quick PSU diagnosis needed (is it dead or is it something else)

[sloppycoder]

hi there.

i recently went away for a week, left my PC disconnected at the wall because there had been some serious electrical storms recently.

when i came back, upon trying to power up i get about 1 second of power (fans spinning, sounds like HD starts just about) and then it cuts out... all the time there is a slightly odd fizzeling/ sparking noise that ive never heard a computer make before.

the only thing that worries me is that the power light is ON on the motherboard, so does that mean the PSU is fine but theres some serious damage done to another component? or does the MOBO get a seperate channel on the PSU? OR (last or i promise ) could the psu be doing fine when powering the light only but fail when trying to power the whole rig?

one last thing, each time ive tried to boot it it gives nothing at all the next time you try UNTIL its been turned off at the wall for a few minutes.

i really need to get this working soon as its a music project PC.

thanks very much in advance.

Slop

 

[lachesis]

I had something similar and believe it or not it was the HDD which was faulty.

I assume you've checked that the power cord is pushed all the way in to the PSU?

 

[sloppycoder]

heh yep the cords in all right, i checked over the internal connections too.

hmm very strange, i come back upstairs and it seems fine, everything working properly at least. although the HD did make a very strange protracted whining noise (like taking 4 times as long as normal to spin up)

it seems fine now but i know that this kind of thing can be a sign of imminent death. ill order a new one tonight.

im interested in hearing if anyone has exprienced a similar thing tho with a PC thats running for at least 6 hours a day every day and then gets left for a week getting fatigued? also if i buy a replacement drive what is the easiest way to transfere all the data across? i have no burner....

A7V133 (has raid, one channel empty)
windows XP pro

dont think anything else matters that much

cheers

Slop

 

[lachesis]

TBH I rarely shut my machine down any more, there are rumours that frequent reboots etc damage the file system - not sure if this is crap but since I never started shutting my machine down (unless necessary, after SP installs etc.), I've had less problems.

Dunno if this is true though

Just bang your new HDD with windows ona primary IDE and your other on slave - copy over what you need.

 

[Marvel]

I would disconnect the power cord from the case and give the PSU the smell test. Following that a visual inspection of the MB would help. If things appear OK I would plug in the power cord and watch for the CPU fan to come on and then stop. It usually takes about 5 seconds for the fan to stop.
The PSU can fail at anytime of course, but if it came with the case and has been through the heat of summer a few times it is suspect. A good Antec PSU is about $65. I of course don't know what has failed but it will be back!!!

 

[IceyDeath23]

yep marvel is right if u smell that PSU u will know right away if it is burnt out or not.

i leave my old computer on 24/7 and its about 5 years old now and i dont see any probs when i leave for vacation or something and fire it back up