Member Avatar for Laoting

As stated in the title, when switching on my desktop, the usual thing that happens is that the fan for the graphics card(Nvidia Geforce PX8800GT 512MB) to turn for a while before booting normally. Occasionally the fan for the graphics card just starts spinning and the whole comp does not boot up at all.

I am thinking could it be that the power supply is not sufficient for the card? It is a 315W power supply. I bought this desktop from NEC and it is still under warranty. Should I get the them to change the power supply?

Windows 7 was just recently installed on the system but I think it is not with the OS. There were such problem before even in Windows XP. The motherboard is Intel G33 chipset with a core 2 duo E8400(3GHz, 6MB, 1333FSB).

Hope to get some advice on this. Thanks.

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Dani AI

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The behaviour described by (fan spins briefly or spins and the system does not continue to boot) most often narrows the fault to one of three hardware areas: power delivery (the PSU and its cables), the graphics card itself, or the motherboard/POST stage. was right to suggest trying another PSU as a quick isolating test — power issues are a common and easily-verified cause.

A concise, practical troubleshooting checklist:

  • Try a known-good PSU first (or ask the service centre to swap one in). If the problem disappears the original PSU or its cables are the likely culprit.
  • Test with the system in a minimal configuration: one RAM stick, CPU, and onboard video if available. This shows whether the GPU is preventing POST.
  • Check that any auxiliary PCIe power leads are the correct cables from the PSU and fully seated; avoid using cheap molex-to-PCIe adapters.
  • Inspect the PSU and motherboard for bulging/leaking capacitors or burn marks; these are visible signs of failure.
  • If capable, have the shop measure the +12V rail under load with a multimeter during startup to look for sagging voltages (professionals should perform this if the unit is under warranty).
  • Keep a record of any POST/beep codes and the service centre’s test results so you can request targeted replacement under warranty if needed.

If the machine is still in warranty and already with the vendor, ask them to document a PSU-substitution test and to try the card in another working system before replacing parts. For background on how PSUs and POST relate to boot failures see Computer power supply and Power-on self-test.

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Member Avatar for abu taher

one thing you can hair a power supply from anybody. and then check. now 450w power supply is use available for pc. u can check and then plz tell what happen.

Member Avatar for Laoting

The desktop had just been sent for servicing, so will need to wait for them to inform me again. I shall update you guys again on the result.. Hope the problem can be fixed.

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