The Glade 4.0

Specs:
Intel i3-2120 3.3GHz
MB MSI H67A-G43
Kingston 2 x 2gb 240pin DDR3
Radeon HD 6850
SanDisk Ultra 120GB SSD
Antec NEO ECO 400w ATX 12V 2.3

Ugh, So I decided to buy another PC, but I’m having a problem. I turn the power on, and the front LED will light up briefly and the fans will move and then stop. It will continue to start and stop over and over if I leave the power on. At first, I forgot to plug the CPU in, but it’s still doing the same thing. I tried using the 500w PSU from my other more broken machine, but it’s no different. I didn’t bother doing the “it spreads the thermal paste on its skin” thing and just plopped the heat sink on as is with the thermal paste it comes with. Even if that’s not the most optimal way to go, I doubt that’s the problem, but I thought I’d throw that out there. I mostly just follow the directions in the manual, but I’m not super enthusiastic about doing it. I find the whole thing frustrating and stressful.

I checked over the manuals to look for something I might be missing, but I dunno. maybe the Mobo is bad? That's really annoying.

Also I took out the MB, and removed everything but the CPU and power to the switch. No luck though. I tried shorting the CMOS, but nothing happened.

I pulled all the RAM then put one stick into DIMM1 and the fans will stay running, but shouldn't there be lights on the MB when it's doing this stuff? I think I see where they are supposed to be, but I've never seen them come on. I plugged the monitor and KB in to see if I was getting to the BIOS. I didn't think so, since there are no lights, but what the heck. Nadda.

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"...the line dividing good and evil cuts through the heart of every human being. And who is willing to destroy a piece of his own heart?" -Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

Sounds like either a motherboard or a CPU issue.

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"Aaaah! Emotions are weird!" - Amdee
"... Mirrorshades prevent the forces of normalcy from realizing that one is crazed and possibly dangerous. They are the symbol of the sun-staring visionary, the biker, the rocker, the policeman, and similar outlaws." - Bruce Sterling, preface to Mirrorshades

I am such an idiot, I clicked this thread thinking it was related to some issue of Nintendo Power. *sigh*

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The thermal paste is to ensure good heat transfer between the processor and the heat sink. This is a concern for use over a period of time large enough for the computer to build up heat. It is not overly important for the boot cycle.

Now, because of the importance of adequate cooling, it is conceivable that manufacturers now include some sort of safety sensor that shuts down the machine or prevents it from starting in the event of poor thermal contact. I would not start troubleshooting under that assumption, however.

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Buckle your pants or they might fall down.

And even in that event, the thermal paste that comes pre-applied on even stock heatsinks isn't *that* bad. It's not high performance, by any means, but under sane operating conditions, it's perfectly reasonable -- otherwise they wouldn't put it on. So.. you're not operating in 110 degree room temperatures, are you?

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"Aaaah! Emotions are weird!" - Amdee
"... Mirrorshades prevent the forces of normalcy from realizing that one is crazed and possibly dangerous. They are the symbol of the sun-staring visionary, the biker, the rocker, the policeman, and similar outlaws." - Bruce Sterling, preface to Mirrorshades

Sounds like a short on the mobo to me. I would take everything apart and put it back together again. It sucks, but has worked for me in the past. Once, I had to do it twice. One popular definition of insanity does not apply to putting computers together.