Question Faulty motherboard or PSU ???

[george_gb]

Hi all,

My rig is the following atm (an old rig actually with an updated GPU):


CPU: i7 920 overclocked @ 3.6
GPU: evga gtx 1060 superclocked
Motherboard: Gigabyte EX58-Extreme
RAM: 12gb DDR3 triple channel
Monitor: 1920 x 1200
PSU: 1200W Thermaltake

I have some serious issues the last couple of months:

• PC not booting
• PC not shutting down
• BIOS settings are not saved and when I boot the system it restarts after a second and return to the defaults
• PC not stable
• When running prime95 the clock loses time. No test failure with certain voltages, just the clock goes back around 20 mins after I have ran the BLEND test for almost 2 hours . Temperature around 85C. Then I shut down the machine and I cannot boot it again. Then I have to apply a method I found online that resets the BIOS for gigabyte mobos (this method is not always working - mostly works though)
• I have these issues both with the default settings and the overclocked ones (which I have been using for years)
• I have replaced the CMOS baterry. Actually I have tried 3-4 different ones
• Probably not RAM issue as I have the same problems after installing different RAM.
• FAN spins when I do the PSU paper clip test

Is it a motherboard or a PSU issue? Maybe sth else?

Thanks,

George

 

[R_1]

easiest test is to swap the PSU.
get hold of a sapre for testing, friend, sibling just a few minutes. swap out the units and see what is what.
if the same happens its not the PSU.

 

[george_gb]

@R_1

Thank you for your reply. Unfortunately I don't have a spare PSU but I realise that this is the way to go. I have to eliminate that the PSU is the culprit. I will think of sth.

But I suppose there is definitely sth wrong with one of the following: CPU, PSU, motherboard

 

[R_1]

yes. the issue is that nothing can work with poor power.
the PSU effects all other components and if it is faulty...

 

[stonecarver]

Just food for thought. Those motherboard are hitting 11/12 yrs old. Nothing to loose at this point and if you do replace power supply and also do the heat sinks, removal of old dried out paste with new thermal paste on the motherboard chips.

You can semi test the heat issue by force feeding a fan strait to the chips on board.

IF you get it stable flip the CPU for a 5650 or better a 5670 for $20.00 6 core 12 threads.


https://www.ebay.com/p/1900240030?i...MI6pPo5-LH5gIVkxh9Ch3oqwdPEAQYASABEgLmevD_BwE



But honestly can you just borrow a PSU just for FREE testing. Just throwing ideas at you and not have you chasing a bad board worst case?

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yo3uaZCFybw

 

[george_gb]

@stonecarver

Thank you for your suggestions. I forgot to mention that I have replaced the thermal paste with brand new one. My plan is to build a high end rig at some point but I was happy with this one so far since I play at 1080p and I use it a lot for development. But I might have to do a mild upgrade if the motherboard is dead.

 

[george_gb]

@stonecarver

Identifying whether the psu is the problem is the easy part.

The problem is how I find out that the motherboard is OK and that the problems are caused because of the cpu. Then I could replace it with what you suggest.

 

[george_gb]

@stonecarver

Regarding the x5670, or x5675 which is a bit better, are you sure that it's a better option than the i7 920?

i7 920 seems to get better results than x5675 in 3dmark.com

i7920: https://www.3dmark.com/cg/3970042

x5675: https://www.3dmark.com/fs/14869264

*edit: just realised that they ran different tests

 

[george_gb]

I received a brand new Thermaltake 600W. The paper clip pin test passes with the new PSU so I can safely assume that there is a small chance for the PSU to be DOA.

I have my PC breadboarded and more specifically I have only the motherboard, CPU, CPU heatsink and PSU mounted. The only PSU cables connected are the one powering the CPU and the one powering the motherboard. I have also installed a motherboard speaker.

Unfortunately as soon as I pressed the power button the motherboard did not POST. After removing the CMOS battery and leaving the PC without power for a couple of days I managed to turn on the machine (bradboarded again) but no sound from the motherboard speaker (the short beep confirming that the motherboard is OK) . I turned it off and then tried to turn it on again after a few seconds but nothing this time.

Can I safely assume that my motherboard needs replacement?

 

[Ketchup79]

Thermaltake is probably the worst "well known" name in computer parts. Almost all of their power supplies, for example, are just rebranded cheap units. There are lists on the internet (and I think there is one in these forums somewhere) where you can find out what your model actually is.

Regardless, before calling the motherboard dead, I would see if you can exchange your power supply for a good brand (Corsair, EVGA, Seasonic, Antec, higher-end Cooler Masters) and make sure you are testing with a good unit (and will have a good unit for your next build).