Dell dimension 8250, Blinking front light...help!

[bmanice]

Hey guys, my names brandon, i just signed up here, this forum looked pretty solid...

anywho, i have a Dell Dimension 8250 (has the rd-ram) that will not power on, when i hit the front button the light blinks yellow. I thought it was the power supply, but i swapped it out for a known working one, and it did the same thing.

i also tried a different mobo+processor (from a similar dell), and it powered on, but no video came out? (i even swapped AGP cards and had the same problem)

this is very weird, i checked every connection a bunch of times, everything seems to be in order, no bent pins (from what i can see with my human eyes lol)

Just thought id ask, hopefully someone has been in my shoes before, and could advise me on what to check or repair...

Thanks a lot guys, thanks for the help in advance!

ps, could both mobo's be shot? i hope not....:(

[QCH]

First.... look at the back of the Dell and find the four diagnostic lights label A, B, C, D. That will give a fair amount of info regarding the problem.

Dimension 8250 (http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/systems/dim8250/advanced.htm)

Let us know if that helps... I betting it's the power supply. Just a guess though.





For those that stumble on this tread, here's one for a Precision 450. (http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/systems/ws450/en/ug/advanced.htm)

[QCH]

Another thing.... open the case and CLOSELY inspect the capacitors near the CPU. Look for bulges on the top or yellowish residue on them. If the caps are bad, it will not regulate power correctly.

Read HERE (http://www.dellcommunity.com/supportforums/board/message?board.id=oplex_other&message.id=21157).

The key is trying to determine if the power supply is dead or the motherboard is fried. The power supply could be delivering some power to the 5 volt or 12 volt but not the other...

Also... try disconnecting EVERYTHING except the power supply, CPU, and CPU fan. See if it will try to boot with no drives. Heck, even try with no memory. This is to test if the motherboard can do anything, even to just give you beep codes.

[bmanice]

I found out about the lights after i wrote the post, sorry about that. They light up Green Yellow Green Yellow (ABCD). And the other board doesnt power on at all and has no lights.... im using the power supply right now in another dimmension its working fine... so i know its not the PSU... i guess both mobo's are shot?

[jared]

Well GYGY indicates it is a memory issue.

Have you tried removing the ram or swapping with another machine and seeing if it posts?

[QCH]

Let's work on one PC first, then see if we can get the other working. As the Dell Diagnostic lights indicate, check the memory.

Did you try removing everything but the CPU, CPU Fan, and memory?