PC will not boot, PS Failure ?

[slgrieb]

MH, when a power supply overheats, it won't necessarily shutdown before the system is damaged. Sometimes it just starts to deliver incorrect voltages that can cook the mainboard. If the fan isn't working you don't want the unit.

When your new power supply blew, it is virtually certain that your mainboard got toasted as well. When a power supply fails this catastrophically, the motherboard is almost always a casualty. Actually, I'd bet you no longer have a functional CPU either. Just replace both. Socket A is pretty much a dead platform. You can still find a replacement board, but your choices are going to be a bit limited, and if the CPU is bad (and I really do expect it is now) you have the hassle of getting a Socket A processor to deal with.

Most likely, you're going to find that a new board, processor, AND memory may be surprisingly cheap. I built a system yesterday that used an AMD Sempron 64 3200+ AM2 processor ($41), 1 GB of Kingston DDR2 PC4200 ($49), and an Asus K8M890 mainboard ($63.50) all from a local vendor with good support and warranty services. No dubious Ebay crap involved.

BestBuy shouldn't have a problem refunding your money for the PSU they sold you, but you really don't want another Dynex. Don't exchange it. There are better brands around. I like the Antec True Power and Smart Power lines. Excellent units that are very cost effective, and support is first rate. Thermaltake makes decent PSUs, as do Enlight, and lots of other name mfgs. PC Power and Cooling makes the best PSUs, but you should be prepared for sticker shock.

Not all PSUs are created equal, and a good rule of thumb is that you generally get what you pay for in a power supply. Believe it or not, a good way to compare power supplies with ostensibly comparable specs is just to pick them up. The heavier unit is likelier to be a higher quality PSU.

[mhubbard24]

MH, when a power supply overheats, it won't necessarily shutdown before the system is damaged. Sometimes it just starts to deliver incorrect voltages that can cook the mainboard. If the fan isn't working you don't want the unit.

When your new power supply blew, it is virtually certain that your mainboard got toasted as well. When a power supply fails this catastrophically, the motherboard is almost always a casualty. Actually, I'd bet you no longer have a functional CPU either. Just replace both. Socket A is pretty much a dead platform. You can still find a replacement board, but your choices are going to be a bit limited, and if the CPU is bad (and I really do expect it is now) you have the hassle of getting a Socket A processor to deal with.

Most likely, you're going to find that a new board, processor, AND memory may be surprisingly cheap. I built a system yesterday that used an AMD Sempron 64 3200+ AM2 processor ($41), 1 GB of Kingston DDR2 PC4200 ($49), and an Asus K8M890 mainboard ($63.50) all from a local vendor with good support and warranty services. No dubious Ebay crap involved.

BestBuy shouldn't have a problem refunding your money for the PSU they sold you, but you really don't want another Dynex. Don't exchange it. There are better brands around. I like the Antec True Power and Smart Power lines. Excellent units that are very cost effective, and support is first rate. Thermaltake makes decent PSUs, as do Enlight, and lots of other name mfgs. PC Power and Cooling makes the best PSUs, but you should be prepared for sticker shock.

Not all PSUs are created equal, and a good rule of thumb is that you generally get what you pay for in a power supply. Believe it or not, a good way to compare power supplies with ostensibly comparable specs is just to pick them up. The heavier unit is likelier to be a higher quality PSU.

Ok....Final verdict. CPU was unharmed, motherboard is definitely bad. I bench tested my old...nothing but the cpu fan twitch, new mobo old processor comes up beautifully. Only thing is the cpu is running pretty hot (65C on the bench), I have reapplied the artic silver once already to see if that brings the temp down. Possible that the BIOS is reporting the wrong temp? This unit better stop giving me headaches or it will be on ebay by the end of the weekend...

[mhubbard24]

Nevermind, redid it...I spread the thermal paste too thin I guess so now it has been running at idle for an hour and is a 42C which I can live with...

[slgrieb]

Glad, you got off light MH! The big reason I generally would replace a board and CPU both is that they often die together, and if that happens, you have few replacement choices on older platforms, and the prices tend to be inflated compared to current hardware.

Arctic Silver is an excellent thermal compound, but some care is required when using it. Actually, I see more problems caused by users putting on way too thick rather than the reverse.