Hardware Issues

[Gregorama]

I recently purchased a new power supply, being as the other one I was using died. Now, when I try to power on the computer, fans and such start up for a split second, then there's no power. This happens every time I try to power on the computer. I'm pretty sure the motherboard didn't fry, so what could this issue be? I've tried all the logical things, such as making sure everything is connected properly, stripping down the the basic hardware, etc. Dear God, I'm pissed. Help and suggestions would be appreciated.

[The Reverend]

Sounds like a "classic" defective unit to me. It happens due to the new way they are made these days ...progress my eye! Sorry to hear. www.tigerdirect.com has some slendid buys this time of year! (Fact: One in every 12 PS is defective on low end Power Supply makers. Gotta get quality these days or you'll just find yourself back at the store buying another. (You can use a tester and check each of the outputs, but I'm willing to place bets that it is defective) ....I learned the hard way about Power Supplies and economics. You need to spend about $50 bucks (mine went for nearly $90.00USD), to get one that will stand up to 24/7 usage. (Or at least that is how it works for my machines).

Get more wattage than you need. (I have a 550w stuffed into my box when a 300w would have been plenty. It also came with overload protection, THREE fans, and circuitry that keeps my computer 'eating' a constant 120volts @ 60cycles. I loved it so every computer in the house is now using one ...and has the 'fancy' blue LEDS in the rear fan. (Makes a great nitelight to boot!

Cheers

[Gregorama]

Thanks for the information, Reverend. Being as I purchased this computer, I'm still under warranty. I would have just built the computer myself, but their price was unbeatable, and would most likely cost less than if I were to build it.

-Intel P4 3.2EGHz [1MB cache]

-Quality VIA PT800+ 800FSB Hyper-Threading DDR400 ATX Motherboard

-1 8xAGP Slot & 4 PCI SLOTS / 4 ULTRA ATA-133/100/66/33 IDE Devices On 2 Channels

-1024MB DDR RAM

-8xAGP ATI Radeon 9600 Pro w/256MB DDRAM & TV-out

-120GB ATA-133 7200RPM Hard Drive (Upset about RPM)

-Floppy Drive

-8x DVD RW+

That, including shipping, came to about $700. If I can't resolve this issue by tomorrow, I'll ship it back to them, have them take a look at decide what to replace, free of cost. I'm also going to try and work a little magic. I'll say that I want to remain a customer of theirs, and was almost certain that I'd buy from them again, but with what has happened, I'm not quite sure. I'll ask them to compensate for what has happened, maybe by upgrading my processor or video card.

Cheers again, Reverend.

[MICROWAVE]

I recently purchased a new power supply' date=' being as the other one I was using died. Now, when I try to power on the computer, fans and such start up for a split second, then there's no power. This happens every time I try to power on the computer. I'm pretty sure the motherboard didn't fry, so what could this issue be? I've tried all the logical things, such as making sure everything is connected properly, stripping down the the basic hardware, etc. Dear God, I'm pissed. Help and suggestions would be appreciated.[/quote']

The first place I would start is to meter the P.S. without things hooked up and see if the voltages are present and if so then I would plug in all connection and check voltages again. I have seen where plugs appear to be connected but are not also I have had my big hand loosen things that I was not working on and cause a new problem.Also some power supply's have several plugs to work with different models, so I always double check to make sure I have the correct plug connected.New puter P.S. goes bad and new one doesn't work either? something is strange....but you already knew that....LOL

Microwave

[xs1]

That, including shipping, came to about $700.

um...what..... 700 for that setup?.. P4 3.2 ghz , gig of ram , 120 hdd and a decent vid casrd for "about 700" ...

and good luck on their "compensation".

[The Reverend]

In times past I've had the pleasure of going through 9 PS units ($45.00US each) before finally getting one that would hold up for more than 60 seconds. That's when I started getting the high-end units, and my problems stopped. Presently I am using a "CoolMax" high-end with all the bells and whistles and love it. Built in Surge Protection, Conditions the power for a constant 120vac @ 60cycles, and blue LEDS 'to boot' on the rear fan! (too cool for a Reverend ...heheh).

After all, everything in your 'can' is using power right? Heck yeah. So, it is only going to run as well as the 'juice' that it is getting. Funky power = funky output = higher maintenance. Every since I dumped this tri-fan-"does-everything"-jobber into my box I've never had a lick of trouble ...notta. (knock on wood). Same goes for the other PCs under my roof.

To me, building a system starts at the House Power Panel. Our four computers are fed "conditioned" power (all on separate Circuit Breakers too ...same "leg" and 'common ground' too *mechanical ground that is)), and that has gone a very long way in giving us an extremely stable (Intranet/Internet) system with NO component failures (yet). It really makes a noticeable difference so I am pleased with that part of the entire investment (upgrade). Battery Backups on all PCs, Router, and even the SAT-COM is a luxury since the power is "wild" where we live. By the time the generator fires up the batteries are still at nearly 100% (big UPS's though ...I think 350's would have been plenty).

Just installed HDD coolers with twin fans last night on all the PCs, (but I turned the fans around to draw the heated air away from the HDDS instead of packing dust into them. Dunno if it's wasted bucks or not, but I'll let you know as soon as I get enough numbers to 'average'. I can say the HDDS are running quieter than before, (no 'bearing' noise anymore).

Cheers

"The Rev"

[Gregorama]

Thanks a lot, Rev. I took out everything inside the case, and put everything back into place. I even repositioned the CPU, but working is one thing it just won't do. From this, I can tell; it's most likely the mobo. I guess there's not much I can do, ya know bro? My best bet is to send it back, hoping that it will return before the new year is back. Chances are, it will take 3 weeks or more, for them to recieve, fix, and ship back my whore.

Wow, that was rather enjoyable. Say Rev, care to chat a bit on AIM? We could, I don't know. Say....chat about computers? Hehe, as always, thanks Rev.

-Greg

[Gregorama]

Email to company:

After purchasing a new power supply, and the computer still not powering up, I'm going to ship the computer back to you. I spoke with a technician today, only to find my questions un-answered. I was told to remove the cpu, and put it back in place, clear the cmos, etc. No results came of this. He wasn't of much help, and seemed quick to end the conversation. My computer WILL NOT turn on at all. Please ship back the computer fixed, and with the new cases that you are selling. It looks more cooling-efficient.

I want to remain a loyal customer, and was hoping to purchase from you in the near future, but I'm not satisfied. Hopefully, you can compensate for this situation, by upgrading the processor to a P4 3.4 Ghz, and the video card to a Radeon 9800XT. The upgrades I did pay for included a floppy drive, modem, 120 GB HDD, and Radeon 9600 256 MB.

If you could ship the computer back to me in a short amount of time, it would be greatly appreciated. I need this computer badly. Thanks.

[The Reverend]

Let's hope they get your machine reassembled in time for a January launching eh? Holiday Seasons are indeed special, but when it comes to business, everything slows to a "Snail's Pace" for the greater part. (It is such a pain in the patoote to have to ship such things back and forth (handled by apes in transit).

Would you believe that the Chat Progs got to be such a security problem that we pulled every one of them? I'd love to chat, as I do keep lotsa digital mailings flying around the planet.

Perhaps you can tell me what would be the best Chat Program to install (even if it costs a few bucks) that won't endanger the Minister-Laity confidentiality "firewall" that I believe in holding fast to. So far I keep finding disappointment in everything, (and I'm not exactly "hot" about giving out ANYTHING to America Online)....gawd! (But, I have such a vast amount of security software that I can most likely use it safely now ....12 years ago such things were unnecessary and unheard of)! lol... wow!

Or, you can simply use an e-mail box I have just created epecially for you (and any others who wish to use it ...*just clik on my "email button" below! Give me your e-mail and we can do it "normally" if you like. No prob there at all. It is freely offered to anyone who will use it properly (thank you!)). I try to answer all e-mails and, I know how to track down bandits who do things to my mail. Enuff said there!

Cheers!

"The Rev"

[Gregorama]

Trillian is a very safe chat program, and can use aim, msn, icq, and yahoo all at once. It also takes up very little system recources. I prefer AIM. But, I would not recomment installing the latest versions of it. Here's the perfect version of AIM, which is the only version I will use. It's an older one, indeed, but it works the same, and has no spyware.

Here's the link to it: http://www.oldversion.com/downloadx/aim553572.exe

I doubt the company will compensate for the situation. All I really want is my computer back before the new year. It's going to take 5-6 days for them to recieve it, hopefully 2-3 for them getting around to fixing (or replacing) it, and 5-6 days for me to recieve it.

-Greg

[The Reverend]

I am studying up on Trillian Pro. It looks like something that I can understand (and make the best use of!) because it will integrate with (supposedly) the majority of other chat progs....I am checking if Steganos and my other security feaures will "wipe my slates" and such ...but every since the new router went online I've not had a single incident. (prior to that we logged 107,567 attempts on our firewall in a bit over 48 days (o.O) ...that got to be ridiculous. Most of them coming from Japan with some very high-tech methods for getting into systems)!

*Sent cha an e-mail too...

Cheers!

[Gregorama]

Wow, that sure is a hefty number of intrusion attempts. I wouldn't be able to cope with that!

*I replied to your e-mail.

Greg

[xs1]

wait let me see if iv got this straight... Your sending the computer back them, because you paid good money and want a working system. If thats the case then i agree and its very understandable. But the part of " you can compensate for this situation, by upgrading the processor to a P4 3.4 GHz, and the video card to a Radeon 9800XT" ... Then you say afterward that you paid for upgrades..

Which leads me to my question.. These processor and vid card upgrades you paid for?? Or you mean you paid for previous upgrades?? Because to be honest, if you are telling them to upgrade the processor and vid card just because you got a failty part, if that is correct... then you my friend make me sick.You should be ashamed of yourself if you honestly believe that 1 (or more ) faulty part you got deserves " compensation" then you are realy.. um.. i dunno quite how to put it non offensively... so ill just stick with "sickening".

People daily get bad parts. They eventualy get the problem sorted out and live happily ever after. But to think your just saying " hey my system isnt working because of an error on your part , but you can 'compensate' for this error and upgrade my system with things i couldnt afford anyway " Instead of mabey suggesting " you can compensate for this error by fixing the problem free of charge, and mabey even take care of the shipping in a timely matter " is just " Ugh..."

Im not bashing your .......' route of dealing ' with this problem, nor trying to flame... but if this is realy how your handling this mistake by the company, especialy when the problem could have been somehow on your part, then you need to look at this from anjother point of view my friend.

[edit..]

and a new case too?? wow.. ]

[/edit]

But, if i am misunderstanding this wholesituation , please set me straight.

[Gregorama]

When the company you are dealing with treats you with little or no care, then I could honestly care less about how "decent" I am being with them. Tech support rushed the hell out of me, they take days to reply emails, and from other signs they've given me, I can tell that there's no way in hell that they care about customer satisfaction. And when I said that I paid for upgrades, it ment that I spent more money to upgrade the poor products they had to offer.

[xs1]

When the company you are dealing with treats you with little or no care' date=' then I could honestly care less about how "decent" I am being with them. Tech support rushed the hell out of me, they take days to reply emails, and from other signs they've given me, I can tell that there's no way in hell that they care about customer satisfaction. .[/quote']

Welcome to the real world.

But telling them you basicaly want the most expensive parts upgraded (which is where they make their money ) because your not satasfied with their service, is ( on their end) "laughable" and ( from what i can see) "sleezy".

Please, please do not get me wrong. Im not defending this company in any way. Seems like everything iv bought thruout my life has been the same way. Substandard and feeling like iv gotten 'screwed'. But if i bought a toyota corolla from a used car dealership that was supposed to be "cherry" and it ends up to be a "lemon" im not going back there and saying " i want a Lexus s-type as compensation" lol. I mean you get the picture. You should ask them to fix your machine and ship it as quickly as possible..

[Gregorama]

I realize that, but my perspective on this situation was that if I ask for an outrageous compensation, that the least they'll do is a quick shipping.

[Gregorama]

I realize that, but my perspective on this situation was that if I ask for an outrageous compensation, that the least they'll do is a quick shipping.

Going from a 3.2 to a 3.4 is similar to asking for a CD player at a dealership. And as for the video card, going from a 9600 to a 9800 isn't that big of a jump either, not that I expected them to do it. I just asked for it for the reason explained above.

[xs1]

3.2 p4 = $212.00

3.4 p4 = $307.00

total = $95.00

ati 9600 = $92.50

ati 9800 = $254.00

total = $161.50

total + total = Grand total ; = $256.50

Of course these prices are what a normal customer would pay and not companies, but you get the point. so.. no its not the same as "asking for a CD player at a dealership"

These items are the essential parts of a computer. SO it would realy be like askign the dealership for a free engine upgrade from 4cylender to a v6

[Gregorama]

Well then, I want a new engine.

I don't buy from companies that don't please me from the get go. I was serious about buying from them in the near future. If I had a customer of whom I knew would be loyal, I'd do a heck of a lot to keep them around.

[Swimmer]

Where are you getting these prices?? The CPU prices look right.. except the 3.2 is an OEM and the 3.4 is retail..

the 9800 is 150ish right now... and the 9600 is about 70..

Please tell me it wasnt zipzoomfly..

The first mistake was taking a company built system and sticking a 3rd party power supply that was inferior... The more you spend now on a ps the less in the long run.. cheap power supplies run dirty and cause un-need stress on components... Just one thing.. did you plug the 12v connector back into the mobo? Also i am pretty sure that replacing the power supply voids any warrenties that the company offers..

[xs1]

Understandable. Which is exactly why you tell them you want it returned working, or your money back, and that they just lost a potential future customer. Not making insane demands making yourself look like a jerk. " Well then, I want a new engine. " Great! And they want more of your money, but not if its going to effect the money in THEIR pockets. YOu have to face that you delt with a bad company, and find a new one, after your machine is returned working of course. But askign for upgraded all new parts, will make them less willing to cooperate. Think about it instead of thinking of what " you can get out of it "

Iv made my point, and have no need to continue this conversation. Therefore, do what you please, but dont expect much .

[xs1]

Where are you getting these prices?? The CPU prices look right.. except the 3.2 is an OEM and the 3.4 is retail..

the 9800 is 150ish right now... and the 9600 is about 70..

Please tell me it wasnt zipzoomfly..

www.newegg.com - where i get all my parts. [excluding ram ]

May be a litle more pricy, but if theres a problem, newegg is one

of the best on return policies and exchanges [ unless otherwise posted]

Just one thing.. did you plug the 12v connector back into the mobo? Also i am pretty sure that replacing the power supply voids any warrenties that the company offers..

absolutely.. I forgot all about that..

[Gregorama]

I spoke with the company prior to installing a new power supply. They said that we could try a new power supply, and if that didn't work, we can ship it back and have it returned fixed. We just have to pay for shipping it there.

[Swimmer]

sounds like you are shipping..

I know that newegg is the best.. I have used it alot.. just ask Lorne.. or CA3LE about the Pimputer.. or search for it in the archives... those were the good old days..