2 blown mobos in 6 months - any advice please guru's?

brentxlee · 18 Dec 2012

Hey guys, hope some of you can help me...

First my specs:
I5 2500k
Msi z77a-g43
Msi twin frozr 3 gtx570
Asus xonar dgx
2 x 4gb corsair vengeance 1600mhz cl9 ram
1 x ocz 60gb ssd
2 x 500gb Samsung hdd
Cooler master rs700-pcaae3 psu
Windows 7 ultimate 64bit

This morning I went to turn only pc, it started up for about 3 seconds with a message on the screen: "operating system missing..." Then it reset, over and over and over again. It starts up for less than a second, the fans just start to spin up and it resets, and repeats this pattern indefinitely.

Normally I wouldn't know where to start, except this is the second time it has happened to me. About 5 months ago I had the same problem, the mobo I had the was the msi p67a-?? ( can't remember exactly which one it was, but it preceded the one I have now, it was the same except it was p67 chipset) anyway as I didn't have any spare parts at home, I took it to my local pc store and they helped me by testing all the components ( I did test the psu myself, using the paper clip method and a dmm) and it turned out to be the mobo. They sent it for replacement under warranty, but I couldn't wait so I purchased the newer z77 model.

Fast forward to this morning, and it's happening again!!! I mean, I've got guild wars to play! Psu seems to be working after paperclip test.

My question to you guys is, is this normal?? 2 motherboards in less than 6 months? Could my psu somehow be blowing my motherboards? Is that possible? I'm probably going to have to replace the mobo, should I just replace the psu same time? Has anyone else had a problem like this, and have a solution to offer?

Thanks guys, any help or advice will be greatly appreciated.

Ps. No overclocking whatsoever

Indianatone · 18 Dec 2012

Hi brentxlee
My question to you guys is, is this normal?? No not normal unless you are thrashing the daylights out of the unit.
2 motherboards in less than 6 months?
Could my psu somehow be blowing my motherboards? Is that possible? Yes it is possible, do you see any burn marks anywhere, sometimes MOSFETS blow up near the CPU.
I'm probably going to have to replace the mobo, should I just replace the psu same time? Has anyone else had a problem like this, and have a solution to offer?
If it were me I would replace the power supply just in case it has a weird problem, you could probably use it in an older system where it would not get pushed so hard. Get a more powerful one say 750W. I would also consider another vendor for a motherboard just for peace of mind. Asus and Gigabyte are very highly rated. It is possible that the particular configuration you have is not as reliable as it should be.
Took a look at the PSU and MB on New Egg's reviews and they both have a fairly high failure rate.
I use Enermax but Corsair and Silverstone power supplies are well recommended. Time to choose different suppliers for your replacements. You could RMA them both as I assume they are both still under warranty?

gazz9496 · 19 Dec 2012

sack that post lol, didn't see the psu listed xd.

pscowboy · 19 Dec 2012

Paper clip test? Are you kidding?
That just tells you that the fan is working and it's not burned out.

You don't know how the 5v & 12v rails are outputting.

Assuming you're grounding the m/b's properly upon install, the psu pretty much is the culprit.

Get yourself a quality, 750w power supply like Indianatone mentioned, then try another mobo.

A remote possibility is that you may have "dirty" electric power (surges, brownouts, very brief outages).
Get yourself a UPS to guard against this. Always a good idea to have anyway.

Solarstarshines · 19 Dec 2012

To be Honest I have had a MSI GD-80 MB blow up on me so you are not alone
they are also limited in voltage and use DR Mos

Basicly it probably isn't the PSU the Board is just crap

I RMA'ed my first board got another the second time around the board seems fine but im reluctant to Overclock on it due to the last time my nephew was gaming and it fried on him

I would just chalk it up to bad boards I actually am lying this is my Third board i remember first getting it and it was DOA and got it replaced it worked and fried and now this is the third so pretty much the board

Choose another Brand Asrock Asus ,I went with Asus and they are pretty damn sweet

I still have the MSi but will use as a back up and all because i don't think those boards can handle power flow well

brentxlee · 19 Dec 2012

Thanks for the replies guys, this is just frustrating and it's getting expensive... Tbh, the psu was the only thing I sort of skimped on, it was a fair amount cheaper than other 700w psu's. I do heavy gaming, often for many hours in a session. I've spotted what looks like a good board from asrock, tons of features and a good price? And I think I'm going to buy a new psu anyway to be safe.
My brother just told me there was a bit of an electrical storm last night, but my pc was off. Do psu's have have any sort of protection built into them?

King Arthur · 19 Dec 2012

With regards to PSUs, general consensus is to and grab the best quality PSU you can reasonably afford because a crappy PSU will end up costing you in the long run (as it has presumably done in this case).

I personally use Corsair PSUs and I've also heard Antec makes awesome PSUs as well, so those two brands would be my personal suggestions.

brentxlee · 19 Dec 2012

Thanks for all the advice guys... *sigh* it's just my luck I guess... You know the "bad luck Brian" meme? Well about 10 years ago my mates used to call me "bad luck Brent"... That should be my school photo in that meme!! Well I've decided to bite the bullet and buy a new psu (cooler master gx750 80+, got some good reviews) and mobo (asrock z77 extreme) both seem to have got great reviews and are in my price range. Can't thank you guys enough for replying.

Mark Phelps · 19 Dec 2012

I only have had experience with one MSI board -- and it has been working fine for over three years now.

But, I did have a quality ASUS board go out on me -- and from my testing (albeit, limited) it appeared to be the PSU. I got a new PSU, connected that to the mobo, but the damage had been done.

Been using this new PSU in the replacement system for 9 months now without problems.

So yes, it can be the PSU.

noworries · 19 Dec 2012

PSU issue for sure, although I have seen some boards blow as a result of the onboard screws being tightened too tight..