Computer won't turn on sometimes

[Blitzkrieg808]

Hello,

Before I get into the story, here is the full parts list:
Processor: AMD RYZEN 3 2200G
Motherboard: ASRock X370 PRO4
Drive 1: PNY CS900 2.5" 480GB SSD
Drive2: WD Blue 1TB Desktop Hard Disk Drive - 7200 RPM
PSU: Seasonic FOCUS Plus Series SSR-550FX 550W 80+ Gold
RAM: CORSAIR Vengeance LPX 8GB (2 x 4GB) 288-Pin DDR4 SDRAM DDR4 2400 (PC4 19200) CMK8GX4M2A2400C16
Case: Corsair Carbide Series Clear 400C

I somewhat recently put together a computer for my dad because he really needed a new one. After putting it together, it turned on perfectly fine. Installed Windows 10, latest drivers, Microsoft Office, and Google Chrome. The computer worked well for a good 1-2 months until he called me and said the computer wasn't turning on. I told him to check if the power cable was plugged in and the power supply was switched on (which they were). He said that he had put the computer to sleep the night before and in the morning, the computer would not turn on. This is where I thought it might have been an issue in the Windows power options, so I disabled hybrid sleep mode and fast startup. Then told my dad to shut down the computer instead of putting it to sleep. But it still did not want to turn on sometimes.

I'm actually from Hawai'i and I moved to a different island from my parents so I flew back home to troubleshoot the computer a few times. It didn't help much the first time because the computer was turning on and off just fine. A couple weeks after the first visit, my dad complained again about the computer not turning on. I then thought the motherboard might be shorting out from the extra standoffs that came pre-installed in the case. But it turns out that the standoffs are not removable...weird. I also jumped the PSU to make sure it turns on and the fan did spin up (I also had an old 700W psu from my first build and jumped that successfully too). Tried both PSUs with the motherboard again, and no luck.

I thought I deduced it to the motherboard, so I bought another ASRock Pro4 mobo and just in case, I also bought a corsair 650W psu. Tested all PSUs with the first mobo and it didn't turn on, no fans no LEDs. Then I tried the Seasonic PSU with the new mobo and it turned on just fine. I thought everything was fine and dandy now, so I put the computer back together and refund the corsair psu (still trying to RMA the old mobo). All was fine for about 2 weeks until my dad calls me up again and says it's not turning on again...At this point I'm kind of frustrated and I have a gut feeling it's actually a PSU issue. I thought that by jumping the PSU meant that it was fine, but according to this thread it doesn't necessarily prove that it's 100% okay: http://www.tomshardware.com/answers/id-3502464/computer-turn.html

I also realized today that I did not even try to update the BIOS to the latest version yet. It was something I overlooked because the mobo was supposedly "Ryzen 2000 Ready". So it didn't really come to mind.

I read a bunch of informative articles on this forum about testing the power supply and editing windows power options. I'm thinking of picking up another PSU and a mobo power switch just to make things easier. Any advice on what I should do next is welcome

Thanks in advance!

P.S.
Also thanks for listening to my situation

 

[Achint2000]

Seasonic and Corsair are good brands and it's really unlikely that such good PSU's are failing in such a short time.

I doubt there's something wrong with the build, causing the PSU to fail?

Check if you're properly plugging in the front panel buttons properly. POWER_SW, RESET_SW, IDE_LED, PWR_LED, etc.

I had a board which stopped working like that once every 1.5 months, went to warranty repair over and over again, and my entire system re-assembled from a repair shop each time, and I realized it was all just because these front panel cables weren't plugged in properly, causing some short.

Otherwise, if you can, check if every component and cable is working properly.

I'm really out of ideas on how to deduce the cause of this, because after a new motherboard and PSU, and still the same issue, the CPU and RAM are really unlikely to cause such a problem and I can't say much about the GPU causing this either.

 

[Blitzkrieg808]

Seasonic and Corsair are good brands and it's really unlikely that such good PSU's are failing in such a short time.

I doubt there's something wrong with the build, causing the PSU to fail?

Check if you're properly plugging in the front panel buttons properly. POWER_SW, RESET_SW, IDE_LED, PWR_LED, etc.

I had a board which stopped working like that once every 1.5 months, went to warranty repair over and over again, and my entire system re-assembled from a repair shop each time, and I realized it was all just because these front panel cables weren't plugged in properly, causing some short.

Otherwise, if you can, check if every component and cable is working properly.

I'm really out of ideas on how to deduce the cause of this, because after a new motherboard and PSU, and still the same issue, the CPU and RAM are really unlikely to cause such a problem and I can't say much about the GPU causing this either.

I agree with you on Seasonic and Corsair. The Seasonic PSU that is currently in the build came with a 9 or 10 year warranty so I'm not worried about getting a replacement PSU.

At first I also thought that it could have been an issue with the POWER_SW either being disconnected or not making proper contact with the motherboard. I tried doing the flat head screwdriver method to connect the two motherboard pins but again, sometimes it worked and sometimes it didn't.

I know that the Seasonic PSU is able to turn on because I was able to successfully jump it. So knowing that the PSU can turn on, I thought it had to be an issue with the motherboard not receiving any power or, as you mentioned, something is wrong with the front panel buttons.

I'm thinking of also buying a bag of LEDs and a few resistors to test the front panel switches by creating a quick circuit with a battery. And I might also pickup a power supply tester just in case: HDE 20+4 Pin LCD Power Supply Tester

I had already refunded the Corsair PSU because I thought I had fixed the issue when replacing the motherboard, so I might also pick another one up. I just want to narrow this issue down so that the computer can function reliably. I will be flying back home in a couple weeks to do more troubleshooting.

 

[Blitzkrieg808]

So I was able to get the computer in front of me and tested the PSU with a tester and the readings were normal. Then I tried plugging in the minimum needed to POST (cpu, psu, and 1 stick of RAM). Connected the 24-pin and 8-pin connectors and the computer did not POST.

I know that it’s not the front panel buttons because I used a separate power switch I bought off of amazon.

So I think it’s either the cpu or mobo. Any thoughts?

 

[Achint2000]

If the system isn't POSTing, it might have some LEDs somewhere which being lit up for too long can indicate what component is at fault, or error beeps. Check for these first and go through the motherboard manual.

If anything is usually at fault between CPU and Motherboard, 99% of the time, it's the motherboard. Don't question your CPU unless you use another CPU with the same motherboard and everything works perfectly.

What more can possibly cause this problem... I'll just describe all that comes to mind.

You don't even need a switch to start. Use something as basic as a metal screwdriver, locate the exact two power button pins (PWR_SW), make sure they're the right ones (read the motherboard manual) and short them.

This will act as the power button. I can't be completely sure but from past experience, improperly shorting those front panel pins (sometimes even causing sparks which also make the system to start) and doing that regularly can cause some problems.

Are you sure that the system hasn't POSTed? Plug in some normal speaker and see if you hear a windows startup sound. That would clearly indicate something wrong with the GPU or something with the display.