PC won't stay on...

Aither

Aither

/Wrists
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So I am building a new PC

MOBO: Evga 680i A edition
RAM: OCZ Reaper 2 1Gig sticks PC 8500
CPU: E6600 2.4 C2D
PSU: 700W OCZ PSU


Heres the issue. Right now my PC does not have a GPU or a HDD (those come in next week) but I have all the basic stuff to get the computer to turn on and do a POST. So when I turn it on the PC powers up for about 1 second then shuts off. Now my HSF for my CPU lights up and spins my PSU fan spins my 120MM case fans spin and my chipset Fan spins.

Note: All brand new parts. Not that it really matters I have had DOA stuff.

So stuff I have tried: Checked and double checked all connections, tried to boot with 1 stick in different slots, checked case leads that connect to mobo pins, tried different PSU power cables.

Stuff I am going to try when I get off work: Make sure I am not shorting the mobo with a misplaced brass riser, check the CPU to make sure it is seated properly even though its a ZIF socket, failing that assemble the pc on my workbench without the case.

Any other suggestions would be VERY welcome, I have my A+ cert and I really don't want to take this too a tech. I do lack hardware to try the swap possible bad with known good so I may have to resort to that :( lol
 
I honestly dont know the answer or anything, but hey, Ill give it a shot.

Dont you need the HDD to be able to boot up the PC, since it has all the necessary software that is read from? Unless you have a disk that can run straight from the start

Oh yeah, another thing... I once tried to upgrade my old compaq with more ram... And when I inserted it, the PC wouldnt turn on, even though the ram was compatible.... Never figured this out, and just sold the PC and bought a notebook since I would have to try out diff sticks until I found the right one
 
Before the computer boots it does a system checked to see whats connected to it. To get a PC to do a POST (power on self test) All you really need is a mobo cpu and psu. Of course the pc won't go very far lacking a gpu ram and a display and HDD but I should get beep codes at the VERY least. I get a few clock cycles of life then off. It does make a loud click as it shuts down - dunno really what thats about but I am thinking its a brass riser.
 
Ruffyreborn said:
Dont you need the HDD to be able to boot up the PC, since it has all the necessary software that is read from? Unless you have a disk that can run straight from the start
Click to expand...
You can run a computer off a flash drive actually. Hard drives are not necessary these days, and actually never have been. The first thing your system does, as Aither said, is POST - bombs through the BIOS (which is a chip usually soldered directly onto the motherboard, sometimes removable but always part of the mobo) and checks that all hardware is replying to basic commands. Once that all checks out, it passes command to the boot device (usually hard drive) and off you go.

Aither said:
So when I turn it on the PC powers up for about 1 second then shuts off.
Click to expand...
One full second? Or a fraction of a second?

Could be a big red flag. If it's a full second, it's likely not an electrical short - something of that nature would shut the computer down before you even let go of the power button. It acts at the speed of light and knows there's a short immediately, automatically shuts down from there.

That could vary from one mobo manufacturer to another. One might go through a series of caps & regulators trying to auto-fix the problem, which could instigate a delay of one full second. Some might just shutdown off the bat without testing. Is there any (useful) details in the mobo manual's troubleshooting section?

Aither said:
Stuff I am going to try when I get off work: Make sure I am not shorting the mobo with a misplaced brass riser, check the CPU to make sure it is seated properly even though its a ZIF socket, failing that assemble the pc on my workbench without the case.
Click to expand...
Seems like overkill to me. I completely understand the anxious factor, I had to wait 3 weeks for all of my parts to arrive. But I didn't assemble anything until everything was in my hands, I'm sure you'll have success once you're in the same boat.
 
It less than 1 second I would say fly, heres something I find odd though, PSU has LED's the PSU fan DOES spin but not long enough to get the LED's to power up in the PSU. I am really anxious about this. I have built 40+ pc's from the ground up of all makes and never seen something like this. They always could POST :(
 
I know it's a long shot but:

CmdrFly said:
Is there any (useful) details in the mobo manual's troubleshooting section?
Click to expand...
Or on the mobo's forums, check the official site. If you post a new topic there, one of the employee mods should be able to guess if it's DOA or by design.
 
We had this exact same problem when we rebuilt my pc. Lights would flash on for a second, fan would go through maybe 3 revolutions, but it never posted before it shut down again. Turns out that our brand-new power supply was faulty. All my shit plugged into Osse's power supply worked fine. If you have a spare power supply that you know works give that a shot.
 
I sent off a a post to the EVGA team about this to lemme know if it sounds like a dead mobo - I need to wait 1-2 business days for a reply though ; ;
 
Fellina said:
We had this exact same problem when we rebuilt my pc. Lights would flash on for a second, fan would go through maybe 3 revolutions, but it never posted before it shut down again. Turns out that our brand-new power supply was faulty. All my shit plugged into Osse's power supply worked fine. If you have a spare power supply that you know works give that a shot.
Click to expand...

I tried the PSU in my current PC - works fine, sorry forgot to add that lol
 
If the PSU works in another computer then the most likely problem would be either the mobo or the proc.
 
just a thought...

Been reading about this issue all day and thought crossed my mind. What if the 2 pin power switch lead is reversed? Could that cause something like this?
 
If your power button has an LED inside it, yeah. Otherwise I don't think so. The power_on pins on the mobo is just a signal gap, you could put a jumper on there and it would turn your mobo on as soon as the power was plugged in.

The switch just closes the gap. As far as I know, reversing it shouldn't change anything. I'm sure I've reversed them before, I never knew which way to face the damn things until a couple of years ago when they started marking the pos/neg sides on them.
 
Aither said:
I tried the PSU in my current PC - works fine, sorry forgot to add that lol
Click to expand...

This is one of 2 things. The PSU or the Motherboard.

Try putting the "PSU in you're current PC" into the new shell you assembled, instead of testing the new PSU in the old PC. If it dosn't work then you'll know for sure the board is faulty. One measly scratch can end the board.

Then again you may not have to do that because the PSU works fine in the other shell as you said.

If you do come to the conclusion that the mobo is not working, you should then contact whoever you purchased the mobo from and let them know they sold you a useless mobo and that you would either like a replacement or you're money back.

Good luck with it, and don't give up.
 
We have Canada's entire IT department here... all 3 of us.
 
I would try the CPU in my current rig but 1 tiny problem - Socket 478 vs 775 :(

Yea about the 2pin lead I remembed back to my A+ class days when we used screwdrivers to jump start PC's so yea it just bridges the connection and boots the PC. :(
 
i did not know u could run an os off a flash drive =X

umm

this stumps me cause i dk how ur running without an hdd
 
Tok said:
i did not know u could run an os off a flash drive =X

umm

this stumps me cause i dk how ur running without an hdd
Click to expand...
Hard drive is a storage medium.

Flash drive is a storage medium.

Format the flash drive with a viable file system, install your OS of choice on it, tell your computer to boot to it. Modern chipsets will support this, older ones may not. My computer supports booting off USB drives, mobo was alpha'd about 2 years ago (ASUS A8R32-MVP Deluxe).

Obviously this is not ideal, SATA is much faster than USB and the blatantly staggering difference between disk size means you'll be much more limited using the flash drive. But it is technically possible.
 
The mobo is Evga and they have a sweet RMA service Ant - though It's still under NCIX's warrenty as well so...

Just to clear things up for people worried about no HDD's. Im trying to get my PC to do a POST test. I know the POST will fail due to the PC not having a GPU and a HDD. I just want to know the PC WILL work when it is complete.

What -really- sucks is I need to unhook my firewire leads off my mobo. for some stupid reason EACH wire is individual and connected on its own to each pin. Took me 45 minutes to connect them all.

Just to put my mind at ease about this and KNOW what the issue is. If it isn't a short causing it I am going to take it to my cousin who runs a PC repair shop and steal a GPU and a HDD and try it. and if it fails swap known good with suspected bad.
 
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Aither said:
What -really- sucks is I need to unhook my firewire leads off my mobo. for some stupid reason EACH wire is individual and connected on its own to each pin. Took me 45 minutes to connect them all.
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I hate that, didn't even bother on mine since I have yet to use any Firewire device.

However I did have to disconnect it a few times on my old computer. All I can say is: paper clip + duct tape = your friend. Wrap a paper clip around the wires above the black pin shells, wrap a paper clip around the bottom of the black pin shells, and then slather some duct / electrical (for the aesthetics-minded) tape around the pinout. Should give you a strong solid block you can easily remove and reinstall without having to spend all that time checking pins.

Shitty part is, doing the paper clips pretty much requires you to have 360° lateral access to the block. Which means, mobo on the table with CPU cooler off, RAM out, all expansion cards ganked.
 
CmdrFly said:
Hard drive is a storage medium.

Flash drive is a storage medium.

Format the flash drive with a viable file system, install your OS of choice on it, tell your computer to boot to it. Modern chipsets will support this, older ones may not. My computer supports booting off USB drives, mobo was alpha'd about 2 years ago (ASUS A8R32-MVP Deluxe).

Obviously this is not ideal, SATA is much faster than USB and the blatantly staggering difference between disk size means you'll be much more limited using the flash drive. But it is technically possible.
Click to expand...

are we talking the portable hdd's or the flash sticks you get from office max

cause i can see the portable hdd's
 
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