Question Help Troubleshooting PC that won’t boot. GPU fried??

[aidanfitz97]

Hi all,

I know there are some similar discussions(which I’ve read) to this post. So apologies for that, just wanted to get some extra input on my situation in case anyway had some tips I had not thought of.
About a month or two ago, my pc(5+ year old build) finally kicked the bucket during use. Black screen, not blue. Took a break from pc but can’t any longer. It had occasionally powered down before on its own, but would always start back up with a light adjustment of the 24pin power connector to mobo. This time it will not boot at all.

Instead of taking the situation wisely, I admittedly just tried to power on my pc again(when this first happened months ago). After an attempt of this, I smelled a burnt smell from the inside of my case. And saw a teeny bit of smoke coming off the GPU itself. I switched off the power, unplugged, drained the power, and removed the GPU. GPU itself doesn’t appear to have any damage minus dust buildup which accumulated over the years. PCIe slot also looks undamaged.

When I plug my system into power, I see a green light appearing on my mobo but know that probably doesn’t mean much in terms of its functionality. When I try booting without my GPU installed(to test integrated graphics), the PC refuses to give any sign of life whatsoever.

Please note I didn’t have my PC actually plugged into a display during these tests, I figured it would spin fans at least before it shows a display. Should I plug into a display when testing this? Or does anyone think I should be testing in another manner?

I’m just not really sure where to start and a bit discouraged from the fact that booting before seemed to give off smoke. I really do not want to break any more parts than I already have(not sure that I did even). Money is tight for now.

I was planning to clean the system fully, removing any cables from the mobo, and re-inserting them to test. After that, not sure how to test. Should I remove my RAM sticks? Try new RAM slots? I don’t have a different PSU to test with, but I’m starting to wonder if this is the issue now. And would there a be a most appropriate order to test these things in ?

Any help or ideas are greatly appreciated. I very much miss gaming and enjoying my hours on it. I haven’t tried anything other than what I stated. All purchased from 2015, Here are some of the main specs of my build:
Motherboard: Asus Z170-A
CPU: Intel i5 6600k
GPU: msi GeForce GTX970 4GD5T
PSU: RAIDMAX VAMPIRE RX 800W GOLD
RAM: Corsair Vengeance DDR4(8gbx2)
Basic case fans, cooler master on cpu, etc.

 

[aidanfitz97]

Hi all,

I know there are some similar discussions(which I’ve read) to this post. So apologies for that, just wanted to get some extra input on my situation in case anyway had some tips I had not thought of.
About a month or two ago, my pc(5+ year old build) finally kicked the bucket during use. Black screen, not blue. Took a break from pc but can’t any longer. It had occasionally powered down before on its own, but would always start back up with a light adjustment of the 24pin power connector to mobo. This time it will not boot at all.

Instead of taking the situation wisely, I admittedly just tried to power on my pc again(when this first happened months ago). After an attempt of this, I smelled a burnt smell from the inside of my case. And saw a teeny bit of smoke coming off the GPU itself. I switched off the power, unplugged, drained the power, and removed the GPU. GPU itself doesn’t appear to have any damage minus dust buildup which accumulated over the years. PCIe slot also looks undamaged.

When I plug my system into power, I see a green light appearing on my mobo but know that probably doesn’t mean much in terms of its functionality. When I try booting without my GPU installed(to test integrated graphics), the PC refuses to give any sign of life whatsoever.

Please note I didn’t have my PC actually plugged into a display during these tests, I figured it would spin fans at least before it shows a display. Should I plug into a display when testing this? Or does anyone think I should be testing in another manner?

I’m just not really sure where to start and a bit discouraged from the fact that booting before seemed to give off smoke. I really do not want to break any more parts than I already have(not sure that I did even). Money is tight for now.

I was planning to clean the system fully, removing any cables from the mobo, and re-inserting them to test. After that, not sure how to test. Should I remove my RAM sticks? Try new RAM slots? I don’t have a different PSU to test with, but I’m starting to wonder if this is the issue now. And would there a be a most appropriate order to test these things in ?

Any help or ideas are greatly appreciated. I very much miss gaming and enjoying my hours on it. I haven’t tried anything other than what I stated. All purchased from 2015, Here are some of the main specs of my build:
Motherboard: Asus Z170-A
CPU: Intel i5 6600k
GPU: msi GeForce GTX970 4GD5T
PSU: RAIDMAX VAMPIRE RX 800W GOLD
RAM: Corsair Vengeance DDR4(8gbx2)
Basic case fans, cooler master on cpu, etc.

 

[Nemesia]

Hi Aidanfitz97.

Your issue is probably the RAIDMAX VAMPIRE RX 800W GOLD. 5 years old low quality PSU do that.

You starting your PC again with that garbage PSU probably damaged something in the system.

Unfortunately when that happens you have to start replacing parts to see if more than the PSU is dead. You said you saw smoke from the GPU? It's probably dead too.

The only one to know is to replace the PSU with a decent model like a Corsair CX 550/650 to begin with.

After that if the system doesn't post then something else is dead. That's the only thing you can do when something start smoking in your PC. There is no way to tell what is damaged unless you start replacing things.

 

[aidanfitz97]

Hi Aidanfitz97.

Your issue is probably the RAIDMAX VAMPIRE RX 800W GOLD. 5 years old low quality PSU do that.

You starting your PC again with that garbage PSU probably damaged something in the system.

Unfortunately when that happens you have to start replacing parts to see if more than the PSU is dead. You said you saw smoke from the GPU? It's probably dead too.

The only one to know is to replace the PSU with a decent model like a Corsair CX 550/650 to begin with.

After that if the system doesn't post then something else is dead. That's the only thing you can do when something start smoking in your PC. There is no way to tell what is damaged unless you start replacing things.

Thanks for the response. I’ll move ahead with a new PSU and troubleshoot from there. I had a sick feeling in the back of my head as time progressed with the PSU. I guess I’ll see how much I’m paying for it.

Would you know if a Corsair CX650 be sufficient for a system running two monitors and speakers on top?

Also I suppose it’s fair to assume I shouldn’t be testing with my current PSU anymore? In order to avoid further damage.

 

[Nemesia]

Thanks for the response. I’ll move ahead with a new PSU and troubleshoot from there. I had a sick feeling in the back of my head as time progressed with the PSU. I guess I’ll see how much I’m paying for it.

Would you know if a Corsair CX650 be sufficient for a system running two monitors and speakers on top?

Also I suppose it’s fair to assume I shouldn’t be testing with my current PSU anymore? In order to avoid further damage.

Yeah stop using the system with that PSU.

A Corsair CX 650 is more than enough for your system. A 550 would be enough too.

 

[aidanfitz97]

Yeah stop using the system with that PSU.

A Corsair CX 650 is more than enough for your system. A 550 would be enough too.

Popped a Corsair CX650M into the system as advised. Cleaned out all the shameful dust buildup. Left the GPU out. And the system works!
Thank you for the help on this one. I’m only wondering if I should even try the GPU. Think there’s any harm in testing it out ? Just using integrated to get me by.

 

[Nemesia]

Popped a Corsair CX650M into the system as advised. Cleaned out all the shameful dust buildup. Left the GPU out. And the system works!
Thank you for the help on this one. I’m only wondering if I should even try the GPU. Think there’s any harm in testing it out ? Just using integrated to get me by.

If the system works I don't see any reason to not put back the GPU in the system. You said you don't see any damage on the GPU and the issue was your PSU.

The CX650 is more than enough for a GTX 970.

 

[aidanfitz97]

If the system works I don't see any reason to not put back the GPU in the system. You said you don't see any damage on the GPU and the issue was your PSU.

The CX650 is more than enough for a GTX 970.

Put the GPU back in, but this does not allow the system to boot. Wondering if I just installed things incorrectly, or if GPU is just fried.

 

[aidanfitz97]

Put the GPU back in, but this does not allow the system to boot. Wondering if I just installed things incorrectly, or if GPU is just fried.

I adjusted the GPU seating and cables. No luck. Tried a different PCIe slot. No luck. Took the GPU back out and system works fine once again.
I’m not too shocked considering the PSU I was using and the fact that smoke did come out of it initially lol.
I guess I’ll save up for a new GPU unless there is some piece I missed to all this. Thanks again for the help all.