Acer Aspire freezes on the "Acer" logo at startup

Hello!

When I booted my desktop computer, it freezed at the "Acer" logo, at startup. I tried to go in Safe Mode but it doesn't respond to any command. I pressed Delete, F12, F2 and all the Fs and there's no difference. Then, i thought it was because of the dust inside. I cleaned it, restarted it and nothing changes. I unplugged the Hard Drive with the hope ill get in the BIOS, but nothing changed. Any help?

P.S. My computer is an Acer Aspire AST671-EP820A.

Try removing the RAM. Clean all the contacts with a soft pencil eraser and blow out the slots with a can of compressed air. Then try to start the PC with just one of the sticks, if that fails then try with another stick.

Have you tried booting from the OS disc?

If Mark's suggestion has no result for you, you can try two other ideas:
1) Disconnect everything from the motherboard except the speaker and take out the RAM sticks - you should hear an error code which you can look up on the Acer website. No beeps and the board may be dead.
2) reset the BIOS to default by shorting out the appropriate pins on the motherboard. You will need to look at the manual for the machine or motherboard to find which pins these are and how to do it. As a clue the pins are usually near the CMOS battery and there are 3 of them - there will be a jumper in place so it needs to be removed and, with the mains supply disconnected, placed on the other 'pair' for a count of 20 seconds. Restart the machine and go into the BIOS and reset as necessary.

Thanks a lot for your fast replies. I tried Mark's solutions but nothing worked. For Albert, i disconnected everything form the motherboard and heard a continuous "beep" sound. So this doesn't mean that the motherboard is dead. I actually lost the manual of the motherboard of this computer and I don't want to destroy it. If someone founds a manual on the internet of the motherboard for me, its very appreciated. So now what I do? On the Acer website, they don't seem to offer support for this kind of error. I'm awaiting your replies, people. Thanks.

You tried my suggestion but you didn't answer my question. Have you tried booting from the Windows disc, or do you not have one? The continous beep with everything disconnected is an encouraging sign that the motherboard is not dead. Try booting with the hard drive disconnect but with the RAM in, tell us what happens.

I have had no luck trying to find what the motherboard is in this PC, have a good look inside the case and see if there are any numbers/letters on the motherboard and put them in your next post.

Sorry, i tried your suggestion and yeah, no luck: tried to boot from the Windows disc and it still stuck at the Acer screen. I disconnected the HD and booted with the RAM in, without any change. I'll check tomorrow for any mark of the motherboard's name.

The only other suggestion I have is to flash the Bios which may have been corrupted. This would explain the boot up problem, a bad Bios would results in a boot failure. You would need to identify the motherboard first in order to obtain the correct Bios version before doing this.

After that I think you have to assume that the motherboard or the CPU has developed a fault.

I suggested resetting the BIOS in post #3 but i don't think he followed it through. I would always to that before flashing the BIOS just in case!

Just had a thought - sometimes you can get exactly the same effect with either a bad keyboard or the mouse/keyboard connected to the wrong sockets. Worth checking before you do anything drastic with it....

Good point Albert, I was assuming from the test done in post 4, with everything diconnected from the motherboard, that would have included the mouse and keyboard, but may be not.

I'm really sorry but looks like i have no luck finding an manual... Maby someone could help me out to find it... The motherboard's name is Acer N1996. Thanks alot !!!

I could not find it either, but what I did find (although this could be wrong) is that the N1996 is some kind of tests that the board has passed which allows it to be sold in Australia. Something to do with electro magnetic interference. So it seems likely that this is not the ID number for the board which could explain why it is not possible to find.

Sorry, Mark, you're right! In little character, it says "Micro-Star MS-7326". Is it part of MSI? Because I went on their site and they only have MS-7067...

I think the problem here is that the motherboard was made specifcally for Acer and not sold commercially. All you will be able to find is the drivers on the Acer site.

What information were you hoping to find in the motherboard manual?

I was trying to do the step # 2...

OK, have you looked for these pins next to the battery. A lot of boards have them. this picture will give some idea of what to look for. There will normally be some writing on the board with CCMOS or CLEAR next to it. Best to search with a magnifying glass. This picture will give you a clue of what to look for. A plastic plug with an uncovered pin next to it.

Ok so I found it... Now what I do is take out the jumper and place it on the other pair for 20 sec (the computer off, unplugged) then put it back, and turn on. Right?

Correct!
I also found the MSI Board and wondered why it was inside an Acer machine - may have been fitted as a repair at some stage perhaps? Anyway, you can download the drivers from the MSI site for the board.

Umm, can you give me the link on the MSI site please? I cannot find it.
Ok guys, so look what I did: found the jumper, put it on the other pair, wait for 20 sec, put on the original pair, turn PC on, and .... no difference (still stuck at acer screen). Then I took out the cmon battery, waited about 3 mins, then put it back, no difference (stuck at acer screen). The frustrating thing is that it doesn't even let me go into BIOS, I keep pressing DEL and F12, and nothing happens. If anyone of you can help me further, its much appreciated. Thanks

Start here
http://uk.msi.com/service/download/