HELP! My Computer Turns On For 3 Seconds, Then Shuts Off 2.0

[ecabell7669]

my system

INTEL CORE 2 QUAD Q6600 QUAD CORE 1066MHZ FSB
SPIRE HIGH PERFOMANCE CPU COOLER
ASUS P5B MAINBOARD 1066MHz FSB SUPPORT
4GB DDR-2 667FSB (PC5400) Memory
4X MEMORY HEAT SPREADORS
768MB nVIDIA Ge-Force 8800GTX DVI/TV-OUT HDTV PCI EXPRESS VIDEO CARD
400GB 7200RPM UDMA-300 SATA II Hard Drive 16MB BUFFER
Western Digital WD10EACS 1TB SATA2 16MB Hard Drive
THERMALTAKE HARD DRIVE COOLER
20X LITE ON DUAL LAYER DVD-RW DRIVE W/ LIGHTSCRIBE
LITE ON DVD-ROM DRIVE
10/100/1000 GIGABIT Fast Ethernet Network Controller
WIRELESS G CARD
CREATIVE LABS SOUND BLASTER XTREMEGAMER 7.1
BFG-PHYSX 128MB
X PLORER BLACK Case w/ 600 WATT Power Supply and Front USB Port
DELUXE COOLING PACKAGE (3 HIGH PERFORMANCE CASE COOLERS)
Keyboard / Mouse : LOGITECH
Speakers : LOGITECH X530 5.1 SPEAKERS
Monitor : ACER 19" LCD MONITOR
Operating System : WINDOWS Vista 32bit


I was playing a game when my system shut down. When I rebooted, a screen came up saying the system could not over clock and to press F1 to configure or F2 for default settings. My system was never over clocked so I pressed F2. It booted up normally. I got back into the game and the system shut down again. This time when I pressed the power button, the system would come on (LCD lights, fans and HD, but no bio beep) and shut down after 2 seconds.

I came on here and found this thread.

http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/246825-28-computer-turns-seconds-shuts

I dont have the tools to disconnect and place the components on plastic or card board, so I started with the things I could try.

1. I tried the power button. when i pressed and held it in, the box would power up, fans would start, but still no system boot or bio beep. as soon as i unpressed it, it would power down. There is no physical switch that I see to test it without the power button, so I made sure the wires were connected to the MOBO.

2. checked the heat sync and CPU. i unscrewed the heat sync and checked for heat on the chip. no signs of over heating or bad connection with either.

3. i cleared the CMOS memory and reset the battery. when I did this and rebooted, the system will now stay on (just like if i kept the power button pressed in) but never boots up at all.

This is where I am... can anyone help? I have a Flip cam and will be happy to shoot video or take pics if needed.

Thank you!

 

[apache_lives]

PSU sounds cheap and nasty... id pick on it

also strip everything out of the system till all thats left is motherboard+cpu, 1 stick of ram and the video card and see if it starts then... (make sure you unwire everything bar 24-pin psu + 4/8 pin, video power, and motherboard power switch)

 

[apache_lives]

and you should get a 64-bit install for that rig btw, you can even keep your licence and just get a 64-bit image to do it (same key)

 

[ecabell7669]

update:

thank you for the help apache. I do have 64 vista. i just made a miss print. unfortunately i do not have another power supply to test, but I checked the capacitors. all the capacitors seem ok besides one. it is located by the video card. there is no electrolyte on the board, but it is slightly bulged on top.

I pulled the BIO battery again and reset it. I then replaced the 3v battery with a new one. both did nothing.

to test the PSU, I disconected the 2nd HD and CD ROMS. They system still will not work. Power comes on to the LCD and fans... but wont boot.

I also reset the RAM chips (not the CPU). when i tested it, I get the same results... power to the PC (LCD and fans) but will not boot. the LCD lights keep blinking on and off in 1 sec intervals.

 

[taznleo1]

update:

thank you for the help apache. I do have 64 vista. i just made a miss print. unfortunately i do not have another power supply to test, but I checked the capacitors. all the capacitors seem ok besides one. it is located by the video card. there is no electrolyte on the board, but it is slightly bulged on top.

I pulled the BIO battery again and reset it. I then replaced the 3v battery with a new one. both did nothing.

to test the PSU, I disconected the 2nd HD and CD ROMS. They system still will not work. Power comes on to the LCD and fans... but wont boot.

I also reset the RAM chips (not the CPU). when i tested it, I get the same results... power to the PC (LCD and fans) but will not boot. the LCD lights keep blinking on and off in 1 sec intervals.

You state that one is slightly bulged on top? Your motherboard is going bad. Unplug the main cable going to the motherboard and leave it unplugged for about 20 seconds then plug it back in. Try to power it on now. It should start, but it won't run for long. I've seen many dell desktops with bad capacitors and this is a temp fix. But you will need to replace the motherboard.