[SOLVED] Is there a way to diagnose dead PC problem at home?

[nick1232]

Hello, my old rig finally found it's way to heaven. I don't quite understand what exactly died in there. My case is not equipped with a speaker, and mobo has no digital indicator of a trouble.
It simply froze with a static picture and did not react on any of my actions, although there was video signal on monitor when it happened. I tried to reboot it and all the signal was lost forever. I tried to remove videocard and to start my system being connected to a monitor via built-in HDMI, no result, I tried to reset BIOS and to start it again, there is still nothing.
Config is i7-7700, Asus Prime Z270M-Plus, GeForce 1070, 650 w PSU.
Mobo has a very basic light indication flashing like there is everything OK, I can't feel anything is very hot such as mobo/CPU heat sinks. The only warm thing in there is a GPU when it is attached and if power is on. Everything else is dead cold.
I presume it is dead CPU, is there some tricky way to know for sure besides moving it to service?

 

[DSzymborski]

What is the exact PSU? The CPU being dead is typically the least likely problem.

 

[nick1232]

What is the exact PSU? The CPU being dead is typically the least likely problem.

KCAS 600 w. 80 plus bronze. Model Name: APS-KS600-A01.
To me its performance does not look suspicious. I mean my PC starts just fine, every light which was on is still on. If dot not attach all power cables to videocard for test purpose it shows red light indicator which is not enough power, when I attach them all it shows white light that means it is OK with power supply.

 

[DSzymborski]

KCAS 600 w. 80 plus bronze. Model Name: APS-KS600-A01.
To me its performance does not look suspicious. I mean my PC starts just fine, every light which was on is still on. If dot not attach all power cables to videocard for test purpose it shows red light indicator which is not enough power, when I attach them all it shows white light that means it is OK with power supply.

None of this actually means anything about whether the PSU is fine. Just because you can see some lights doesn't mean the PSU is properly functioning; it's not a binary dead vs. not dead thing.

The next step given your symptoms is typically to swap out the PSU. Given that this was a low-quality unit that should not have been used in the first place with these specs -- it's an ancient, group-regulated design and isn't actually 600W in any meaningful sense since the late 90s -- replacing it is even more obvious.

 

[nick1232]

None of this actually means anything about whether the PSU is fine. Just because you can see some lights doesn't mean the PSU is properly functioning; it's not a binary dead vs. not dead thing.

The next step given your symptoms is typically to swap out the PSU. Given that this was a low-quality unit that should not have been used in the first place with these specs -- it's an ancient, group-regulated design and isn't actually 600W in any meaningful sense since the late 90s -- replacing it is even more obvious.

Well, it worked just fine for more than 5 years. No issues have appeared until that catastrophe. Let imagine that we deal with a power unit problem. Is there a way to check it? Perhaps voltage check?

 

[DSzymborski]

Well, it worked just fine for more than 5 years. No issues have appeared until that catastrophe. Let imagine that we deal with a power unit problem. Is there a way to check it? Perhaps voltage check?

Well, for one, we don't know it was working fine. We knew that it was functioning. Low-quality PSUs fail over time or cause damage to parts over the long term.

To actually test a PSU, you would need to use a load tester.

Swapping out to a known, working PSU or a new PSU -- and again, hopefully a much better quality one than your current one -- is the standard diagnostic step here. Failing that, I have no additional help to provide at this time; diagnosing such an issue with a junky PSU in the mix is not recommended.

 

[nick1232]

Well, for one, we don't know it was working fine. We knew that it was functioning. Low-quality PSUs fail over time or cause damage to parts over the long term.

To actually test a PSU, you would need to use a load tester.

Swapping out to a known, working PSU or a new PSU -- and again, hopefully a much better quality one than your current one -- is the standard diagnostic step here. Failing that, I have no additional help to provide at this time; diagnosing such an issue with a junky PSU in the mix is not recommended.

Thank you. I am looking into new PSU now. I was going to build new PC anyway, but I wanted mobo with CPU power 8-pin + 4-pin . Can I use new PSU designed for that mobo with my current PRIME Z270M-PLUS in order test if it is alive and later use in new system?

 

[DSzymborski]

Thank you. I am looking into new PSU now. I was going to build new PC anyway, but I wanted mobo with CPU power 8-pin + 4-pin . Can I use new PSU designed for that mobo with my current PRIME Z270M-PLUS in order test if it is alive and later use in new system?

Yes.