computer overheated and turned off

Soldato
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hey my pc has just turned off so i opened it up and it smelt hot if you know what i mean and now it wont turn back on. I think the graphics card overheated because the heatsink on it is red hot. Could my psu be dead as well, just there are still lights on the motherboard that are on. Thanks
 
Soldato
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20 Nov 2009
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Can you try another graphics card? What PSU and GPU do you have by the way? What happens when you try to power on now?
 
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Soldato
OP
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if i try and power on now nothing happens at all. I have an 8800gt and not sure what psu. But yeh 2 lights on the motherboard are still lit but if i press the power button nothing happens. I havent tried in the last 30mins though. I havent another card to try either.
 
Associate
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Right this happened to me before . Unplug the psu , form the 24-pin on the motherboard then reconnect it. Then turn of the power switch on the back of the psu and at the socket. then try to power it on. It should work.:)
 
Soldato
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The heatsinks on 8800gt's isn't that great, and has a tendency to fill with dust. So it could have overheated. I'm a bit surprised that this turned your computer off though.

If you take the card out, can you persuade the motherboard to issue error beeps at you?

If you've got a multimeter you can check the psu is offering the right voltages at idle, which isn't conclusive unless they're way off the mark.

Otherwise you may be buying/borrowing a cheap graphics card to try. Hope your psu and motherboard are alright, I think they should be.
 
Soldato
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thats the thing, surely if the motherboard has lights that are lit then the psu and motherboard are ok? I haven't tried to turn it on without a graphics card in yet, it's like the power switch is broke ha
 
Associate
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Did you smell an electrical burning smell on any individual component? Like the smell you get when using an electric drill? I have isolated burnt out parts before by the smell they make when they die...
 
Associate
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Smell of heat as in hot plastic fumes? Burning dust? Each smell means something different. The drill smell is ozone from an electrical arc, if you can smell hot plastic it is most likely from insulation on a power wire which might indicate the PSU.
 
Associate
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Does it give the correct beep code for no graphics card? Have you tried to spin the fan on the graphics card to see if it spins freely and is not jammed with dust?
 
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