System turning off and back on over and over, not POSTING

[kernelsanderz]

Hey everyone. I built my own system back in 2011 and had no issues until now when I decided to upgrade my cpu from a sandy bridge i3-2100 to an i5-2500k. Here's the specs:

cpu: i3-2100 sandy bridge(old) i5-2500k (new)
gpu: nvidia gtx460
case: thermaltake V3 Black Edition
mobo: ASRock H61M-VS
psu: Corsair VX550w
hdd: western digital blue 500gb
disc drive: sony optiarc black
os: windows 7 home premium 64 bit

So the other night I took out the old i3 but lost my grip for a moment and it kinda slid to the side into the socket. Didn't look like any damage was caused but one pin in the botton right corner looked slightly off from the rest. Not really bent but just not aligned with the others. I seem to remember it kinda looking like that a couple years ago when I originally put the i3 in so just shrugged it off.

I placed the i5 in with stock heatsink and fan and fired it up. Cpu fan kinda twitched a few times then finally turned on full blast really loud. All other fans including the case and graphics card fans and hdd turned on and then it all turned off. Few seconds later it automatically turns on again. Nothing is posting or loading on my monitor.

I thought perhaps that stock fan was faulty since it was kinda twitching at first so I removed it and placed the old i3's fan on. Hit power and noticed the old i3's fan smoothly started right up quietly like it always did along with the hdd and all other fans. Yet... it turns off again and repeats its infinite on/off cycle.

So now I'm thinking the whole i5 cpu and fan is faulty and wanna make sure my old i3 still works. I remove the i5 and place the i3 back in with its original fan. Check all connections and make sure everythings securely in place. Everything checks out. I boot up again hoping to see my familiar ASRock bios screen and nothing. Whole system shuts off and starts in on the on/off cycle.

I've looked over countless forums concerning this topic which appears to be fairly common but there's never a surefire answer. Different solutions for everyone. Lot of people point the blame on the psu, but mine worked fine just a few hours before installation and its a high quality 80 plus certified corsair so I don't think that's it.

I even purchased some arctic 5 silver compound thinking it was an overheating or conductivity issue with the old paste. Cleaned off all the old gunk on the i3 and its original fan, and applied the new arctic silver but the issue persists.

I'm afraid I zapped the mobo. Which I wouldn't mind upgrading as it was next on my list along with a ssd and a proper aftermarket cpu fan for the i5. But I wanted some extra insight from the experts here before I start slinging more money around. I can provide pictures of the inside of the case along with a shot of that questionable pin in the cpu socket if it'd help. Thanks for taking the time to read this small novel ;D.

 

[lycros]

Sounds like you damaged the MB during your upgrade.

Try re-seating everything.
See if you can bend that pin back into place.

 

[kernelsanderz]

Yeah it does scream fried mobo. One thing I always wondered about this thermaltake case was the mobo mounting setup. It has mounting brackets that are elevated off the back, almost like a bridge, and then a couple flat areas for screwing in standoffs.

The way I installed the mobo was to slide it in over the standoffs and then just screwed in the other areas to the "bridge" portions. If I had put in a standoff on the elevated notches, it would have stuck out too far to get the mobo on. The back panel slides off too so It's not touching the mobo at all.

I dunno, always seemed funny when most videos show standoffs on all mobo mounting holes. But it worked for 2 years. Weird how a short would develop now. I tried to always keep myself grounded by touching the case but I didn't use an anti static wrist band. Probably the issue right there, derp.

 

[kernelsanderz]

Here is a pic of the cpu socket. The pin in question is shining in the bottom right corner. It just seems.. off from the rest. Enough so it even catches the light differently.

 

[smorizio]

It bent pin.try using small needle to bend it back upright and off the other pin.

 

[lycros]

That pin definitely looks to be the culprit, I've heard a lot of people that have had a bent pin and bent it back into place using a needle or exacto knife.

I hope it works out! Also hope there is no damage to any other part.

 

[lycros]

Yeah it does scream fried mobo. One thing I always wondered about this thermaltake case was the mobo mounting setup. It has mounting brackets that are elevated off the back, almost like a bridge, and then a couple flat areas for screwing in standoffs.

The way I installed the mobo was to slide it in over the standoffs and then just screwed in the other areas to the "bridge" portions. If I had put in a standoff on the elevated notches, it would have stuck out too far to get the mobo on. The back panel slides off too so It's not touching the mobo at all.

I dunno, always seemed funny when most videos show standoffs on all mobo mounting holes. But it worked for 2 years. Weird how a short would develop now. I tried to always keep myself grounded by touching the case but I didn't use an anti static wrist band. Probably the issue right there, derp.

It's not that abnormal for a case to have raised sections as standoffs in conjunction with have to actually use standard standoffs, but definitely weird.