Windows 7: 3yr. old build Tuff cold starts - warm runs normal

Apparently it won't be too soon when the present build is retired or simply kept as a spare case for testing, previous versions, etc. Lately upon pressing the power button fans and lights and a quick shutoff.

Press the power button to see an immediate shutoff when first powering up for the day. After a 30 second wait inbetween startup attempts and after several times this old Asus M2N-E boards finally comes to life but may not detct the 3 expansion cards installed. nic card for internet access, sound card(XtremeGamer-Creative), and a 3rd tv tuner card.

The problem developed in the last few weeks and persists where a reseat of each card on one occasion saw 7 spring to life with new hardwares detected and all worked. Fresh battery on board, case cleaned, power supply still strong as Day #1!

Once fired up and running for a period of time the system will immediately start right up when shut off completely showing the general overlook is good for all the hardwares while the bios is suspect but not definite since a simply change with any setting and save + exit sees everything working again until the next day for the next cold start up.

The temps are well within reason there while a reseat and fresh application of thermal paste will be coming once the new build is up and running. I thought I would run this one by in case anyone else is or has been running into similar problems.

Just a hunch... have you checked your PSU for proper voltages? I've seen that happen when the PSU is failing/bad. You will get the initial fan/light surge, then nada. But after a few attempts, it would fire up. That being said, if it IS the power supply surging, it may have damaged the mobo in the process.
As I said, just a hunch, but I'd check it just to be sure.


Sorry, just reread 3rd paragraph....not sure what else would cause that, other than bios as you said, or dying mobo...??

At this point I can't rule the supply out completely especially if it is losing it's ability to regulate. Once the system comes up and runs for about 2 minutes and then shutoff when the expansion cards are not seen in the DM it will start right back up like nothing ever happened.

At first I thought it may be the board in particular since this was the second in the same model line when the first simply quite after a few days. When this one went in all was well for a good 3 yrs, considering what it has been put through. Of course it is also ironic that it is now showing signs of wear right when parts for the new build are being selected and ordered!

The cpu temps are far from ideal while still not too warm. After a full 16hr. run and running a full screen program even for several hours there hasn't been any indication of overheating. The new build will see one less HD there with the exact same make and model supply having just missed a good sale on the 850w version! ouch! power calculations require 587w with a 700w presently in use for the 5 satas, 5 case fans one being the 20cm top, and a larger 120mm fan on the Zalman hsf.

The Antec 900 will be replaced by the 900-2 model without the web cam dust collector tray on top! That will see another new Sata 6.0 host drive when the two storage drives and present host drive are moved into it. Hopefully this one will stay together long enough to see that going!

A contact also suspected a supply problem since he has one build running a Gigabyte board in it ruling out the particular Asus model. Once the new case is going I will be going over the entire board closely looking for any signs of a bad cap on the board.

With 3 out of 5 drives removed and sitting ilde I can then unplug each item and get in for a much closer look. It could turn out to be more then one thing. The bios shows 12.67v or slightly more when that was checked. But the initial draw during power on and post is where one concern would be if the supply is being pulled down a bit.

Its mocking you. Guess it didn't like the idea of being evicted from the 900 case.
But seriously, there's many posibilities. Since your planning a new build anyways, I'd start by narrowing it down by pulling everything but the video card, check connectors,caps, etc. and replace hardware a piece at a time til the culprit shows up.

All but 3 of the 5 HDs will remain in the case. The two 500gb models will likely be used for older versions While the two 1tb storage drives(WD Green Power) and a new host(WD Black edition) also a 1tb Sata 3.0 model will be moved.

Once those are moved into the new build the cpu will be reseated with a fresh app of thermal paste a bit overdue and break in time before setting the entire case aside. All connections plus an extensive board inspection will be easier simply having more room to work with.

In all this time this is only the second build to actually start running into any hardware problems if something is on the way out. This is why one old 98 build is still kicking around here somewhere.

Typically every case I put together runs trouble free hardware wise for years until someone upgrades into a new one. One old build kept seeing sudden restarts and false temp readings on the cpu making it look like the cpu had cooked. That turned out to be a persistent board problem where any fresh battery would suddenly see a normal running system.

This one is having power on issues when cold that curously is what some others have been seeing with other older builds. I wouldn't be surprized to find the wiring a bit lifted on the block of pins after this amount of time however being something minor. That was seen with one drive cable lately.

Slight Update:

When putting into sleep mode overnight for 2 days and then shutting down fully on the 3rd the system started right up immediately on the 4th. When shutting down on the 4th night however the problem returns on Day #5! Somewhat of a temporary solution only.