Power light flickers???

Discussion in 'Hardware' started by reesa, Apr 29, 2004.

  1. reesa

    reesa Private E-2

    Hi, I'm back...this time I'm trying to fix my sister-in-law's computer.

    She has a Gateway 500SE here's a link to the specifications for the motherboard ( I didn't want to take up the whole page) Motherboard Specs

    At first there was no power to the computer at all. So I open it up and it had a burn mark on it and one of the diodes??(sorry but I'm not sure what it is called) was fried. So I bought a new power supply (Enlight 150 Watt SFX Power Supply Model # HPC-150-101). The original was a Delta Electronics model # DPS-145PB-117_D)

    I installed the new power supply today and the power light flickers sparatically and the fan mounted to the motherboard goes on and off in sync with the power light. Although, the light that's on the motherboard is a steady green. :confused: This was the original problem before the power supply went completely. I don't know if it's related or if there was a power surge after that killed the power supply. Kinda worried now that it may fry this new power supply... :(

    Any suggestions on what to try next? I appreciate it! Reesa :)
     
    Last edited: Apr 29, 2004
  2. reesa

    reesa Private E-2

    Helpppppppp! :eek: :)
     
  3. Kodo

    Kodo SNATCHSQUATCH

    was the burn mark on the mother board or the powersupply?
     
  4. goldfish

    goldfish Lt. Sushi.DC

    Sounds like the power regulators on the motherboard has gone... which would explain the burn mark and the dead PSU. Im afraid youre going to need to get a new motherboard if that is the case :(
     
  5. Kodo

    Kodo SNATCHSQUATCH

    Was thinking that the mobo was shot too, but wanted to be sure that the component that was blown was on the mobo. Didn't think the PSU was opened up for a look but ya never know.
     
  6. goldfish

    goldfish Lt. Sushi.DC

    Hmm. By the sounds of it the PSU blew (a cap went nutz or somthing perhaps) which zapped the power regulators, so now with a newv (non faulted) PSU its just the power regulators that are the problem.

    We'll have to see though won't we :)
     
  7. reesa

    reesa Private E-2

    Thanks for the help!

    There was a burn mark on the inside of the power supply and a diode??? was crispy and black (sorry that's what I meant when I said I opened it up but I forgot to add what I opened)

    I was afraid it was the motherboard. I did notice today that there's a small brown mark (looks like a burn mark) on a black square on the motherboard that says "VIA VT826686A". I looked at the specs for this computer and it says under motherboard - core logic - "Core Logic VIA MVP4 Chipset
    VT8501 (492 BGA)w/Integrated AGP 2D/3D Graphics Accelerator
    VT82C686A w/intergrated super I/O"


    Is it difficult to install a new motherboard?
     
  8. goldfish

    goldfish Lt. Sushi.DC

    Well.... its not particularly difficult, but you do kinda need to know what youre doing and have some patience. It'll probably take a while if its a big box machine (like a Gateway), since its not made to be easy to replace parts.

    All you need to do is un-plug all the connectors, un screw the motherboard, take it out, and put all the correct connectors back. It would definatley help if you have some expereince in upgrading/replacing other parts first, as you would probably know where everything is supposed to be plugged in.

    Mind you... if its a Gateway it might be easier just to get a new computer... and probably cheaper too. I'm guessing its not under warantee (and almost definatley not now you've opened the power supply !!)

    You might wanna check the power that youre getting to the PC, and if you havnt already invest in a surge protector.
     
  9. reesa

    reesa Private E-2

    I ran two other computers from the same outlet and it's a surge protector too. The other computers worked good, no problems. I just had her other computer here because she had four viruses on it... :rolleyes: and I worked it off of the same line. I also have her old computer that she couldn't get the modem to work (turns out there is none :) ) So I know the power to it is good. I had to replace two hard drives and install a cd burner but that's about the extent of my computer knowlegde I just learn as I go. My sister-inlaw isn't worried though because the computer was sitting (dead) for two years and she doesn't want to pay the $300 to get it fixed by a qualified technician. So either way it's an expensive paper weight either I break it trying to fix it or it sits as it is. I wouldn't work on it if she cared if it became a permenant paper weight.

    The motherboard is a samsung model # MP4M-23AGM. I was looking for a replacement and that's practically impossible. But I found this website that has motherboard bundles for about the same price as the replacement motherboard was going for. I was thinking it looks like it would be cheaper for me to get this motherboard bundle ( http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=721895&Sku=S450-2126%20A ) and a compatible empty tower and use her hard drive, cd rom drive, etc. Is that possible to do? It would be $224 for the mobo bundle and empty tower. The replacement motherboard was $169. What do you think? Am I missing anything else I would need?
     
  10. highly_volatile

    highly_volatile Private First Class

    It will work. i think but you will have to alter a few things . A new motherboard will have conflicts with the hard drive
     
  11. Kodo

    Kodo SNATCHSQUATCH

    The mother board doesn't care about the hard-drive being installed. (SCSI devices excluded as they require specific SCSI devices)
     
  12. highly_volatile

    highly_volatile Private First Class

    Agreed Kodo :) . What i should of said was within the hard drive . ie drivers for onboard sounds / graphics and such
     
  13. Kodo

    Kodo SNATCHSQUATCH

    most of the time, win9x does a relatively decent job of redetecting motherboard resources. NT on the other hand isn't as forgiving.
     
  14. reesa

    reesa Private E-2

    Would I be better off going with a new harddrive or can I format the old one and do a clean install?

    I don't think she'll want to do it because of the cost but if she doesn't and wants to throw out the computer than I can use whatever parts I can salvage and re-build it?!?! Which would be good considering my computer is 4 or 5 years old and I'm broke :) .

    By the way thanks for all the info I appreciate it.
     
    Last edited: Apr 30, 2004
  15. goldfish

    goldfish Lt. Sushi.DC

    Youre not gunna be able to run windows off the old hard drive if you get a new motherboard, if its 2k or XP at any rate, as Kodo says. It would probably be a good idea to do a clean format of the drive. You might have a bit of a job re-installing chipset drivers and the like after you install. A new hard drive is not required, though.

    Motherboard bundle is processor, heatsink, RAM and motherboard, yeah? Youre only keeping the case and the drives! Its like a new machine!

    P.s. thinking about it, did this person pour a drink onto the machine or somthing before it went kaput? an interal short (after the transformer) would explain the power regulators being killed, and the charred PSU parts.
     
  16. reesa

    reesa Private E-2

    I'm not really sure what happened but she has 3 kids and they all "didn't do it ;) ". So anything is possible. When she stored it she also stored it in the basement on its back (so the ports where on the floor) and it was under the stairs so a buildup of dirt dust and grime was on the front panel which was facing up. And it's been sitting for 2 years like that and there was rust corrosion on the outer back panel but the inside was clean. The kids are abit rough with the computer and she's had alot of problems with her other computers so anythings possible. Alot of hands were inside the computer and the power supply seal was broken but that could of been from the guy that gave her the price to fix it. I'm gonna see what she wants to do. Thanks for all the help. If I have any problems I will post again! Thanks Again!
     
  17. reesa

    reesa Private E-2

    I found this Barebones Gateway 500 SE on Yahoo Auctions...

    http://page.auctions.shopping.yahoo.com/auction/85575108?aucview=sps

    The auction says...

    "This is a Gateway 500 SE mid-tower type system. AMD processor and an integrated motherboard with audio, graphics, and modem. This Gateway 500 SE Barebone features the following: 500-megahertz (MHz) AMD processor. Cd-rom. Integrated audio, video, and fax/modem. This unit will ship without a Hard drive, Memory, or FDD. Incudes device drivers on cd. No OS."

    Not to sound like a complete idiot but what is FDD? And more importantly will I need it? ;)

    Would this be a good purchase to use for parts for my sister inlaws pc?

    There's only 8 hrs left on the auction... :(
     
  18. goldfish

    goldfish Lt. Sushi.DC

    FDD = floppy disk drive. Sounds like you already have one, so probably not!
     
  19. reesa

    reesa Private E-2

    I'm such a freaking idiot...hahahaha Thank You! Sorry for the retarded question. Thanks!
     

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