Interesting Problem

[Garmy4]

I had a problem restarting my pc this weekend. Components are as follows:
Gigabyte P35 DS3R
e6750
Seagate 400 Gig HD
Windows XP Pro
XFX GS7600 Vid Card (until new card gets here)
Benq 1640 DVD
Samsung 203b DVD
2 Gigs Corsair XMS2
Ultra XF600
AC Freezer Pro 7
Antec Midtower case
This system was built 2 months ago and has been running flawlessly. I did not install any new hardware or software recently. The PC stay on 24/7 so I have only turned it off for updated or occasional reboots.
Tried to reboot on Sunday and the fans started but nothing else. No post beep, no flashing lights on keyboard. After about 20 tries the system started. The system stayed on for 2 days at which time I had to reboot for a Norton update. This time it would not restart. Only fans would go on.
Wed. I checked all conections, removed and checked ram, made sure everything was seated, reset bios, changed out power supply. Still same conditions. Upon calling Gigabyte tech support they said to remove cooler and start pc to see if processor was getting warm to determin if processor was good. To check this I had layed the box on its side so the mb was laying flat. Process gets warm so it is good. But as soon as I put my finger on processor I got a post beep. So, as per tech suggestions, I removed and reset processor and after getting things booted went into cmos and upped the ram voltage by 0.02 ( which really did not make a difference). Next restart same problem. But I realized the real problem was that when the cooler (which is very light) is installed it slightly pulls down or distorts the mb and stops the pc from booting. If I apply slight pressure upward on cooler all is good. Tech suggests that I rebuild out of box to confirm that I do not have a short, but building out of box I would be laying mb down and at that point everything works fine. It is only when the box is standing normally that the conditions exist. Also if I had a short wouln't the pc recycle? Which it has never done. My opinion is that the mb has a defect that is only seen when pressure is applied to board in a normal way. For now I have just pushed up on the cooler a little and the box starts and stays on fine. Any comments?

 

[kshipper]

Clearly you have found your own problem. You have improperly mounted that cooler it seems? You could mount the stock cooler to test the system. If it boots fine with the stock cooler (in the case) then you need to review the 3rd party cooler install procedure more carefully.

 

[jsc]

The AC Freezer Pro uses the same push pin installation that the stock Intel HSF uses. Double check to see that the four push pins are locked into the holes in the motherboard. Unfortunately, the best way to do that is to remove the motherboard from the case.

 

[Garmy4]

Correct the stock cooler uses the same push pins and is actually heavier than the Pro. The pins have been checked several times as best as it can be done without removing the mb. I suspect the board is flexing and a contact may be at fault. But I may just live with it for now if it does not get any worse.

 

[firemist]

Most likely it is a broken trace on the motherboard or a cold solder joint on the CPU socket. The CPU is held firmly in the socket by the retainer and is not likely to flex from the HSF assembly. The flexing of the board is causing enough movement to make / break somewhere on the board. I have had a similiar thing caused by the board heating up and breaking contact because of thermal expansion. Fixed it by reflowing the solder on the socket pins. Hairline breaks in traces are much harder to find / fix.

RMA the board if you still can.

 

[racegek]

hi,

I think you cracked your mb by installing the cooler without removing your mb .
A friend of mine did the same with his asus p5 deluxe and cracked his mb he was lucky that we could rma it .

 

[Zorg]

Most likely it is a broken trace on the motherboard or a cold solder joint on the CPU socket. The CPU is held firmly in the socket by the retainer and is not likely to flex from the HSF assembly. The flexing of the board is causing enough movement to make / break somewhere on the board. I have had a similiar thing caused by the board heating up and breaking contact because of thermal expansion. Fixed it by reflowing the solder on the socket pins. Hairline breaks in traces are much harder to find / fix.

RMA the board if you still can.

I agree. If the fans stay spinning in the case then it is not a short, because that would cause the power supply to overload and completely shut down. This usually requires a a hard power down to the PSU through the switch on the back or unplugging it. If it is shutting down completely then build it out of the case and lightly pull on the HS to see if it dies. Just for grins, when you build the mobo out of the case, confirm that the HS is seated well, however if the HS was not seated well you should still get it to boot, partially at least, before it overheated and shut off.

 

[einstein4pres]

So, have you tried laying the case+mobo flat (on its side) so that the cooler needs to vertical force? That seems like a pretty easy test.

 

[Zorg]

So, have you tried laying the case+mobo flat (on its side) so that the cooler needs to vertical force? That seems like a pretty easy test.

Yes he did, it's in his OP.

 

[Garmy4]

Just to clear something up, the pc NEVER shuts down or reboots by itself.

 

[onestar]

RMA the MB. Motherboards often come with leads that are prone to separate if flexed. I do not condone the RMA of a board that is mistreated, but it does not sound as though you did that.

You can also place a non-conductive pad of some sort under the CPU socket to relieve the tension, (which I have done for boards out of warranty) however there will always be the stigma of this board fault in your mind.

 

[jsc]

That is why you lay a motherboard on a flat surface before you do anything like install an HSF or memory modules that may take a lot of pressure to seat properly.