PC Shuts Down In Boot

[arhtech]

Processor: Intel Core i7-4790K

Cooler: Corsair H60

Motherboard: MSI H97I AC

Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury White (2 x 8GB)

Graphics Card: Nvidia Reference GTX 970

Storage: Transcend SSD370 512GB, Transcend SSD340 64GB

Power Supply: Corsair RM 750W

Case: Corsair 380T Mini ITX Tower

OS: Windows 8.1 Professional Version 6.3.9600

 

Here's my problem: I push the power button, and the system seems to be booting normally. The power light and other lights/fans come on, I get images on the screen, all is well. Then, after the MSI BIOS logo has appeared and vanished, the system shuts down. It then reboots itself; lights and fans come on but not the power light, and I get no images on the screen. Turning it off and back on changes nothing; same dead state.

 

At this point, I reset the CMOS and when I power back on it gives me a prompt asking if I want to run setup or continue. 'Continue' repeats the process I just described, 'Setup' gets me into the BIOS. I've tried a few different BIOS configurations, including a basic configuration (UEFI Only, enabling fast boot etc; no overclocking) and just accepting the default. Save and restart results in the original problem. What I can do is manually override the boot selection, picking Windows Boot Manager. The system reboots and loads Windows normally.

 

At this point it's all happy; I'm making this post from the afflicted PC. It will even do a restart just fine, but a complete power off, or sleep mode, brings back the same problem. I have to reset CMOS and do the manual override again.

 

I have already updated the BIOS to the latest version (AMI V5.7).

 

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[pwn_intended]

Silly question, but do you have any CD/DVDs/USB keys/external drives plugged in?

[arhtech]

Silly question, but do you have any CD/DVDs/USB keys/external drives plugged in?

None. 

 

but i would go further and remove the hard drives.(just to see if the pc is waiting to find an os.)

and try to run a linux distro of a usb stick.

I'll give that a shot. What should I be looking for when I unplug the drives?

 

Thank you both for the fast replies.

[arhtech]

I unplugged all my drives; the only things plugged into the system are my mouse, keyboard, and monitor. I don't have an optical drive, so that's not involved either. I shut the system down and turned it back on. It experienced the same dead state; fans and lights appearing to idle with nothing going to the screen. I reset the CMOS and was able to get to BIOS as before.

[caddi daddi]

please open you manual and make sure your boot drive is in sata port 1 or 2, these are normaly up under the gpu and can be hard to get at, the lowest ports are for optical drives and not boot devices.

[arhtech]

please open you manual and make sure your boot drive is in sata port 1 or 2, these are normaly up under the gpu and can be hard to get at, the lowest ports are for optical drives and not boot devices.

I moved my boot drive over to SATA port 1; same problem.

[caddi daddi]

is this a new build?

[arhtech]

is this a new build?

 

Yes.

[TheArmChairGuru]

Nvidia specs dictate 2- 6pin power connectors and a 500W min PSU for a GTX 970.

Your CPU has an 88W tdp, which translates to roughly 100+ W or more for headroom, depending on too many factors to list (overclocking, etc.)

Use a PSU that you know works properly, and have it be at least 500 W for testing, you specified a 450W. (If I built the system you listed, I would use at least a 600W PSU)

If you can't get hold of a good PSU to test, take out the Video Card and see if it boots correctly with the boot drive installed.

If it boots correctly, turn it off and add ONLY the video card back to the system, test again.

If it doesn't boot, the PSU may not be enough for the video card.

 

If it handles the video card and still forces you to do a manual boot selection, my next place to go would be the SSD boot install, they are particular and wierd in many ways.

 

Good luck

[simeon kalcut]

Yes.

hey have you got mb standoffs on your mb? it was a new build I TRIED EVERYTHING AND THEN I REMEMBERED MY MATE FORGOT TO PUT MB standoffs and it caused it to reboot and not work and it worked 

[arhtech]

hey have you got mb standoffs on your mb? it was a new build I TRIED EVERYTHING AND THEN I REMEMBERED MY MATE FORGOT TO PUT MB standoffs and it caused it to reboot and not work and it worked 

Yes, the standoffs are in.

 

Nvidia specs dictate 2- 6pin power connectors and a 500W min PSU for a GTX 970.

Your CPU has an 88W tdp, which translates to roughly 100+ W or more for headroom, depending on too many factors to list (overclocking, etc.)

Use a PSU that you know works properly, and have it be at least 500 W for testing, you specified a 450W. (If I built the system you listed, I would use at least a 600W PSU)

If you can't get hold of a good PSU to test, take out the Video Card and see if it boots correctly with the boot drive installed.

If it boots correctly, turn it off and add ONLY the video card back to the system, test again.

If it doesn't boot, the PSU may not be enough for the video card.

 

If it handles the video card and still forces you to do a manual boot selection, my next place to go would be the SSD boot install, they are particular and wierd in many ways.

 

Good luck

I'll give that a try.

[arhtech]

No change in behavior after removing the graphics card. Thanks for the heads-up anyway; I'll see if my 750W PSU fits in the case.​

 

Any advice regarding the SSD? Should I just reinstall Windows?

[arhtech]

Nvidia specs dictate 2- 6pin power connectors and a 500W min PSU for a GTX 970.

Your CPU has an 88W tdp, which translates to roughly 100+ W or more for headroom, depending on too many factors to list (overclocking, etc.)

Use a PSU that you know works properly, and have it be at least 500 W for testing, you specified a 450W. (If I built the system you listed, I would use at least a 600W PSU)

If you can't get hold of a good PSU to test, take out the Video Card and see if it boots correctly with the boot drive installed.

If it boots correctly, turn it off and add ONLY the video card back to the system, test again.

If it doesn't boot, the PSU may not be enough for the video card.

 

If it handles the video card and still forces you to do a manual boot selection, my next place to go would be the SSD boot install, they are particular and wierd in many ways.

 

Good luck

Upgraded to a 750W power supply. No change.

[arhtech]

maybe one or both of the ram sticks ?

(just guessing at this point )

The RAM was operating perfectly in a previous build. Do you suspect an incompatibility?

[TheArmChairGuru]

It is possible the ram is incompatible.

Check the specs on the board (can be found online usually at the manufacturer's website) to see if it supports that speed memory.

Boards usually won't boot at all if it doesn't like the memory but stranger things have happened.

As for the re-install, SSDs have been known to be quirky.

If your SSD was used for the OS installation on the machine in question, it is likely not the problem.