Unsolved
This post is more than 5 years old
5 Posts
0
812
Alienware,x51
My R2 won't boot. It won't enter setup (f2) or boot menu (f12). It just hangs on the black alien skull screen that displays Alienware x51 r2 and bios version A10. It makes the little beep like it is going to boot up and it acknowledges when I have pressed f2 or f12 by lighting up the appropriate item in the lower right hand corner and it advances the green progress bar at the bottom of the screen all the way to the right, but it doesn't advance past that screen. Any suggestions?
Alienware-Eimy
3 Apprentice
3 Apprentice
•
4.4K Posts
0
June 16th, 2017 09:00
Hi ,
Try a power drain: unplug every external device from the system (including the power cord), then hold the power button for around a minute so you can drain all the power out. Then try F12 again and see how if you can run a ePSA test.
Also, remember this computer has an integrated video card (HDMI located at the top half) and a discrete video card (HDMI located at the bottom half), so try by connecting the monitor to the Integrated video card.
Let me know!
Tesla1856
8 Wizard
8 Wizard
•
17K Posts
0
June 16th, 2017 10:00
Make system as "simple" as possible. Completely remove dedicated video card first. See if motherboard is good using only Integrated on-board "video card" circuit. Refer to Dell chart because beeps during attempted BIOS-Post mean different things.
If HDTV is not a plain 1080p model, try a more conventional HDTV or plain computer LCD monitor.
Trogwolf
5 Posts
0
June 16th, 2017 10:00
Just before seeing your message I had finished doing the following: tried booting with only one memory stick in each of the two positions instead of both. No change but it did recognize and emit alarms when s stick was not seated properly. No message advising a change in the quantity of ram. Tried disconnecting the hard drive and optical drive. Still no change and no message indicating unable to find boot source. Then I saw your message. Did power drain. Reattached drives and memory sticks. Did power drain again. Connected HDMI to integrated video card and started comp. The off did not recognize my smart tv as a monitor so I could not see that there was no difference, however everything sounded the same. Reconnected the HDMI to the discreet video card and turned on comp. Same results as I have been getting but now I could see on my smart tv that there is no change - still hangs on the log screen. I have the updated bios - A12 - on a bootable sub drive but no way to install it without access to boot options.
Trogwolf
5 Posts
0
June 16th, 2017 10:00
I just spoke to a tech at the place in town where I would most likely take my pc for service now that it is out of warranty. After the standard "you need to bring it in for us to look at" he finally said that it sounds like the problem is in the bios which means "you probably need to replace the motherboard."
If that seems correct, would you please tell me the best motherboard/processor combo that I can use with my alienware x51 r2 assembly? I'm pretty sure it came with the i7-4770 in a slot 1150 motherboard.
Trogwolf
5 Posts
0
June 16th, 2017 10:00
Sorry, "off" above was supposed to be ivc for integrated video card.
Trogwolf
5 Posts
0
June 16th, 2017 10:00
Btw, thanks for your attention. I would hate to spend $400 to replace the processor if there is no point so I am hoping to be able to identify whether or not that is the problem.
Tesla1856
8 Wizard
8 Wizard
•
17K Posts
0
June 16th, 2017 11:00
Well, only an Alienware x51 motherboard (there are R1-R3 versions) will really fit in that (small case) machine. Only an Alienware x51 motherboard will come with a free Windows license.
That said, the case, power supply, and motherboard aren't really worth keeping, since they are small and proprietary (if machine needs a bunch of work).
See this:
Finally, the economics of a repair or upgrade changes greatly if you can't do the work yourself. Also, I prefer a more conventional mATX (mini-tower) form-factor machine. They are easier to upgrade, cheaper to repair, and don't take-up much more desk-space than a gaming-console-sized computer.