes it can be from 2-7
seconds..

the pc's spec is:
AMD Athalon XP 3200+ @ 2420Mhz 210FSB x 11.5
DFI LanParty NForce2 Ultra B
512MB PC3200 OCZ Enhanced latency @ 1:1 FSB
Antec NeoPower 480W
160Gb seagate
DVD-rom
DVD-rw
Sapphire X800 Pro VIVO

i'm using a Aerocool deepimpact DP-102 HSF on the CPU and a Arctic
cooling ATI silencer on the X800.....

hope someone out there can help!.....PLZ

Well, there could be a lot of things that can be loose, cable, crimp
connection, power switch, etc., but the physical layout of that heatsink
sure sticks out, pardon the pun.

 

[Conor Turton]

hope someone out there can help!.....PLZ

Dodgy mains lead usually. If not, then it sounds like you've got a bad
PSU.

 

[Black Wolfie]

i see how all of those may do it but....i have tried many different AC
cables and also why did the PSU operate fine for a few months before
doing this and why does it do it only when standing
upright?.....could it be the mobo?

you should also notice that i have an Antec PSU a NeoPower 480W now
unless i'm wrong but 480W is plenty of juice to run a system like
this

 

[Papa]

A failure that occurs simply by repositioning the power supply is a pretty
good clue that the PS is defective, unless in the repositioning you are also
moving something else as well. I urge you to try a different power supply.
Borrow one, or buy one from your local computer store. Then if the problem
still exists, just return the new one for a refund. Most stores (at least in
my area) have a 30 day return policy.

Even good brands like Antec can be flawed now and then, and most likely the
wattage has nothing to do with the problem.

 

[sbb78247]

A failure that occurs simply by repositioning the power supply is a
pretty good clue that the PS is defective, unless in the
repositioning you are also moving something else as well. I urge you
to try a different power supply. Borrow one, or buy one from your
local computer store. Then if the problem still exists, just return
the new one for a refund. Most stores (at least in my area) have a 30
day return policy.
Even good brands like Antec can be flawed now and then, and most
likely the wattage has nothing to do with the problem.

Papa is right about this and as he has mentioned the motherboard or
something may have worked itself loose from the standoffs. Have you checked
this too??? It could be grounding in a verticle position and when you move
the case around, it may return to a position that does not cause it to
ground. Is this in a light weight case that has a bit of flex?

S

 

[Glen]

I find all the talk about cheap PSUs, and you recommending Antec, kind of
interesting since his equipment list said he was using an Antec NeoPower 480W.

I find this talk of "shorts" in this thread interesting (e.g., if
there's a "short" in the power cord either something is gonna smoke or a
breaker is gonna trip, or both); likewise, for other components
downstream of the PSU - with a short, the magic smoke is going to get
out of something. There might be an "open", but a "short" is unlikely.

I think the original comment that the power went off when the PC was
placed in a vertical position is interesting and, maybe, indicative.
I'd suggest removing the PSU, standing the PC up, powering it on, and
rotating the PSU thru various positions - there might be something loose
in the PSU that's causing the problem.

 

[David Maynard]

I find this talk of "shorts" in this thread interesting (e.g., if
there's a "short" in the power cord either something is gonna smoke or a
breaker is gonna trip, or both);

Yes, a 'short' there would trip and/or smoke.

An open would sure as heck power it off though.

likewise, for other components
downstream of the PSU - with a short, the magic smoke is going to get
out of something. There might be an "open", but a "short" is unlikely.

Depends on what shorted. Not everything overcurrents just because it gets
tied to ground, or something else, but you'd more likely see a lockup and
not a 'it just powered off' kind of thing. But even that could happen if it
was something like shorting the power button control.

I think the original comment that the power went off when the PC was
placed in a vertical position is interesting and, maybe, indicative.

Definitely. Seems likely that something is 'moving'.

I'd suggest removing the PSU, standing the PC up, powering it on, and
rotating the PSU thru various positions - there might be something loose
in the PSU that's causing the problem.

Possible.

But that honker, skyscraper, heatsink seems a likely candidate to me and I
notice from reviews that some have complained it's easy to install
improperly, although I'm not sure that would be necessary. If, for example,
it cocked then the processor would overheat and, one hopes, the thermal
trip might safety shut down the system.

On the other hand, the PSU cable to the motherboard has enough weight to
shift on orientation and I've seen connectors with crimps so loose that the
wire was hanging in the pin simply because it was bundled with the other wires.

 

[JAD]

Yes, a 'short' there would trip and/or smoke.

An open would sure as heck power it off though.


Depends on what shorted. Not everything overcurrents just because it gets
tied to ground, or something else, but you'd more likely see a lockup and
not a 'it just powered off' kind of thing. But even that could happen if it
was something like shorting the power button control.



Definitely. Seems likely that something is 'moving'.


Possible.

But that honker, skyscraper, heatsink seems a likely candidate to me and I
notice from reviews that some have complained it's easy to install
improperly, although I'm not sure that would be necessary. If, for example,
it cocked then the processor would overheat and, one hopes, the thermal
trip might safety shut down the system.

yep that's my guess too, ever hold a 5 pound weight out in front of you? ;^)
need a 'over the processor boulder holder'...

 

[Ed Medlin]

i see how all of those may do it but....i have tried many different AC
cables and also why did the PSU operate fine for a few months before
doing this and why does it do it only when standing
upright?.....could it be the mobo?

you should also notice that i have an Antec PSU a NeoPower 480W now
unless i'm wrong but 480W is plenty of juice to run a system like
this

That DP-102 is one massive HS. Are you using a two fan setup or just one? I
would make sure it isn't touching something like the video card etc when you
set the system upright. Remember, when the system is laying down, that HS is
vertical and when you move it upright it wants to "hang down" a bit. In the
reviews I have read about that HS, clearances are a big concern.


Ed