Does this sound like my motherboard is dead?

[Obysk]

System specifications are in my signature for HTPC

 

Watching Netflix last night, computer froze, then quick Windows error message stating a problem occurred and the system needed to restart. System restarted, then immediate Windows error message again, restarted. Froze on the restart, hard reset, a few more failed restarts/restart then immediate error message and it was time for bed. I unplugged the computer from the wall hoping it would "find it's brains" over night.

 

Started the computer tonight, got to the desktop, clicked around for 1 minute, Windows error message/restart. 3 or 4 more failed restarts and then I noticed the power button wasn't turning the computer on any more. Opened the case, thought maybe the power supply was bad, paper clip bridged the green and black 24-pin wires, PSU fan spun up (power supply good). Thought maybe the front panel power switch was bad, bridged the power switch motherboard header with tip of screwdriver, nothing.

 

Something should spring to life if the power supply is good and the motherboard power switch header is bridged.

 

Is there anything else I can double check? Or is this pretty much a toast motherboard?

 

Thanks for any and all help.

[Lotus]

Check your memory.

[Jer45]

strip it down to just the essentials see what happens! and just because the fan spins doesnt mean it actually works

[Obysk]

12 minutes ago, Lotus said:

Check your memory.

Tried reseating both sticks, swapping slots, just one stick, even no sticks, system won't power on.

11 minutes ago, Jer45 said:

strip it down to just the essentials see what happens! and just because the fan spins doesnt mean it actually works

My system is already pretty basic, aside from the memory mentioned above, I unplugged the SSD sata power, system did not power on. I only have a CPU, 2 sticks of memory, and one SSD installed in my HTPC. The wireless module came pre-installed with the motherboard so I don't know how much more stripping down I can do.

[kirashi]

32 minutes ago, Obysk said:

System specifications are in my signature for HTPC

 

Watching Netflix last night, computer froze, then quick Windows error message stating a problem occurred and the system needed to restart. System restarted, then immediate Windows error message again, restarted. Froze on the restart, hard reset, a few more failed restarts/restart then immediate error message and it was time for bed. I unplugged the computer from the wall hoping it would "find it's brains" over night.

 

Started the computer tonight, got to the desktop, clicked around for 1 minute, Windows error message/restart. 3 or 4 more failed restarts and then I noticed the power button wasn't turning the computer on any more. Opened the case, thought maybe the power supply was bad, paper clip bridged the green and black 24-pin wires, PSU fan spun up (power supply good). Thought maybe the front panel power switch was bad, bridged the power switch motherboard header with tip of screwdriver, nothing.

 

Something should spring to life if the power supply is good and the motherboard power switch header is bridged.

 

Is there anything else I can double check? Or is this pretty much a toast motherboard?

 

Thanks for any and all help.

26 minutes ago, Jer45 said:

strip it down to just the essentials see what happens! and just because the fan spins doesnt mean it actually works

Correct. Good that OP bridged the power supply, but a spinning PSU fan does not indicate the voltages are correct.

A good power supply tester can be had off eBay for $5-15 and will report if your 12v/5v rails are working correctly.

 

 

I would unplug absolutely everything from your motherboard, except for your CPU, CPU heatsink/fan, and power supply.

Remove all your RAM, your GPU if you have one, any PCI add-in cards, and any attached storage devices.

 

Ground out the board by turning the switch off on your PSU, and attempting to turn it on, either with the case switch or bridging the power pins.

You just want to make sure there's no residual power in the board, which is usually indicated by the green light still being lit.

 

Set your BIOS jumper to CLR_CMOS, flip the PSU switch ON, and attempt to start it, again with the power button, or bridging the pins.

Obviously it's going to squeal or beep or just not boot up due to having no RAM, but at least it's doing something rather than nothing.

 

Reply back with your results, and we'll go from there.

[Obysk]

Thank you kirashi, I will try the above steps tonight when I get home and report back. I obviously won't have a PSU tester tonight, but will proceed with the other mentioned diagnostic steps.

[Obysk]

@kirashi

 

Got home, removed all RAM, unplugged literally everything from the motherboard except for 24-pin and CPU power, front panel LED/switch/reset, and CPU fan.

 

PSU unplugged and switched off, pressed the power button several times to remove any residual power.

 

Bridged the CLR-CMOS pins for a few seconds, plugged the PSU in, turned the PSU switch on, pressed the power button...nothing, bridged the power switch motherboard pins...nothing.

 

At this point is it safe to assume I have either a bad PSU or motherboard? I'm going to do a quick search for a cheap power supply tester, in the mean time, is there anything else I could try?

[kirashi]

@Obysk at this point, I'm pretty confident it's either your Motherboard, PSU, or CPU, although very unlikely it would be the CPU.

See if you can acquire another power supply, just for kicks. I'd suggest swapping CPUs too if you can, but you don't want to risk cooking a working CPU so...

[Obysk]

I purchased a power supply tester today and as far as I can tell, my PSU is good. I tested the 24 pin, CPU, and SATA connectors, see attached pictures.

 

I don't have a spare CPU kicking around I could try, and honestly the CPU seems unlikely as even though its an unlocked version, I have always ran it with stock clock since new.

 

Should I start a support ticket with Gigabyte for my motherboard? Anything else I can try? This truly has me confused on where to go next.

 

 

[Obysk]

UPDATE

 

I decided to RMA the motherboard with Gigabyte, shipped the board out, traveled to Japan on vacation, came home and moved into new house, finally got time to reassemble my HTPC with the returned/repaired motherboard.

 

Put everything together, pow, she's alive again.

 

Don't know why the motherboard failed, but it's good to be back in business.