Upgrade not working

I upgraded my computer from old Pentium D with an ASUS P5LD2 to a new MSI H55-G43 with a Core i3 530 and unfortunately, I seem to be struggling a lot to get it to work. When I turn it on, I can see all the components lighting up and turning on (hard drives, optical drive, what not) however, nothing comes up on the display.

I've tried both a discrete GeForce GT 220 (known working on any other PC) as well as the integrated video of the i3 and no dice. Although it seems to power up just fine and stay on for about 15 seconds, it then powers off, and powers back on 5 seconds later. It repeats this cycle infinitely. I have already done an RMA for the motherboard and gotten a new one back but still, no dice. I have tried another power supply (known working with 12V Rail) and no dice either. I have tried minimal setup with nothing but RAM (1 stick at a time in DIMM 1) and again, nothing.

I'm at my wits end because I just want a simple upgrade and this stupid equipment is making it near impossible. I've checked, double checked, triple checked the cabling, the RAM is compatible, I'm just wondering if I'm missing anything. Is there something I could have not done or something I don't know about the Core i series that requires me to do something extra before I chuck all this equipment in the garbage can?

what size power-supply are you running..
and what components are running..

sounds like an overload, or trip switch on the PSU

The listed 550W in my specs. But how strong does it need to be? It's an i3 for God's sake and I'm even trying the integrated graphics so it shouldn't be consuming that much power at all. (Forgive me if I sound angry but it's been two weeks since I've started this upgrade process and so far I'm $375 in the hole so it's kind of hard not to be.)

I noticed that others have run i5s and i7s on the same power supply that I have. Additionally, I used to run a Pentium D 820 with an Nvidia GeForce 7950 GT and those waste far more power than what I run now so I find it hard to believe that now with more efficient and less power hungry components, it would give out like that. I might just give up the ghost and get a refund for this motherboard and buy another one. Any suggestions? (Try to keep it at $120 tops)

Hard to know what to suggest. Do you have the 8 pin +12V CPU connector plugged in?

You could go even more minimal: disconnect the HD and the front panel connectors. There's a power switch on your motherboard.

Another approach is to take the motherboard out of the case, and try it there. (Insulating surface, like a piece of cardboard.) I've never managed to find an inappropriate path to ground off an ATX motherboard, but it has been known to happen.

Good luck.

With the shorting out, I've had that happen to me once, when I forgot to put in the little gold plated screws to elevate the motherboard from the surface of the case. But I did try those suggestions you provided me and none did it. As far as the 8-pin connector, yes, I did plug it in and tried another power supply as well that also had the 8-pin connector and nothing.

I think I got another DOA motherboard. I guess that'll be the first and last time I buy an MSI Brand anything. I contacted their support (in a futile attempt to retain my sanity) and they basically suggested the same things I had already tried and what you guys suggested and they said if that doesn't work, it's probably DOA. So I'll probably just return it to Newegg and get the refund because if I continue getting exchanges, I don't think it'll get anywhere.

I'm eyeing this motherboard: Newegg.com - ASRock P55 PRO/USB3 LGA 1156 Intel P55 USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
I've purchased ASRock before for both myself and a few of my customers and I've never experienced any problems or had any complaints.

If you suspect the board is a DOA again, and are swearing off MSI, why settle for a lower quality brand? If you want quality, stick to an Intel brand board, Gigabyte, or Asus

Going back to your problem, it sounds like you either forgot to plug in the CPU's power connector, or the power connector for the HSF is either not connected, or on the wrong fan header. Some boards have a specific fan header for the HSF.

Yeah, I verified all those connectors and triple checked them against the manual for the motherboard and they're all plugged in correctly so, it's not the connections as much I wish that were the issue.

As far as brand for a new motherboard, Gigabyte has usually not brought me very good luck at all in the past. Asus I've done very well with as well as ECS and ASRock. What makes ASRock an inferior brand exactly because every board I've bought from them in the past has just worked for me and lasted me years and years. I'm kind of curious because a few years ago, I used to hear the same thing about LG products and that turned out to be untrue for them as they make quality stuff.

Darician said:

As far as brand for a new motherboard, Gigabyte has usually not brought me very good luck at all in the past. Asus I've done very well with as well as ECS and ASRock. What makes ASRock an inferior brand exactly because every board I've bought from them in the past has just worked for me and lasted me years and years.

I'm not sure if it is just the day or what, but I feel like a broken record. One person's experience doesn't make for a full representation of a product. ECS has ALWAYS been regarded as bargain bin junk by the enthusiast industry. Asrock pretty much the same, for whatever reason you feel liek going with. Cost, features, reliability, industry preference...you name it. You may have had bad experiences with Gigabyte, but that doesn't translate into the whole industries experience. If you look into any system builder, aside from the major OEMs, you'll likely see Asus or Gigabyte boards. There's a reason why those are the two most trusted brands. If you truly don't want to go with those brands, then get an Intel branded motherboard. Those are always rock solid.