Who can point me to a good PSU or PSU brand that isnt Corsair

mdgrim

mdgrim

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***EDIT*** The PSU does not seem to be the issue. ***EDIT***


So for my custom gaming rig I purchased a CORSAIR Enthusiast Series 650Watt PSU. The first one I received was leaking electricity throughout my computer case and had a dead fan... The second on I received seemed to work fine. Was nearing the finish of windows 7 installation when it mentioned the PC needed to be restarted to continue.

The only thing is that my gaming rig never did restart. I went up to it and pressed the power button only to receive a split second burst of activity before dying once again. I have no proof for sure that the PSU is the culprit, but it seems to be the only logical answer. I have read that mobo's can cause similar issues but after my encounter with the first PSU I'm assuming that this one is also the culprit.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128502 is the motherboard I have (don't plan on overclocking)

What do you guys think? Am I misjudging the culprit because I had a bad experience with a duplicate item?

On a side note, this is one of the PSU's I was looking at as a replacement. There aren't many reviews but only one of them had a one egg rating:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371049


It's been almost a month since I received my original parts for this gaming rig (also my 1st build) and my patience is starting to wear quite thin :cursing:
 
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My wife has that exact PSU, and it's been running problem-free for 3 years now. Sorry you're having bad luck with yours.

If you feel like spending about $40 more, The SeaSonic X650 PSU is the gold standard for 650-watt units. Just don't freak out when the fan doesn't spin up when you turn it on for the first time... it's supposed to do that.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151088

I don't usually suggest this one, but the PC power and cooling Silencer Mk II 650-watt PSU also fits your criterion.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817703026

The Seasonic unit is better, though... by a lot.
 
Seasonic is hands down the best PSU manufacturer.

You can try the paper clip trick to see if the power supply can turn on. If it can, then look into the motherboard and possibly the memory.

mad pistol said:
My wife has that exact PSU, and it's been running problem-free for 3 years now. Sorry you're having bad luck with yours.

If you feel like spending about $40 more, The SeaSonic X650 PSU is the gold standard for 650-watt units. Just don't freak out when the fan doesn't spin up when you turn it on for the first time... it's supposed to do that.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151088

I don't usually suggest this one, but the PC power and cooling Silencer Mk II 650-watt PSU also fits your criterion.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817703026

The Seasonic unit is better, though... by a lot.
Click to expand...

I can vouch for the X-650. I love mine. The fan does kick on for like a second when booting up, but it shuts down right after.

That Silencer Mk II is a rebranded OCZ unit = avoid since OCZ has really gone downhill in everything. I would recommend the Antec unit over that Mk II.
 
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Ph?bus said:
That Silencer Mk II is a rebranded OCZ unit = avoid since OCZ has really gone downhill in everything. I would recommend the Antec unit over that Mk II.
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I was trying to stay within a price constraint. The PCP&C unit fits that bill, while the X650 is way outside of it. There is no doubt that the X650 is the better PSU, though.
 
Ph?bus said:
Seasonic is hands down the best PSU manufacturer.

You can try the paper clip trick to see if the power supply can turn on. If it can, then look into the motherboard and possibly the memory.



I can vouch for the X-650. I love mine. The fan does kick on for like a second when booting up, but it shuts down right after.

That Silencer Mk II is a rebranded OCZ unit = avoid since OCZ has really gone downhill in everything. I would recommend the Antec unit over that Mk II.
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eh, I like superflower better. SS is ok, but nothing special anymore.

mad pistol said:
I was trying to stay within a price constraint. The PCP&C unit fits that bill, while the X650 is way outside of it. There is no doubt that the X650 is the better PSU, though.
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the MkII units are decent, but not great. They won't die in fire, but they are usually not the best option.
 
You won't need anything more than 650W unless you plan to run dual video cards (SLI or CrossFire).

Silverstone, Seasonic, and Corsair are your best choices for power supplies.

Here are 3 power supplies, 650W each, one from each brand.
SILVERSTONE ELEMENT ST65EF 650W
CORSAIR Professional Series HX650 650W
SeaSonic X Series X650 Gold 650W

I've never found that the Enthusiast Series from Corsair as reliable as their other ones. That doesn't mean their more reliable series' don't have their defective units. There probably won't ever be a time that we can get our computer parts, or anything electronic for that matter, to us safely and securely every single time. There can be problems with the packing, shipping, or even the installation that cause the product to go bad before you even get to use it, or cause it to die soon after starting to use it. This goes for all brands.
 
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well.... It seems I misjudged the new PSU. I did the paperclip trick and the fan started spinning no problem. Now the only thing I can think is that its a problem with the motherboard.

***edit*** Is there anyway I can test to see if the motherboard or CPU is the culprit? I don't think I can use this pc for any tests as it is ancient (has like 350w psu) and I'm not comfortable messing with the only one that is working properly.
 
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mdgrim said:
well.... It seems I misjudged the new PSU. I did the paperclip trick and the fan started spinning no problem. Now the only thing I can think is that its a problem with the motherboard.
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Could be the motherboard or possibly a grounding issue. Check the standoffs and case as well.
 
arcadesdude said:
Could be the motherboard or possibly a grounding issue. Check the standoffs and case as well.
Click to expand...

This. Make sure there is a standoff for every screw in the motherboard. It could cause a short, which is no bueno.
 
yeah those are there. That was the 1st thing I did before installing the mobo into the case, even had instructions on which went where for my board. Plus, the guy who discovered that the 1st PSU was bad had the PC running for a good 2 hours, installing drivers and such before sending it back to me.

I thought maybe the hard drive might be the issue because it had some pretty scary one egg reviews so i unplugged that and checked if the pc would turn on but still nothing, instant shutdown
 
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check the mobo for bad capacitors... leaking and swollen capacitors will cause a situation like you have now.


Leaking_capacitors.jpg


2011-06-21_004115_bad_caps.jpg
 
Silent_Predator said:
check the mobo for bad capacitors... leaking and swollen capacitors will cause a situation like you have now.
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....

Yeah it sounds like a mobo problem but if you don't find any bad capacitors you might have the cpu reaching the max temperature and shutting down. Reapply the thermal compound and ensure the heatsink is secure and cpu fan plugged in.

If still no go, try another motherboard.

Also you can check if your case is the problem (grounding issue other than standoffs) by hooking up the main parts (mobo, ram, cpu, heatsinkfan, psu, vid card) outside of the case to rule out a shorting issue.

AAAAnnnnd, one last thing where I've seen this issue (power on, then insta-off) in computers is a fried modem. Yeah old school dial-up modem, shorted out by lightning, can cause the computer to start up and instantly power down. Be sure to take out any extra pci cards and unplug all peripherals except for the bare bones needed here to debug this issue.
 
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no bad capacitors, looked at those first thing when I opened it up. the cpu heat sink fan is in place and securely locked in, and I know it had thermal paste on the bottom on it. The only thing I can think of as being wrong with the cpu is maybe it took some damage when I put the locking plate over it and locked it into position. The locking bolt was VERY tight and made some pretty nasty crunching sounds, even though I was going slow with putting it down. But still from what I read is that if the pins on the cpu/mobo get bent then it probably wont work from the start. Also, i know the cpu fan is plugged in correctly because in that split second where power goes into the components it spins up with the case and psu fans. I know I have some liquid silver compound lying around here somewhere, however idk if it is of high enough quality


arcadesdude said:
AAAAnnnnd, one last thing where I've seen this issue (power on, then insta-off) in computers is a fried modem.
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the only external part i had attached to my pc earlier was the power cord and still nothing. The internal components consist of the mobo, 2 RAM sticks, hard drive, cd drive, graphics card,cpu/hsf, and the psu
 
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Have you tried a different PSU as well? That would eliminate that it is the PSU... I had mine die a week ago and I tried everything until I tried a different PSU which solved what was wrong.

Thermaltake, Antec, Enermax, SeaSonic, SilverStone... I've all heard great reviews with all of these brands. I've used all but SeaSonic and I never had a problem except when my ThermalTake died but its under warranty so I couldn't be happier.
 
I recently built my Father a new rig. It wouldn't post, but it would just sit there. Found out that the RAM wasn't properly seated. So you could make sure the RAM is seated.

Did you make sure all the connections were properly seated as well? The 4-pin and 24-pin that powers the motherboard for example.

I do know that some motherboards aren't suppose to use, or don't like to have washers when you secure them to the standoffs. It can cause a short.

Hope you get this figured out man!
 
mdgrim said:
pulled out RAM and put it back in, still nothing
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Did you check all the power connections? As well as seeing if you have little washers on the screws that hold the motherboard to the standoffs.

Next thing I'd do is take off your heat sink. Make sure you have all the little pins to your CPU don't put the heat sink on AS tight this time. If you don't have anymore Artic Silver 5 or w/e you used as thermal paste be careful.

Does it post at all? Do you see anything at all on your monitor when it is on? How long before it shuts down?
 
mdgrim said:
pulled out RAM and put it back in, still nothing
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Unplug both the cd-drive and hard drive power and data cables.

Take out both sticks of ram and see if it beeps. If it does the cpu is probably good. Take out the video card too and see if it beeps (post error).

If no beeps, take out and reseat the cpu -- inspect the pins for bentness or other abnormalities. Ensure the thermal paste has good contact and is spread evenly in a thin but covering layer on both cpu and heatsink.

A trick to tell if the cpu is working is to take off the heatsink and use the back of your fingernail to feel if it heats up. VERY CAREFUL here as you don't want to damage your hand and you could get burnt. You would just tap it and very carefully feel if it heats up. But it can burn you if youre not careful. It can also burn the cpu...so I wouldn't leave it on more than a few seconds without cooling. Most cpus have an autoshut off if the temperature gets too hot. If you feel it heating up, that means the cpu is probably good.

To see if it is the ram (assuming one or both sticks are good), reinsert one stick of ram at a time. If you get the same results, try it with just the other stick.

Also did you check to ensure you had the extra 4 pin power connectors connected to the motherboard as Celtic mentioned?

After all that, try another motherboard or RMA the one you got.
 
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