Dropped Desktop Computer

[calculatingenius]

I picked up a dell desktop from a garage sale and the owner said it worked, but could not test it due to him missing the power cable. i brought it home and set it on my bed. i forgot about it and was starting to research the parts in the system. then out of nowhere, BANG! the computer dropped very loudly onto my floor. it landed on my boombox before hitting the floor and the boombox now had some cracked plastic. it computer turn on now, but i will not output to a display. no hdd in there at the time, but not even a post screen is displayed.

EDIT: I think the psu may be broken as it dosent turn on now. it was an old psu and not a great brand either. Or perhaps the mobo got fried somehow. the computer wasn't really important to me in the first place since i got it for 5 bucks. i can save the pentium d and the 2gb of ram that came with the pc though.

 

[Albionm00n]

Greetings!

I would take a moment to check to see if the GPU is still seated firmly in its port (PCIe slot). The simplest check is to just push it in to ensure it is seated, double check any cable connections to the card for complete and firm connection and then give it a try to see if that makes a difference.

Hope this helps!

 

[Solandri]

Dell is actually pretty good about designing their computers to withstand realistic "office" scenarios. Since computers are frequently put on desks, this includes dropping off the desk and hitting the floor. So your computer's drop shouldn't have caused fatal damage (especially since the boombox broke the fall).

As stated above, there are only a few components which have enough mass to have come loose from such a fall. Basically the GPU (assuming it's not integrated graphics) and headsink/fan. Just give those a good shake to make sure they're still connected firmly and seated properly. Look for any cables which may have fallen off. And give the bolted down components (PSU, HDD) a good shake to make sure they're still secure. Memory modules are usually light enough not to be bothered by a small drop like this, but you can re-seat them as well.

Also check to make sure the case wasn't warped by the drop. A dent is fine (the case is supposed to protect the internal components against things like this by denting). I'm talking about the corners of the case now being slanted instead of square. This can cause some components to not line up correctly, which can lead to things like the GPU not seating properly, or a fan not turning. If you find this has happened, remove or loosen all the components and do your best to bend the case back so it's square.

I've dropped lots of desktop computers over the years, including one off the top of a washing machine which fell flat on its side onto a tile floor. Every one of them still worked. The surface mount electronics themselves can survive being shot out of a cannon and still function (how guided munitions are made).