replacing Dell Dimension 4550 motherboard and possibly cas..

[Mals]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

I have a Dell Dimension 4550, with 2.53GHz P4 CPU and 512MB of DDR 300
RAM. During a recent storm, it appears that my motherboard has been
knocked out.

On calling the tech support, they helped me diagnose that the MoBo has
gone bad because the computer does not POST (no beep indicating Power
On Self Test).

I worry that the Power Supply and/or the display card may also have
gone bad.

One approach that I am planning on is that I get a non-Dell MoBo with
display and also a case with Powersupply. Dell's MoBo is quite
expensive for it offers me, and then I do not know if other pieces are
bad.

If somebody here can advise what I should do, that would be very
helpful.

As of now, I am planning to get the ASUS "P4R800-V Deluxe" RADEON 9100
IGP from Newegg (
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=13-131-151&depa=1).
And perhaps an ANTEC case.

Thank you!

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

Hello,

Is your Dimension currently still under warranty? If so, we have seen
Dell fix/replace hardware in similar circumstances in the past.

Regarding the power supply, we feel that if it still runs (fan spins) you
most likely will not have any problems with it. Regardless, power supplies
are inexpensive and you can find a replacement on places like Ebay.

Regarding the video card, do you have another PC to test the card in?
Again, video cards are fairly inexpensive (especially those that were
standard in the 4550) unless you had some "very" high end option installed
in your machine.

Did you have the machine hooked to a surge protector or UPS. Some
manufacturers offer an insurance policy ($$$ protection warranty) if your
machine is fried while hooked to their equipment. Also, you might consider
checking into your home owners/renter's insurance as well.

If you decide to replace the Motherboard, it should be a fairly simple swap
as I think they use a standard format.

Best of luck and let us know which way you decide to go and how it works out


--
JLA ENTERPRISES TECHNOLOGIES INTEGRATION
Technical Support Team

Check out some of the items we are offering
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"Mals" <msim2020@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:cd5q5g$65k@odak26.prod.google.com...
> I have a Dell Dimension 4550, with 2.53GHz P4 CPU and 512MB of DDR 300
> RAM. During a recent storm, it appears that my motherboard has been
> knocked out.
>
> On calling the tech support, they helped me diagnose that the MoBo has
> gone bad because the computer does not POST (no beep indicating Power
> On Self Test).
>
> I worry that the Power Supply and/or the display card may also have
> gone bad.
>
> One approach that I am planning on is that I get a non-Dell MoBo with
> display and also a case with Powersupply. Dell's MoBo is quite
> expensive for it offers me, and then I do not know if other pieces are
> bad.
>
> If somebody here can advise what I should do, that would be very
> helpful.
>
> As of now, I am planning to get the ASUS "P4R800-V Deluxe" RADEON 9100
> IGP from Newegg (
>
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=13-131-151&depa=1).
> And perhaps an ANTEC case.
>
> Thank you!
>

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

if you go with a non dell motherboard and power supply you may have these
issues: the front panel connector is non standard which means you will not
be able to use the power and reset switches on the front of your computer.
as such, be sure to get a power supply that has a on/off toggle switch on it
so you can power on/off your system (and set the bios to power on when power
is restored).

i would suggest that you first just buy a replacement power supply from dell
(about $30) and try it. if that doesn't help you have up to 30 days to
return it. secondly, you can try to obtain a replacement dell dimension
4550 motherboard on ebay but i don't see any currently listed. you can test
your other components in another system to build your confidence that the
problem is just motherboard itself. and you can even disconnect everything
(cd, hard drive, etc) and try to boot the machine again... see if you get
further along in the post process, then add components back starting with
the floppy and try to boot from a bootable disk... keep adding things until
you find the component that makes the system hang... i am thinking hard
drive may be the problem..

let us know how it works out.

"Mals" <msim2020@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:cd5q5g$65k@odak26.prod.google.com...
> I have a Dell Dimension 4550, with 2.53GHz P4 CPU and 512MB of DDR 300
> RAM. During a recent storm, it appears that my motherboard has been
> knocked out.
>
> On calling the tech support, they helped me diagnose that the MoBo has
> gone bad because the computer does not POST (no beep indicating Power
> On Self Test).
>
> I worry that the Power Supply and/or the display card may also have
> gone bad.
>
> One approach that I am planning on is that I get a non-Dell MoBo with
> display and also a case with Powersupply. Dell's MoBo is quite
> expensive for it offers me, and then I do not know if other pieces are
> bad.
>
> If somebody here can advise what I should do, that would be very
> helpful.
>
> As of now, I am planning to get the ASUS "P4R800-V Deluxe" RADEON 9100
> IGP from Newegg (
>
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=13-131-151&depa=1).
> And perhaps an ANTEC case.
>
> Thank you!
>

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

There is some risk that flashing a motherboard BIOS will turn out badly. I've
flashed thousands of times, so for me the risk is just about nil. For someone
who has never done it before, the risk is higher, but still small.

No joke, some things to bear in mind when flashing, a BIOS or otherwise.

1. Never flash during a thunderstorm. Loss of electrical power will spoil the
flash operation.
2. If you see trucks from the local electrical company or other utility company
outside, or you see people up in cherry-pickers snipping and sawing branches
from trees, wait until they go away before flashing. Same reason. Loss of
electrical power.

Modern flash BIOS chips are designed to withstand a large number of flash
operations before failing, i.e. not responding properly to a flash update. Say
100,000, for sake of discussion, but check specs available from the manufacturer
of the chip. Keep in mind that EVERY version of Windows since Windows 95
flashes the BIOS every time you boot the system. Why? The Plug-and-Play
information is kept in flash memory. Windows updates this information every
time you boot the system, whether it needs to or not! In other words, Windows
does not check to see if the current PnP info is different from what is stored
in flash. If it is unchanged, there is no need to update it. But Windows does
it mindlessly anyway, just like a lot of other brain-dead elements of Windows.
(Several years ago, a large number of early Pentium PnP motherboards ended up
with flash memory failures. Since then, the predicted life of a flash chip is
longer.)

Now, another posting listed out all the corrections, updates, and improvements
in the BIOS since the version built into the system. Ask if any of those
changes apply to the work you do with the system. If so, flash away in good
health. If not, the reasons for flashing are dubious... Ben Myers

On 15 Jul 2004 04:35:12 -0700, "Mals" <msim2020@yahoo.com> wrote:

>I have a Dell Dimension 4550, with 2.53GHz P4 CPU and 512MB of DDR 300
>RAM. During a recent storm, it appears that my motherboard has been
>knocked out.
>
>On calling the tech support, they helped me diagnose that the MoBo has
>gone bad because the computer does not POST (no beep indicating Power
>On Self Test).
>
>I worry that the Power Supply and/or the display card may also have
>gone bad.
>
>One approach that I am planning on is that I get a non-Dell MoBo with
>display and also a case with Powersupply. Dell's MoBo is quite
>expensive for it offers me, and then I do not know if other pieces are
>bad.
>
>If somebody here can advise what I should do, that would be very
>helpful.
>
>As of now, I am planning to get the ASUS "P4R800-V Deluxe" RADEON 9100
>IGP from Newegg (
>http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=13-131-151&depa=1).
>And perhaps an ANTEC case.
>
>Thank you!
>

 

[Mals]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

Thank you all for helping me figure this out.

 

[Mals]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

I bought an ANTEC quiet case and an ASUS MoBo.
Reused everything else from the Dell system.

It is working. Thanks to all of you for helping me out!