PC died, input appreciated

[Noodleguitar]

Last night my mini desktop (Alienware Alpha R2) seems to have changed its mind about doing computer things. It kept shutting off (stopping any screen output and freezing) as I opened Rocket League, so I tried with another game and after a while the same thing happened. I then tried to download a monitor to look for overheating signs, but it froze again before I could do that. Currently, I can turn on the PC but it will do either of two things: 1) Gradually spin up the fans to what seems maximum RPM without any screen output, or 2) Normal fan RPM but also no screen output. In other words, I don't see anything on the screen at all, meaning it won't even let me get to the BIOS options.

Here's what I've tried:
1) Cleaned out the dust in and around the fans (there is 1 CPU fan and 1 GPU fan which you disconnect pretty easily) and let it cool down before trying again -- no change. There was not that much dust in there.
2) Reseated the RAM module -- no change.
3) According to Dell's troubleshooting, you can hold "D" while turning on the PC to run a test but this did not work. It might only be applicable to laptops.

I fear something might be broken quite badly (graphics/memory?) but without any output I can't figure out what's wrong. Does anybody happen to have ideas on how to narrow the problem down?

 

[Kenadian]

I had something similar happen back with an old Gigabyte Motherboard back when I was more open minded about AMD CPU's. One of my fans had stopped working properly and I wasn't getting any thermal alarms alerting me to the problem.

It was bad enough to warp the motherboard below the CPU which caused very similar behavior to yours.

I pray this isn't your problem but it's an easy thing to see. Just look at your Mobo from the rear and if there's any warping it will be both obvious and limited to one small area.

Assuming this is the case, a number of printed circuit traces on the board are cracked.

Having said that, my issue with a warped motherboard got gradually worse and didn't happen as immediately as yours.

The other thing I wonder is the inability to even post.

Can this possibly be a bad Power Supply?

If so that's an easy thing to switch out and replace.

 

[Ryno]

I'd put my money on:

A) Bad PSU
B) Bad mobo

 

[Noodleguitar]

Thanks for the tips. I took a look at the rear of the motherboard but didn't see any melting/bulging/cracking. I disconnected the CMOS battery for 10 min, which I've read may be a solution in some cases. This did seem to trigger something, when I started the PC it restarted itself a few times, but after that it ended up in the same situation as before.

I might take it to a repair shop on Monday but if the issue is the power supply I guess they probably won't have one laying around to test out.

 

[Ryno]

Thanks for the tips. I took a look at the rear of the motherboard but didn't see any melting/bulging/cracking. I disconnected the CMOS battery for 10 min, which I've read may be a solution in some cases. This did seem to trigger something, when I started the PC it restarted itself a few times, but after that it ended up in the same situation as before.

I might take it to a repair shop on Monday but if the issue is the power supply I guess they probably won't have one laying around to test out.

They really should, if they don't, you need to find a proper repair shop. PSU is painfully easy to switch, check and replace if it's the culprit.

 

[Noodleguitar]

They really should, if they don't, you need to find a proper repair shop. PSU is painfully easy to switch, check and replace if it's the culprit.

The thing is that this mini PC has an external PSU of 180 W, I don't know how rare they are or whether a universal PSU of the same specs would be compatible with it.

 

[Ryno]

Fair enough, I've never dealt with a "mini PC" but I would assume it would still used standardized connectors, wattage of PSU shouldn't matter as any basic PSU will be more than 180W.

Still, I would expect a respectable repair shop to be able to help.

 

[ElektroVodka]

Have you tried booting without the gpu?

 

[Noodleguitar]

Have you tried booting without the gpu?

I can't, this GPU is integrated in the motherboard. Closest I could do is remove the GPU fan and the heat sink but I'm not sure that would be a good idea.

 

[afroducks]

Do all the capacitors look good?

 

[ElektroVodka]

Do all the capacitors look good?

Pay close attention to the flux cap btw!

 

[Shilka]

It's probably the turbo flaps then.

 

[Kitlope]

I had a PSU go on me a few years ago... it was a bitch to diagnose because all sorts of weird issues hardware and software occurred. After some weeks with the problem getting worse I finally had enough and yarded out a PSU from the other PC... and the computer now worked fine. Nice to always have a second one around, even if in another PC.

My guess is a PSU as well (how old is it?) but it could be a bad HD too.

 

[little P]

Bummer! These kind of problems are a nightmare to diagnose eh. I would say PSU is the first port of call, had similar symptoms as this when my CX600 was dying, replaced it with an EVGA Gold PSU and no problems since.

Failing that, to save some time I would drop it off at a repair shop, just make sure to delete your internet history first, I know what you're like

 

[Noodleguitar]

Do all the capacitors look good?

I'm not an expert on motherboard anomalies but yes, I didn't see any funny looking capacitors.

I had a PSU go on me a few years ago... it was a bitch to diagnose because all sorts of weird issues hardware and software occurred. After some weeks with the problem getting worse I finally had enough and yarded out a PSU from the other PC... and the computer now worked fine. Nice to always have a second one around, even if in another PC.

My guess is a PSU as well (how old is it?) but it could be a bad HD too.

The PC and power supply are 2 years old.

 

[little P]

Just for some context mate, my CX600 was less than 2 years old when it failed on me. I would definitely try a new PSU first, anything else get it looked at by a shop.

 

[SavreticD]

Are you sure your GPU is integrated?
Some models of Alpha have i7s with integrated and separate GPU too
Also I don't know what is happening if you try to boot without RAM because if its bad reseating will not help but according to your inputs PSU is suspect but it can be other things too,crap

 

[Noodleguitar]

Are you sure your GPU is integrated?
Some models of Alpha have i7s with integrated and separate GPU too
Also I don't know what is happening if you try to boot without RAM because if its bad reseating will not help but according to your inputs PSU is suspect but it can be other things too,crap

I don't think it's the same as your standard integrated motherboard graphics, but there is no separate GPU card that sticks into a slot somewhere.

 

[Kenadian]

If you run Prime95 won't it tell you where the failure/s are?

 

[Noodleguitar]

If you run Prime95 won't it tell you where the failure/s are?

It might, but I can't get to the BIOS so I doubt that's possible.