PC runs but turns off after a couple of seconds...

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xjoesullix

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i have a 3.4ghz pentium 4 prescott processor, 400w psu, elitegroup 865pe-a7 mobo, 1gb ddr400 ram, 320gb seagate barracuda, sony dvd rw drive, nvidia gforce 256mb graphics.

i have built this computer from scratch.

when it powers up all lights come on but when the computer is connected to a screen all black and white lines go across the screen and you can faintly see the startup screen and then it shuts down. does anyone know what is causing this problem to occur

Joe
 
test the PSU.

Also test your RAM with memtest 86+. You PSU seems a bit undersized.
 
no i cant get into bios, when i get the visuals you can faintly see the startup and then it turns off, it seems that the longer i leave it off for, the longer it can stay on.
 
400W is not undersized, I've run a P4 2.4ghz on a 865, with many more drives and fans as this on a 350W PSU.

Then again, I'm running a really good PSU. Someone here mentioned that Enlight made crap PSUs, I gotta say you have to be joking. That PSU weighed a ton, and its insides look very well made, maybe they slacked off on more recent versions....


Back to the problem: possible overheating? Do you need to wait awhile before the computer will start up again? Black and white lines may be normal, especially if you're using a CRT monitor.

And are you powering this computer for the first time, or is this a recent problem?

We'll also need details on that graphics card, 256mb doesn't say much...
 
From what you just said, I'm betting your computer is overheating.

Try letting your computer cool off for awhile, and then get into BIOS and look for your CPU temp. Let it run until it shuts off again, and tell us the highest reading you got.
 
Novatech GeForce 6200 256MB 8xAGP DVI/TVO Graphics Card, if i leave it a while say 1 hour it will turn on again but it turns off after about 10 secs and the white and black lines look like this...
(url codes for pictures)
http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g45/xdrumnbassx/_MG_3264.gif

and then i get like red blocks
http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g45/xdrumnbassx/_MG_3262.gif

and i used to run this pc when i was building it to make sure it was all okay and it was. i could go into bios and everything, but now it does this and turns off after 10 seconds so it could be a mixture of the graphics and power or something else?
 
Also, memory SDRAM can cause things like a quick turnoff...I had this happen with my Dells, so look at that area as well.

I have one used Nvidia card give me problems but it's an old 16MB one! Easy to replace. It caused flashing in GTA3 between dark and light and faint horizontal lines on any blocks of text (same size, left to right).. Could be a faulty card when this happens because I got the same result in several AGP slots
 
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