Question Asus Tuf Gaming X-570 Pro (WiFi) won't power on --- only the RGB lights are lit up ?

TheHemogoblin

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Feb 11, 2016
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Hey Folks!

Okay. Building my new PC, I assembled everything as I normally would and when I went to power it on, no luck. No fans, no sounds, no lights except for the RGB lights on the motherboard itself. I have tried pretty near every solution on so many forums that I've nearly lost track.

AMD Ryzen 5600
Asus Tuf Gaming X570 Pro (wifi)
Asus Tuf RTX3080
2x16gb TridentZ DDR4 3600
EVGA 850 P2

After it didn't work the first time, I removed it from the case, and removed unnecessary components (fans, SSDs) I made sure everything else was properly seated and all connections were firmly in place. 24-pin was in, 8pin CPU power was in, RAM seated in proper slots according to the MOBO manual.

To remove the case from the equation, I shorted the power switch and nothing happened. I tried with a second power supply from a PC that works (that I'm typing this on) and still no love.

I read that my motherboard may need a bios update with the 5600 so I removed everything from the board (CPU as well) and eventually, after trying different thumb drives and whatnot, I finally (seemingly) updated the BIOS. I assume it worked because it finally just flashed for a few minutes then went out on its own. All other attempts resulted in a solid led for ~60 minutes until I flipped the PSU off manually.

Next, I cleaned off and reapplied the thermal paste and reseated the CPU, which had no bent pins, back into its home on the MOBO and plugged the CPU fans in. Still nothing.

I thought it was the PSU at this point, so I tried the PSU paper clip test and for the first time in this whole process, the PSU fan started.

At some point, I cleared the CMOS.

I'm now getting the impression I have a dead motherboard, but I've never had that happen in any of my builds over the years. If that were the case, would the BIOS still update and its LEDs work? Would the RGB lights still turn on?

One reason I believe this to be the case is because before I started the build, I removed a heatsink and modified it before reattaching it, so maybe despite the care I took not to, I shorted it before I ever began putting the parts together. If so, the warranty is obviously voided, but I knew the risk at the time.

Anyhow, I'm at a loss at what to do now to make sure it is in fact the motherboard. Is there any way I can figure out for certain that this motherboard is beyond repair, if it turns out to be dead?

Have I missed any troubleshooting steps? I don't have diagnostic tools, like voltmeters, etc.

Thank you for the help, I'm at my wits end. I've had all of these parts for a year and a half but anxiety and depression are real and I'm just now finally building it.
 

TheHemogoblin

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Which one and how exactly?

Did you connect the gpu with power cords and connected it to the monitor? Don't use the integrated motherboard video ports, these won't work.
Hi! Thank you for taking the time to reply :)

It was the large one on top of the I/O ports. I removed it, glued a flat decorative thing on it (two little drops of glue, it shouldn't impede the thermal conductivity by any noticeable difference), and put it back on. I used a grounded static wrist band and placed the motherboard upside down on the antistatic bag it came in, on top of its box, on a very clean surface. I then unscrewed the heatsink which came off very easily and put a strip of the antistatic bag over the thermal pads so they wouldn't get anything on them or rub against anything for the five minutes it took to do the deed. The decoration never came in contact with the motherboard or anything, either. I removed the heatsink so I wouldn't risk getting any glue or residue on the motherboard itself. Popped it back on without trouble, and put the screws back in. Nothing dropped onto the motherboard or came in contact with it as far as I know.

But who knows, that could be the culprit! I was aware there were risks when I did it (which is why I was so careful)

When I first assembled it in the case, I plugged into the display via the GPU and there was nothing. It just won't power on, no POST, nothing. I haven't connected it to the display again since the results with the motherboard itself are the same as it was the first time. GPU was firmly connected to the PSU.

I don't know what to expect from a burnt out motherboard as I've never had one, and I can't seem to find a solid answer. My first thought is that I wouldn't expect any of the lights to work, RGB or BIOS led or otherwise but I have no idea. And even with all components removed and gradually reinstalled, it still behaves the same no matter what.
 

TheHemogoblin

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Try the Gpu again, after bios flashing it could work

Did you tighten the screws of the motherboard heat sink too tight?

No leds are on above the 24pin power connection of the motherboard?


Heatsink screws are slowly tightened until they stop, I didn't crank them tight or anything.

No LEDs above the motherboard power, the only lights that turn on when I flip the PSU on is a little strip of RGB lights. No fans, no beeps, no Q-LEDs, nothing. Not even the PSU fan. Nothing happens when I short the power switch (or when I use the case connection and press the case power), either.

The GPU is plugged in, connected to the display and when I turn on the PSU and short the power switch on the motherboard, nothing more happens than before.

I just double checked because I couldn't remember if I had done it earlier, but I connected all the power cables in my working PC into the PSU I'll be using and it fired up fine, so it's not the PSU.

I'm at a loss! I don't think its the CPU either, I'm always super soft and careful with it and no pins were bent when I took it out to update the BIOS. And I'm pretty sure the BIOS updated fine so it should be compatible.
 

TheHemogoblin

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Upload some pictures of your build, especially the connections on the motherboard, the gpu and the psu
To imgur.com or similar
Remove any USB flash drives

I apologize, the lighting isn't the best but hopefully you can zoom in to see whatever you need to see. But let me know if you need better angles, etc.

I made sure that connections were correct and plugged in completely.

View: https://imgur.com/a/N2QIPVO


I also uploaded a video to show you what happens when I turn on the PSU and attempt to power on the system. I think in the video, I put the screwdriver to pins 2/3 not 3/4 but that's because my hand is shaky and my bracing hand was holding the phone. But I can assure you, the results are the same either way lol

https://streamable.com/l7m9ic

Thank you for your attention to my post, I really appreciate the help :) I hope you can tell me I'm an idiot and I did something really obvious and stupid. It has been about 3 or 4 years since I put a PC together, so I don't know what I don't remember, if that makes sense.
 
For now I believe the bios is not updated correctly, use the rename of Asus for the extracted BIOS file, move it to an fat16 or fat32 formatted USB pen drive. Connect the pen drive to the flash back port (see manual) right next to the ps/2 port. Only this one will work. Then power up the board (Cpu and other hardware do not have to be Uninstalled while flashing)
The flashback led has to flicker, after that it should boot to bigger s on it's own


Other things to try:

Connect the additional 4pin connector for the cpu

Are you using the modular cables from this PSU or others?

Connect the video cable to a monitor while trying to power on. Don't use the card box of the motherboard as surface, might be conductive.

Try RAM slot B2
 

TheHemogoblin

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Thank you again for the reply, and your time

I moved the board onto the antistatic bag it came on, tried turning it on but no change there.

I have flashed the BIOS, and it blinked for a few minutes then went out but that's not a new result, that's what happened when I tried it earlier. I think that means it took? Either way, I powered it on and nothing had changed.

I then added the 4-pin CPU connection, I tried using a spare CPU cable from my older PSU (both as the 8-pin and as the additional 4-pin), and I tried each of the RAM sticks in the B2 slot. I tried turning it on between each of these steps but still nothing new happens.

I am using modular cables. In a previous attempt to troubleshoot, I plugged this board into the PSU from my current working PC, using it's working cables, and the result was the same so I'm not sure the cables from this build's PSU are the culprit. I'll try using these cables on the working PC to see if it still works when I do. But it's 6am and I've not slept yet so that will have to wait for now lol

Also, it was plugged into a monitor during all of these steps.

Any other thoughts?
 

TheHemogoblin

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Feb 11, 2016
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Hey! I'm happy to report that I'm just a daft idiot.

I had resigned myself to the fact I had a dead board. So, I bought a new board. When I went to prepare it for the CPU I saw my mistake and, well, was speechless. What a stupid, stupid mistake.

This is my first time with an AMD CPU after several Intel PCs. And one thing that stuck in my head from comparing it with Intel was that it was easier to install, with one review using the term "plug and play". Well, I'm a very visual person.

So with that imagery in my mind, and the fact that on this particular board it is very small compared to what I'm used to and the lighting isn't great, I hadn't employed the tension rod on the CPU. I didn't even notice it. Both times I plugged in the CPU. Luckily the CPU wasn't damaged (or at least, not that I can tell yet, I've only just turned the board on for the first time).

What's funny to me is one of the last PC I built, the tension rod was broken so I had to fix it, so I'm intimately aware of what a tension rod is and what it's for.

At least I'm an idiot that doesn't have to spend money on a new board (unless I've now done something to it with all the handling of it)

Thanks for all your time and help, I appreciate it. And I'm sorry for having wasted it.

Be well
 

TheHemogoblin

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Well it seems I spoke too soon!

It won't boot apparently. The boot Qled stays lit and there is no display on the monitor.

I tried reseating and switching the ram in the slots, clearing cmos, shorting the battery socket, HDMI in different display ports, etc. But I'll see what else I can do tomorrow and make a new post if I need some more help with that particular issue.