PC won't turn on - motherboard faulty?

[salmonfish_123]

Hi, I just built a PC and it won't turn on. I've tested the power supply with the paperclip test, and the PSU fan came on. The green LED on the motherboard came on. I checked my CPU (AMD Athlon X4 860k) is supported and it is. I then bought another CPU (AMD A4 5300) and tried that, but it didn't work. Does this mean that the motherboard is faulty? Can I get a replacement? Thanks!

By the way, there is no image and no POST beeps.

 

[GreyCatz]

Greetings salmonfish,

Maybe the BIOS needs a jolt, i.e. removing the CMOS battery for an hour or so.

Cheers,
GreyCatz.

 

[Adversus]

Hi, I just built a PC and it won't turn on. I've tested the power supply with the paperclip test, and the PSU fan came on. The green LED on the motherboard came on. I checked my CPU (AMD Athlon X4 860k) is supported and it is. I then bought another CPU (AMD A4 5300) and tried that, but it didn't work. Does this mean that the motherboard is faulty? Can I get a replacement? Thanks!

By the way, there is no image and no POST beeps.

Do you have a fan controller plugged in? in case you dont have an extra fan attached in your case, then try plugging that one out.
in my own case its a 2pin,

 

[salmonfish_123]

Greetings salmonfish,

Maybe the BIOS needs a jolt, i.e. removing the CMOS battery for an hour or so.

Cheers,
GreyCatz.

So this will be ok? It won't break the bios in some way?

 

[GreyCatz]

Greetings salmonfish,

Maybe the BIOS needs a jolt, i.e. removing the CMOS battery for an hour or so.

Cheers,
GreyCatz.

So this will be ok? It won't break the bios in some way?

Hello salmonfish,

No, it's a rather roundabout way of resetting the BIOS to its factory settings in cases when e.g. graphics devices are messed up. Modern motherboards come with an actual CMOS reset button, usually located along the edge of the board.

If yours doesn't, on you go:
- First you remove the power cable and make sure you have a piece of bare metal to touch (e.g. the metal cabinet itself or the kitchen faucet).
- Then you press the power button until all fans die out - you need to empty the components of all electricity.
- Locate the small CMOS battery and pry it out with a small screwdriver. It's very fidgety!
- Near the CMOS socket there should be a tiny jumper with a small fuse straddling two of three pins. Move this fuse to the other position available and leave the computer for an hour or so.

Have some tea...

- Put the fuse back to its original position, and reinsert the CMOS battery.
- Plug in the power cable and press the power button. If it is a BIOS problem, you should now hear at least a few beeps from the computer.
- Be alert, and press the relevant key to enter the BIOS to check the video settings. Depending on your OS, you may also be prompted to perform some emergency measures.

Best of luck,
GreyCatz.

 

[salmonfish_123]

Greetings salmonfish,

Maybe the BIOS needs a jolt, i.e. removing the CMOS battery for an hour or so.

Cheers,
GreyCatz.

So this will be ok? It won't break the bios in some way?

Hello salmonfish,

No, it's a rather roundabout way of resetting the BIOS to its factory settings in cases when e.g. graphics devices are messed up. Modern motherboards come with an actual CMOS reset button, usually located along the edge of the board.

If yours doesn't, on you go:
- First you remove the power cable and make sure you have a piece of bare metal to touch (e.g. the metal cabinet itself or the kitchen faucet).
- Then you press the power button until all fans die out - you need to empty the components of all electricity.
- Locate the small CMOS battery and pry it out with a small screwdriver. It's very fidgety!
- Near the CMOS socket there should be a tiny jumper with a small fuse straddling two of three pins. Move this fuse to the other position available and leave the computer for an hour or so.

Have some tea...

- Put the fuse back to its original position, and reinsert the CMOS battery.
- Plug in the power cable and press the power button. If it is a BIOS problem, you should now hear at least a few beeps from the computer.
- Be alert, and press the relevant key to enter the BIOS to check the video settings. Depending on your OS, you may also be prompted to perform some emergency measures.

Best of luck,
GreyCatz.

Thanks! I'll try that and hopefully I will be able to boot into the bios!