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I have this weird issue, that I've had for a very long time. I've spent many hours trying to figure this out, but cannot figure it out.

I purchased a Cisnet machine around 2008, which runs Windows Vista.

Recently, if I turn the machine on, all the fans would start spinning, and the LEDs would turn on, but only for a second and would turn off immediately.

I have tried removing my HDD, and CD player but it still doesn't have an effect.

I accidentally left a 4-pinned 12v connector unplugged, which the machine then turns on. If I plug it back it, it then turns on for a second, then immediately turns off again.

If I leave the 4-pinned 12 volt connect unplugged the fans and LEDs turn on. However, the HDD doesn't spin and the LED doesn't indicate it's being used. As well, there is no output on my monitor, I have tried multiple monitors.

Unfortunately my motherboard doesn't contain a buzzer and doesn't beep. I have tried using speakers on the speaker jacks, but I get no beep either.

My motherboard is P5GZ-MX

I have also verified that my PSU is on the correct voltage, and I have also verified that the motherboard is not touching metal or wires.

David Tkachuk
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  • Does it make any beepy noises? – Jon Oct 10 '13 at 01:43
  • No. I said the motherboard doesn't have a buzzer, and doesn't beep. – David Tkachuk Oct 10 '13 at 01:43
  • It sounds like a problem with the processor. Does it get as far as loading the BIOS? – Ben Plont Oct 10 '13 at 01:56
  • does it have an external video card of any sort? More details on your hardware would be nice – Journeyman Geek Oct 10 '13 at 02:02
  • Also try removing everything you can, any external devices connected any PCI cards you may have, even the graphics card. Try to boot with only a RAM chip installed. If you have more than one, remove all but one of them. If tat does not work, try again with the other RAM chip. If this lets you boot, start putting hardware back in until you find the culprit. – terdon Oct 10 '13 at 02:11
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    I would blame a faulty PSU, if the 4-pin connector goes to/from PSU/some device, then either is at fault. – Braiam Oct 10 '13 at 02:13
  • @JourneymanGeek - It might be corrupted CMOS...or a bad processor if it's not one of those, then I would say video card / GPU. Wouldn't a video card failure cause a beep sequence? So, if there's no beep sequence it might be more likely processor / CMOS problems... – Ben Plont Oct 10 '13 at 02:15
  • @BenPlont nope, it might not - I was considering my old [swedish chef scenario](http://superuser.com/questions/333617/is-it-normal-for-a-dell-inspiron-530-to-have-is-fan-to-spin-up-3-times-before-i/333980#333980), and I've had graphics cards, and I have had [sudden silent GPU failures](http://superuser.com/questions/377179/can-a-video-card-silently-fail) before – Journeyman Geek Oct 10 '13 at 02:18
  • Oh, and the 4 pin connector is for the CPU, you probably wouldn't be able to boot without it. – Journeyman Geek Oct 10 '13 at 02:32
  • I saw something like this in a brand new motherboard. It turned out to be burn-in failure. I think it is definitely one of these four things. Power supply - CPU - CMOS - or Graphics card. – Ben Plont Oct 10 '13 at 02:32
  • Unfortunately there is not much I can get information of my machine. PSU is a ISO-400 4, Hitachi 320GB SATA HDD, 1GB (2 512MB) DDR2 RAM. I am hoping to see if the manufacturer can assist me, since this issue has been happening for about a year now! I also think it's the PSU. – David Tkachuk Oct 10 '13 at 02:40
  • Do you have another PSU laying around that you could swap in to see if it works? Unless the motherboard or case are setup weird, it should be fairly easy. Obviously you would want to make sure the temporary replacement is roughly the same wattage. – David Oct 10 '13 at 02:48
  • Unfortunately I called my PC's manufacturer and it was a complete waste of my time and absolutely was no help at all. I have no clue if it's possible to fix this without spending a lot of money. I feel it's best for me to scrap the machine (it kinda sucked anyways :/) and use the HDD as an external drive for my laptop – David Tkachuk Oct 10 '13 at 22:23
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    have you tried to remove RTC/CMOS-on-board battery and tried to boot it ? – maiklos Oct 19 '13 at 07:51
  • I have not tried that maiklos, however I'll try it later and let you know. – David Tkachuk Oct 26 '13 at 19:03

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I have had this problem before and for me it was either a corrupted CMOS or a bad PSU. I'd first try unplugging the computer then removing the CMOS battery for a few seconds. If that doesn't work I would try a different PSU.

imtheman
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