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pc power problem

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my computer would not turn on. on the front of the computer it shows the power light flashing 3 times and then the fourth flashing quickly. that continues on and on and on. i looked all over the net and could not find the problem or solution. tried replacing ram and power supply and graphics card and still nothing. could anyone please tell me what the light flashing means?

9 replies

by thumbsup2

The PSU may need to be discharged and reset. Try unplugging the power cord, then holding the power button in for about 2 minutes. Release it, plug the cord back in and try again.

by Former member

Are there any beeps at all?.
If not then the flashing lights would be in place of the beeps. In relation to the flashes these are the problems that you are having:

1). Three Long Beeps.(three long flashes or flashing three times) = Keyboard Error

2). Repeated Long Beeps (fourth light flashing quickly)= Memory Error

Now section 3 could be in relation to all of your lights.
3). Continuous Hi-Lo Beeps = CPU Overheating

This is a shot in the dark one, but one of great importance.
4). Bios chip. If this is not seated properly the you will get the error lights on your case. SOLUTION: Open up your case, PLEASE GROUND YOURSELF. (make sure you touch the outside metal of your case at ALL TIMES when doing this). What you are looking for is a raised square component: Similar to this:
http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://db.brainbox.co.kr/images/new2007/2007-03-21-171258/amibios.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.neowin.net/forum/lofiversion/index.php/t599195.html&h=399&w=480&sz=258&tbnid=OLqwjYq1gfcJ::&tbnh=107&tbnw=129&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dbios%2Bchip%2Bphoto&hl=en&sa=X&oi=image_result&resnum=1&ct=image&cd=1
Now what you want is a very very small end screw driver, there are two small holes on where you put this screw driver, now slowly lift this bios out. (keeping in mind that you will have to ground yourself at all times while doing this). With the bios out now replace, be careful, there is only one way that the bios goes in. Have a very close look at the bios and you will find a flat edge, make sure this lines up with flat edge of the socket it came out of, now gently line this bios up and at the same time gently push down the bios chip until it goes ALL the way in the socket. When done boot your computer. It should work. Touch wood..

Please post back if you have any more problems or questions.

by vp4life84

i tried resetting the PSU but that didnt do anything. still has the blinking lights. thanks for the reply, i will try to figure something out.

i have just tried the bios chip and that still did not work. now it blinks 6 times and then the 7th is a fast blink when i first turn it on. then after that it just blinks the regular 3 slow and the 4th fast and that continues on and on. i was thinking if it might be the cpu. any thoughts?

oh yeah, it doesnt beep any sounds at all. just the power light blinks. i have the sound plugged in correctly so i dont know why it doesnt beep any noise at all.

by Former member

I will need to know your BIOS. Or the make of your motherboard.
To me it still seams like your memory.
SOLUTION: Replace with another.
Keyboard, try another.
If no dice then please give details on your motherboard so that i can track down your codes.

Please post back if you have any more problems or questions.

by vp4life84

ok, i tried replacing the memory with another that is brand new and still did nothing. Keyboard did nothing also.

motherboard = ABIT NF8-V
bios chip = phoenix bios D686

by rob miners

Appendix H. Troubleshooting (Need Assistance?)

Q & A:

Q: Do I need to clear the CMOS before I use a new motherboard to assemble my new computer system?

A: Yes, we highly recommend that you clear the CMOS before installing a new motherboard. Please move the CMOS jumper from its default 1-2 position to 2-3 for a few seconds, and then back. When you boot up your system for the first time, follow the instructions in the user?s manual to load the optimized defaults.

Q: If my system hangs when I update the BIOS or set the wrong CPU parameters, what should I do?

A: Whenever you update the BIOS or if the system hangs due to wrong CPU parameters setting, always clear CMOS jumper before booting up again.

Q: Why does the system fail to boot up again right after a mechanical power-off?

A: Please keep a 30-second interval between each mechanical power On/Off.

Q: Why does the system fail to boot up and nothing displays on the screen after I did some overclocking or non-standard settings inside the BIOS? Is the motherboard dead? Do I need to return it to where I bought from or go through an RMA process?

A: It should not cause hardware or permanent damage to motherboard when BIOS settings were changed from default to over-clocking or non-standard status. We suggest the following three troubleshooting methods to discharge CMOS data, recover the hardware default status, and then making the motherboard work again. There is no need to bother returning the motherboard to where you bought it from or go through an RMA process.

Step 1. Switch off the power supply unit and then switch it on again after one minute. If there is no power switch on the power supply unit, disconnect its power cord for one minute and then reconnect.
Press and hold the key on the keyboard, and press the power-on button to boot up system. If it works, release the key and hit key to enter the BIOS setup page to apply the correct settings.
If the situation remains the same, repeat the procedures in Step 1 for three times, or try Step 2.

Step 2. Switch off the power supply unit or disconnect the power cord. Open the chassis cover. Locate the CCMOS jumper near the button battery. Change the jumper position from default 1-2 to 2-3 for one minute to discharge the CMOS data, and then put it back to default 1-2 position.
Close the chassis and switch on the power supply unit or plug in the power cord. Press the power-on button to boot up system. If it works, hit key to enter the BIOS setup page to do the correct settings.
If the situation remains the same, try Step 3.

Step 3. The same procedure as Step 2, but while discharging the CMOS data, pull out the ATX power connectors from motherboard and remove the button battery during CMOS discharge.

by vp4life84

Ok, i have tried the steps that you asked and still nothing. I did from step 1 to step 3 and different other ways to reset the bios and still it does the same thing with the power light. Could it be that i really do need to replace the motherboard?

by rob miners

apply new grease when you reseated the CPU.

The only other test is with another CPU but in my experience the Motherboard will fail long before the CPU. Things are not looking good.

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