PC Problem

[kevx92874]

Hello all was hoping maybe someone could tell me what's wrong without me having to drop more money into my pc and not getting it right. first off here are my specs:
ASUS A7V600-X motherboard
AMD Sempron 2800+ CPU
Maxtor 40GB HD
GeForce MX 4000 graphics card AGP
HP DVD RW
Floppy drive
512 Memory
Powersupply

When I first built the machine the case I got had a 300watt PS with it but I didnt use it because my MOBO said it needed at least 350 watts so I got a 450 watt (Echo Star)PS well after about a year that burned out so I got a 480 watt one that just says '480w 20/40 pin High Quality switching Power supply' on the box which is blue and has some funny little character on it. Well I had that for about a year and my computer died this past Monday night the 16th of April. I went and ordered a generic 500w PS thinking that was the cause but when I hooked it up it ran for about 5 minutes and then shut down on me. If I wait 10 -15 minutes then it will star up and run for 5 minutes and then shut down on me again. I took the pc apart and cleaned it out, the CPU and chassis fans are still working but I did notice that my heat sink gets pretty warm. Does this mean that my procesor is dying and I need a new one or could it be something else? Thanks for any input or help

 

[halo71]

Sounds to me like it is overheating and shutting down. I would remove the heatsink, clean and reapply thermal paste.

 

[kevx92874]

Thanx for a quick response I'll try that, have to go get thermal paste first but thats ok, but also it's now getting power to the MOBO (little green light on MOBO is lit) but only powering up for a few seconds before shutting off (not even long enough to show logo screen) hope I didn't burn th CPU out.

 

[raybay]

You may have a hardware problem. It could be anywhere. CPU Fan, audio card, modem, power switch, cable or wire shorting against side of case, bad EIDE cable... or still a bad power supply.
However, the first suspect would be a memory module gone bad, followed by a defective cpu fan. It was turning on just long enough for it to be a heat sink or thermal paste issue... but now I would guess memory, cpu fan, hard drive,or power supply based upon those signs and symptoms. Do not discount the Maxtor hard drive, as those 40 GB units have high failure rates.
Rarely is it the CPU, but of course you can ruin the CPU trying to discover what the problem is.
If you have a pet, look for hair and dust in the heat sink, as well.
Luckily CPU fans are inexpensive for that CPU... $12 to $25, depending on how fancy you want it.

 

[raybay]

I neglected to mention that these symptoms can sometimes be caused by a failed video graphics card... if a component on the card burns out.

 

[kevx92874]

Wireless card

Another quick question I also have a belkin wireless g+ card could this be the culprit, It slipped my mind when I first posted and I overlooked it seeing as it was the newest piece of hardware(only about 6 months old)