Motherboard problem??

[emptyt]

Hi

My friends computer seems to have a problem with the motherboard. It doesn't boot to anything when I start it. No beep sounds at startup but the fan works on the cpu and power supply, also the light on the font of the computer goes on.

Computer is a couple of years old and runs WinME. Gateway computer.

My question is once I determine what motherboard it is from the markings on the mobo. How do I know which mobo will best suit this computer? Taking into account I know very little of types of mobo’s and cpu’s.

Any suggestion would be much appreciated.

M
:D

[whetu]

we'll need more info such as cpu/amount of ram/hdd's used etc.. chances are it's perfectly fine, just something like your ram or video card is bung...

I guess the big question is: Do you want to fix it or just replace/upgrade it?

[KingJackal]

Does ANYTHING show up on the monitor?

Have you tried unplugging the wide ATA cables from all your hard-drives and CD-ROM's etc and trying again? ( if one is in wrong, it'll just sit there with a black screen ;) ).

Have you tried taking the video card out, then replacing it? ( just to make sure the connection is good. Sometimes they'll just slip out enough that they won't 'quite' work, so you'll just get a black screen )

Did it just randomly do this one day? Did this happen after an upgrade?

[emptyt]

Whetu I will try and find out more info for you. I want to fix it first if possible.

KingJackel nothing shows up on the monitor and as for unplugging the ATA cables (I'm assuming they are the coloured wires going from the power supply) No one has touched or been inside her computer since she bought it.

Yes I took out the video card and replaced it but no luck. I might try and find another video card and see if that works.

It just happened about a month ago randomly.

Iblis I will try your suggestion about the hard drive but I could only hear the cpu fan and the power supply going.

Thanks for all the comments and suggestions I will post back tomorrow when I have chance to look at it.

M
:D

[KingJackal]

Originally posted by emptyt
KingJackel nothing shows up on the monitor and as for unplugging the ATA cables (I'm assuming they are the coloured wires going from the power supply) No one has touched or been inside her computer since she bought it.


No, those are the power cables ;). The ATA cables are the wide grey cables - they look like 40 grey cables melted into each other in a row.

If it randomly occured though, it's unlikely to be that. Cable damage almost always occurs either in transit, or when fiddling with the cabling ( go figure ;) ).

I presume a smell-test ( yes, smell-test :D. I'm very scientific, you have to understand... ) near the power supply unit in case, or anywhere else for that matter, doesn't give suspicion about something having fried?

Depending on how it dies, just about any one of the dozens of compenents in a computer dying can cause it to not boot and not show any video or give any beep codes. As a result, it's probably a bad idea to just replace the motherboard - that may not be the problem. Furthermore, depending on what the computer actually IS, you may not be able to buy a new motherboard for it!

So as Whetu said, some specs of the machine ( anything - even just the type or speed of the CPU would be better than nothing ) would help a lot. If the motherboard has died, depending on the specs of the machine, anything from buying a new motherboard, to buying a new complete system may be necissary.

[MR_60]

I would try to reseat all the components you can, including the CPU particularly if it's a slot or ESCPECIALLY a slocket... then try fire it up.

Then start eliminating unneeded components, and finally try a different psu, and then a diff video card

good luck! Hope it's not the mobo or chances are they'll be upgrading their system ;o)