Is my PSU/mb fried or what? Computer smells burnt during normal use session....

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02-14-2006, 12:23 AM
tarentinos

Is my PSU/mb fried or what? Computer smells burnt during normal use session....

So my dad plugged a zip drive into the P4 system. P4P800-VM motherboard I believe with a "Hirpo" 250w PSU. Screen goes black and shuts down. I can smell a slight burnt smell at the back of the computer. The PSU power light blinks or stays green but the system won't boot--no fans turn on either.

Just to check the PSU I put an Asus Smartpower 300w in the computer to see if it would boot. No luck. Just a quick flash of a light inside the case and then nothing.

Is my motherboard fried?

BTW: My area has frequent power surges and the PC didn't have a protector... so I think that's the problem. Anyway to accurately test and see which part of my system is messed up?
02-14-2006, 08:17 AM
Steve R Jones

Pop the hood and look around for a long time and you might find a burn mark on either the mobo or something else.
02-14-2006, 12:09 PM
tarentinos

Thanks... I haven't found any specific burn marks. Is there a process I can go through to determine if the problem is the motherboard? What should I do to determine the source of my problem?
02-14-2006, 12:23 PM
Steve R Jones

It's a process of elimination.
If you have spare ram sticks, video card etc, try them first.
02-14-2006, 07:52 PM
sgtgto

Hi:

Rule #1. never, never plug anything into a running computer except usb. If that is what he did, and the ps checks out, it more than likely blew the mb. Strip it down to the basics. MB, one stick of ram, vid card, ps, and cpu. See if it posts. If it doesn't I would bank on the mb being blown.

GAry
02-14-2006, 08:02 PM
v8villain

Quote:

Originally Posted by tarentinos

BTW: My area has frequent power surges and the PC didn't have a protector... so I think that's the problem. Anyway to accurately test and see which part of my system is messed up?

Skip the surge protector and get a UPS with voltage regulator. Worth the money if surges are blowing up your BOX.

Also take out the MOBO battery and try
turning it on. Some MOBO won't work with a dead battery.
02-15-2006, 12:59 AM
tarentinos

Thanks for the help. I tried booting again... this time I got smoke near the PCI slots. No motherboard light. I think it's definately the motherboard.

At this point I don't think it's worth removing the battery, but where would I find the battery in order to remove it?
02-15-2006, 04:09 AM
v8villain

Quote:

Originally Posted by tarentinos

Thanks for the help. I tried booting again... this time I got smoke near the PCI slots. No motherboard light. I think it's definately the motherboard.

At this point I don't think it's worth removing the battery, but where would I find the battery in order to remove it?

That smoke from a MOBO is'nt to healthy. Get a new mobo. Not sure what video card and cpu u got but perhaps it's time to upgrade:)