OTish: Help, my PC has died (resolved)
alexhcowley
Posts: 2,392
I've just updated my render PC with an Nvidia 1080 GPU. When I plugged the power cable back in and switched on nothing happened, it was completely dead to the world.
The PC runs Windows 8.1, it has Nvidia driver 375.63 and an 850 Watt PSU so there's plenty of oomph in that department. It's a custom PC and is only about 16 months old so I am puzzled as to why it should suddenly die on me.
Any explanations and tips on how to get it going again will be gratefully received.
Cheers,
Alex.
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Comments
checking the PSU prob your first task
try hot wiring a fan
Does it work if you remove the card again?
Did you turn of the switch on the power supply while working on it, then forgot to turn it back on? I do that to myself all the time. Or did you disconnect or accidentally bump/loosen any cables to get at the graphics card, such as perhaps the cable from the motherboard to the power supply, or the cable from the motherboard to the case power switch?
Do the PSU jumper trick to see if the PSU comes to life. It could also be a dead power switch or that your motherboard is dead.
You either:
1) ESD'ed the board
2) Accidentally disconnected the power supply from the motherboard.
3) Accidentally disconnected the case from the motherboard.
What mobo? Are you hearing any beeps at all? Is the card connected to a monitor (as opposed to the onboard video - some cards disable the onboard video if a card is seated)?
- Greg
The first thing to check is the PSU itself. Does the fan spin up when the power cable is plugged in? It may spin up briefly, then shut down if there is a problem with the signal from the motherboard. After that, check to see that you didn't accidentally loosen or dislodge the soft on/soft off cable from the front power switch to the motherboard.
Thanks for your comments, guys. I always take precautions against static electricity. The power supply fan does not react when the power cable is plugged in. It looks to me like either the PSU has failed or one of the power wires has been accidentally dislodged as suggested above.
I'm going to have another fiddle with it this afternoon and then call out a repair man if I have no joy.
Cheers,
Alex.
Latest development: the PC works if I unplug the 1080 from the power supply! I've spoken to the guy who built the PC for me and he has suggested swaping my existing 970 with the new card and then booting with just the 1080 installed. The 970 is currently in the top slot, with the 1080 in the lower one.
Cheers,
Alex.
Oh, yeah, it's been a long time since I built a PC but overloading a PS will cause it not to supply power as a safety precaution.
Your 850 watt should have enough juice for two video cards and the processor. I would recommend disconnecting non cpu cooling fans from motherboard fan pins and moving to molex connectors off of powersupply. I have found this helps both your motherboard and your powersupply last longer. I had to buy a 1000watt powersupply beast myself once I started messing with Iray and multiple video cards. I have 4 video cards in my system and my powersupply has not given me any problems.
The processor has a Corsair H80 water cooler strapped to it with two fans on the radiator. I suspect that this may not help with the power usage.
Cheers,
Alex.
A 120 mm fan typically uses about 5W, not much really.
Don't do water cooling myself as H2O & electronics don't seem to mix well
That is not a small powersupply it should be able to handle that. The pump is externally powered right?
Went to your Deviant art page nice artwork.
The processor cooler is powered off the PSU so this may very well be my problem. Does anyone know how many watts the H80 draws?
I've been busy at work for the last few days so I haven't had a chance to look into things but I'm hoping for another wrestle with it this weekend.
Thanks for your comments on my art. Did you check out the Red Panda jpegs while you were there? They are weapons-grade cute.
Cheers,
Alex.
And the answer is.... I was using the wrong type of power cable. The Nvidia 1080 requires 180 watts and the one I was using was rated substantially lower.
Unfortunately, the motherboard was damaged when my existing 970 became stuck in its slot so I ended up needing a new motherboard as well. It took a couple of weeks to get that one sorted out.
Many thanks to all of you who offered help and advice.
Cheers,
Alex.