Computer does not have full power

GLC

Posts: 6   +0
all of a sudden my computer did not kick on and recorde a tv show. i tried to start it and it seemed not to have enough power. fans were tuning slow nothing showing up on monitor. I turned it off and unplugged the two dvd recorders. computer started i plug one back in and it started. thought the one dvd player was bad, but i put it in resume and the next time it was to turn on it did not. i tried to turn it on and the same thing happend run slowly. turned it off and the when i turned it on it started. But it happened agian the next time i tried to turn it on. please help i am new to buildilng computers this was my first. it is about 5 years old and never had a problem thank you for your help Also today it has started when i try to start it it runs real slow for a few seconds and then shuts off. wait a few seconds try again and it may run. then all of a sudden it will quit.
 
What are the components and power supply? Over time PSU's lose some ability to output what they did new. They can also just die. Unplugging DVD drives isn't going to give you very much additional power because they only use a couple watts on startup.
 
It would be useful to know your hardware configuration, as well as installed software, and your internet connection.
 
I asked him for his components and PSU. His description of what is happening seems like the problems are happening well before the OS begins to load, so software isn't likely to be the problem. What does his internet connection have to do with this?
 
Thank You SNGX1275

My power supply is a ocz 600w cpu - amd athlon 64 x2 dual-core graphics card- geforce 8600 gt motherboard- asus m2n-sli deluxe win-tv pvr media center kit
os- windows media center 2005 hope this helps. as i said this was my first build and it was 5 or 6 years ago. i have no experience trouble shooting problems. Would like to fix the computer if i can with help. thank you for helping me Glc Also today it has started when i try to start it it runs real slow for a few seconds and then shuts off. wait a few seconds try again and it may run. then all of a sudden it will quit.
 
That should be a sufficient PSU, but like I said, they don't last forever and they do degrade over time.

What do you mean by 'runs real slow' is this during or after Windows loads or is this prior to that?

Try taking out your PCI tuner card and pulling the power off both your optical drives. Additionally remove the power from any non boot HD you have connected. If it boots fine with only the OS HD connected I think that is pretty close to confirming a bad PSU.
 
SNGX1275

I meant very little noise and the fans turn slow and make little noise everything in the case just seems like not enough power Glc
 
SNGX1275

i just did as you advised and took out the PCI tuner card and pulled power off of both dvd drives and a hard drive that did not have the os on it. the first time i pushed the power button it turned on. I turned it off and tried it again and it seemed to start but when i took my finger off the start button it quit. Tried it about 2or 3 more times with same results then on the 4th try it began to run and load the os. GLC
 
I'd bet a few dollars that its your PSU. If at all possible, borrow one from someone, I think anything above 400W for a quality PSU should work.

The thing with PSUs is you really can't skimp on them, you need to buy a good one. There are a handful of people here that are really knowledgable on them, hopefully they'll see this thread and help recommend you one.
 
It sounds like its the PSU to me.

If possible though, I would get into BIOS and check the CPU temperature first though. Some of what your saying would suggest to me that it could be thermally throttling due to excessive heat build up.

However, that scenario would not explain why the fans are turning slowly. It should in fact be quite the opposite as the computer fights to bring the temperatures under safe parameters.

So with that in mind, I'm quite confident your problem is a faulty PSU. For its replacement, an item ~450w would be quite suitable. Brands such as Corsair (AX/VX/TX/GS series), Antec (Truepower or HCG), Enermax, and Seasonic are all very good brands that will give you a good, long lasting service.
 
Thank You Leeky

thank you for your suggestions having a hard time trying to pick a psu. Will the psu's sold today work with my older computer? Thanks again glc
 
thank you for your suggestions having a hard time trying to pick a psu. Will the psu's sold today work with my older computer? Thanks again glc

Hey GLC, I'm with the others in thinking that it's likely just a PSU issue and replacing it will hopefully solve your problem.

Regarding a purchase the vendors listed by Leeky are all solid with overall good reputations and we can list you a few recommendations if you like (online). And from the looks of it your motherboard is a 24pin which is perfect for any modern day power supply, so no worries.
 
Whatever... When you get it worked out, please come back and tell us what worked to get you back to full operation. We have a LOT of clients with the 600 Watt OCZ power supply... and we see no problems... actual OCZ measured output usually exceeds what OCZ conservatively posts...
But you could have one that is bad... since the change was sudden... We suspect the problem could be elsewhere. Age and components... AMD & GeForce on an "old" system. We have seen plenty of problems with the GeForce setups as they age.
Help us satisfy our "techness" by posting us an update.
 
Thanks To All

I just received a new power supply and installed it a Corsair tx 650 and everything is back working as before. Thank you for all the suggestions i really appreciated them. sorry it took so long to post back, but father in law was operated on and it took alot of time. Thank you GLC
 
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