First time build, won't boot. Please help.

[thefoxperson]

So I just finished my first time build and the darned thing wont boot. As soon as I hit the power button it turns on for a half second and shuts down. I am using the Asus Crosshair IV Formula mobo. Looking into it, it seemed like it might be a problem with the mobo and the cpu fan. I have a zalman 9900nt cpu fan. I noticed when I boot everything the cpu fan doesnt work when it is plugged into the cpu fan slot but when it is plugged into the pwr fan slot it works, for half a second. Is the cpu fan the problem? If so what should I do next? If not then what could it be? Thanks for you help.

List of parts:
AMD Phenom II x4 965be
Asus Crosshair IV Formula
G-Skill something DDR3
HIS graphics card (5970 i think)
Kingwin Mach 1 700w PSU
NZXT Alpha Case

 

[soulwatch5]

Check all the power cables connected to the mobo. Make sure they are all in correctly. There should be two plugs powering your mobo. A 8pin(maybe 4 depending on mobo) and a 24pin. Also recheck if you have the case wires attached to the right pins on the mobo. (White wires are negative if i remember correctly). Also another thing to check is if the back of the power supply has a switch from 115v to 220v. If your in the states make sure its at 115V.

 

[thefoxperson]

Thanks for the suggestion. I changed the voltage and it runs for a couple seconds now and stops. I think the problem is the CPU fan isnt being recognized by the motherboard. It still works when I plug it into pwr fan but not when I plug it into cpu fan. I really hope its not a fault in the mobo.

 

[CgS Drone]

ON EDIT:
I went and searched up the fans manual do you know if you have the bios set for PWM control mode? in the manual it says the bios must be setup in that mode for it to work, if it is not then the motherboard may be sensing that the fan is not running and shut the system off to protect itself. Also are you using the resister? and have you tried it without the resister inline?

 

[thefoxperson]

thanks for the help so far. I fixed the problem. i took off the cpu fan and cleaned off the thermal grease and reapplied with less thermal grease. starts up and runs fine. now there is no display. Also I havent hear a single beep yet. I assumed I would but who knows. As far as pwm I havent been able to get to the bios yet. any more help would be great.

 

[trents]

Do you have the power cable plugged into your video card? It probably requires one.

 

[thefoxperson]

yes. its the 6 pin i believe.

 

[thefoxperson]

I believe the video card is on because the fan attached to it is running

 

[QuietIce]

Personally, I like to do a quick assembly outside the case before installation. When you do a first build there are many things that can go wrong, including issues with board installation, so I like to make sure the basics are working before I put the whole thing in the case. With an issue like yours I'd pulled the whole thing out, put the board on it's shipping box (or a clean, wood table), and (without an HDD) try to power it up ...

 

[thefoxperson]

Assuming it has the same issues (No Display, No Post, No beeps) outside of the case, any ideas on what to do next?

 

[QuietIce]

Some of this you can try in the case but in the end it still may be a short.


You should only have the board's 20/24-pin power connector, the 4- or 8-pin CPU power connector, the video power connector and the CPU fan hooked up. Connect the CPU fan directly to the PSU.

Use only one stick of RAM and try it in all four slots. If that doesn't work use another stick of RAM once in each slot.

Try the video card in another slot(s).

Reseat the CPU and check for bent/missing pins. (Also check the TIM pattern when you remove the heatsink to make sure you had enough but not too much.)

Check board (front and back) for foreign objects, especially in RAM & expansion slots and power sockets, and look for defects. Also check video card for foreign objects or defects.


That's all I can think of, consciously anyway. The problem is there are so many things that are second nature to many of us that we don't even think about them ...

 

[CgS Drone]

Is there any chance we could get a couple pics of it?

 

[trents]

I'm with QuietIce. Sometimes these problems prove to be something simple like an unused or misplaced brass motherboard off set stud that is grounding out against the underside of the board.

 

[Sniper.nkc]

Make sure you have connected the 8 pin power connector to MB. There is a plastic cap on MB and it covers 4 pins. You need to remove it to plug an 8-pin power connector to it for CPU to get power.

 

[Awptex]

Take everything out of the case, assemble everything with bare essentials, CPU 6 PIN & 24 Pin connecters, Videocard then try starting.

 

[trents]

Take everything out of the case, assemble everything with bare essentials, CPU 6 PIN & 24 Pin connecters, Videocard then try starting.

+1

 

[thefoxperson]

Sorry its been awhile. Been very busy with work. Thanks for all the help. Ill try some of these things and get pics up within the next couple days.

 

[CgS Drone]

Also I havent hear a single beep yet. I assumed I would but who knows.

This board does not appear to have an onboard system speaker, have you hooked up a case speaker? and is it connected in the right direction?

 

[QuietIce]

This board does not appear to have an onboard system speaker, have you hooked up a case speaker? and is it connected in the right direction?

I know they mark speakers '+' and '-' but does it really matter? Unless you've got a good audio system I've never known it to make a difference ...