Computer will not boot!


Recommended Posts

Okay. So I put together a new computer consisting of an ASRock H55M-LE motherboard, an intel core i5 660, a 500W power supply, and 4GB of corsair 1333 DDR3 memory. I put it together, and it doesn't work. Nothing happens other than the fans spinning and the hard drive. I have reseated the RAM in every possible combination (6 of them) and even tried reseating the CPU. The motherboard uses the GPU that is in the core i5, but I get nothing displayed through the VGA or DVI ports. What am I doing wrong?

Thanks.

Link to comment
https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/935270-computer-will-not-boot/
Share on other sites

  On 04/09/2010 at 04:46, nyrol said:

Okay. So I put together a new computer consisting of an ASRock H55M-LE motherboard, an intel core i5 660, a 500W power supply, and 4GB of corsair 1333 DDR3 memory. I put it together, and it doesn't work. Nothing happens other than the fans spinning and the hard drive. I have reseated the RAM in every possible combination (6 of them) and even tried reseating the CPU. The motherboard uses the GPU that is in the core i5, but I get nothing displayed through the VGA or DVI ports. What am I doing wrong?

Thanks.

First of all... 6 ram chips on an H55?

Are you getting a post beep (if you have a speaker on your motherboard), if not i dont think you seated the ram correctly. Try only using 1 module in the computer and make sure clips on both ends are inside the groove on each side of the module.

  On 04/09/2010 at 05:02, Tekkerson said:

Just use one stick of RAM to test to get rid of any other possibilities with the RAM sticks.

Other than that, do you have a power supply tester?

+1

You need to simplify things to begin the process of elimination.

Right now it could be 1 of about 5 things.

Oh yeah.... RTFM !

I have 2 ram slots meaning that there are 6 different combinations I could have with RAM in the motherboard. I plugged a chassis speaker into the speaker pins on the motherboard but have not gotten a beep even with no RAM in the motherboard. The CPU I bought was open box, so hopefully that was not the problem (it was their last one). All power connections are in the motherboard correctly, and hopefully the chassis speaker is as well (although I have tried it in both orientations). Would it be the motherboard or the CPU that would be the problem here?

Thanks.

Ok so you have disconnected everything unnecessary for a POST? Leaving only the mainboard connected with 1 stick of RAM left in, moving that stick around slots each power cycle ?

No HDD, DVD, FANS, PCI, PCI-e Cards or any other device should be connected while troubleshooting the board, and connected to the PSU should only be the board

Disconnect SATA / IDE / USB / Front Panel (Except power switch)

Remove CMOS battery and try a boot without that in

Some boards require 2 x 4Pin CPU power leads (Mine spins fans but wont POST with only 1 x 4PIN)

Ensure you are not shorting the back of the board onto the chassis

  On 04/09/2010 at 12:15, eder00 said:

try this:

check if the motherboard speaker is connected

1: remove all ram. this should make a beep telling you that there is no RAM

2: remove CPU. this should make a beep.

if none of the above make a beep code then is you motherboard or power supply.

Removing the CPU would make a beep ?

Dont know about that, maybe if you removed it while it was powered on it might lool

  On 04/09/2010 at 12:20, Phenom II said:

Removing the CPU would make a beep ?

Dont know about that, maybe if you removed it while it was powered on it might lool

+1,

Yea - if you will remove the CPU while the cmputer is powered on you might see a big BEEEP in your head from the power that will drive in you like a car on a highway.

  On 04/09/2010 at 12:28, nyrol said:

Sadly, none of these things worked. No beep from the speaker, and no output to the screen once I eventually started trying that.

Well if you have troubleshooted it with a barebone system, you can put it down to the mainboard or the CPU, and in my experience, it is 99% always the mainboard

Do you have another PSU to test ?

Well I just looked at the ASRock website, and it says that it has support for the C2 version of my cpu, and with a BIOS upgrade, the K0 version. The problem is, I don't know which version I have, or even how to upgrade the BIOS when it won't POST. I Also do not have another PSU.

  On 04/09/2010 at 12:43, nyrol said:

Well I just looked at the ASRock website, and it says that it has support for the C2 version of my cpu, and with a BIOS upgrade, the K0 version. The problem is, I don't know which version I have, or even how to upgrade the BIOS when it won't POST. I Also do not have another PSU.

Read the instructions on ASrocks site. Some have Floppy options, if you have that.

My experience with computers that won't boot, but power on. It's usually a motherboard issue. If you don't get a post with one or no sticks of RAM in, that's not good. It should at least beep multiples times.

  On 04/09/2010 at 12:43, nyrol said:

Well I just looked at the ASRock website, and it says that it has support for the C2 version of my cpu, and with a BIOS upgrade, the K0 version. The problem is, I don't know which version I have, or even how to upgrade the BIOS when it won't POST. I Also do not have another PSU.

Ah if it is infact that your BIOS does not support that CPU yet, then you have no option other than to put in a CPU that it does support, Update the BIOS, and then replace your CPU

I reckon your Motherboard is shorting against the case. Try removing the motherboard from the case and turning it on laying on your desk. I know it sounds unusual and maybe even implausible but I've had this happen before. I'd hit the power button and the system would turn on but nothing on video out, no beeps, no real life in the system just the fans spinning. I took it outside of the case, worked perfect. Put it back, died again. Eventually after looking at the case I realized that the 'risers' (which was just pressed metal and not real screw-in risers) were shorting the board from the back.

I think the CPU not being supported is also a likely cause but I'd expect you to receive at-least a beep of some kind in that event. Just like if there was an issue with the memory or the graphics.

  On 04/09/2010 at 14:04, Vice said:

I reckon your Motherboard is shorting against the case. Try removing the motherboard from the case and turning it on laying on your desk. I know it sounds unusual and maybe even implausible but I've had this happen before. I'd hit the power button and the system would turn on but nothing on video out, no beeps, no real life in the system just the fans spinning. I took it outside of the case, worked perfect. Put it back, died again. Eventually after looking at the case I realized that the 'risers' (which was just pressed metal and not real screw-in risers) were shorting the board from the back.

I think the CPU not being supported is also a likely cause but I'd expect you to receive at-least a beep of some kind in that event. Just like if there was an issue with the memory or the graphics.

Yea or at least run at the wrong speeds

  On 06/09/2010 at 02:57, nyrol said:

Problem resolved. I originally bought a case for $35, and it came with a 500 W PSU. I got a new one, and problem solved. Thanks for the help though.

What size did you end up getting? a 500W wasn't enough, wow.

This topic is now closed to further replies.
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
  • Posts

    • I am using Waterfox Private Search now that I started using the Waterfox browser on my PC and Android. Both work great* search waterfox net with full stops in between. * I have an issue where making comments on articles on various websites is difficult with Waterfox on Android as it randomly adds spaces and doubles up on text.
    • I can't believe it was only two years since the last time MS raised their prices and now they think they can do it again so soon. Of course they needed to backtrack on this. I hope Nintendo is next.
    • I guess I gotta be even more specific then since I'm looking for an absolute confirmation.  The mini PC has never booted up or powered on by me. I'm assuming it'll be like buying a new PC from a store. Nothing is set up. Like absolutely nothing on the mini PC because I can't emphasize this enough. My USB drive already has Windows set up on it from my other desktop so I know it's clean. So now I connect it to the mini PC before it's even booted up or go to the desktop. I then turn on the mini PC and boot into the USB drive. I should see an existing partition. I'll delete it and then install Windows again over the entire drive. I don't necessarily want to create a separate partition. Once it installs and boots to the desktop, I'm assuming the drive is "clean" and free of any malware/viruses. Basically, this process will eliminate any potential for malware/viruses to still somehow hide in the SSD and then potentially affect me later.  I'm being very anal about this because I really don't trust anything bought from AliExpress, but the price was very tempting.  Is Windows Defender reliable? Afterwards, if I do a full scan and it doesn't find anything in the SSD and the USB drive, can I be confident the mini PC is now safe and secured to enter my banking credentials? If not, what else can I do to be absolutely certain?
    • I got an ESR Qi2 vent charger for my car and it's fantastic. It's very strong magnet and holds the phone securely over the worst potholes/roads, and my iPhone does charge. In Summer, the AC blows on the vent keeps and keeps the phone cold. In winter, I just close that vent, so it still stays cold. I agree with you on the Android front. Why not just build in the magnets like Apple does? It's frustrating to buy a case that adds magnets.
    • Hey, I've been using Windows since I was a little tyke. But for the last 15 years, I have been using Linux. I'm using EndeavourOS/Arch atm. wipe it, as in deleting anything from the SSD in the computer. Make a new partition. USB booting device should be free of malware, as long as you download it directly friom MS. Not some XYZ company.
  • Recent Achievements

    • Collaborator
      fernan99 earned a badge
      Collaborator
    • Collaborator
      MikeK13 earned a badge
      Collaborator
    • One Month Later
      Alexander 001 earned a badge
      One Month Later
    • One Month Later
      Antonio Barboza earned a badge
      One Month Later
    • Week One Done
      Antonio Barboza earned a badge
      Week One Done
  • Popular Contributors

    1. 1
      +primortal
      581
    2. 2
      ATLien_0
      216
    3. 3
      Michael Scrip
      168
    4. 4
      Xenon
      136
    5. 5
      +FloatingFatMan
      125
  • Tell a friend

    Love Neowin? Tell a friend!