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dell 540s that will not power on
hello all,
i bought a 540s a couple of years ago. all has been fine until today when i attempted to power it on.....nothing. i work in IT, but the backend stuff, i havent touched desktops in years but am comfortable around them. i opened the case. removed all the cards that were not needed just to make sure it wasnt a failing card. still nothing. when i plug the power cord in, the green light on the PCU comes on and i hear a slight tick. i've removed the front plastic panel and tried just pressing the bare button with no results. i'm not sure how to proceed from here. could someone give me a suggestion or two?
many thanks,
r
rdunnill
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January 4th, 2012 17:00
Try resetting the CMOS (by removing the coin-shaped battery one the mainboard.)
If that doesn't work, my guess is power supply or mainboard, in that order of probability. This power supply comes highly recommended: www.newegg.com/.../Product.aspx
Edit: I've also seen this happen with an internal short, such as a bent USB connector pin shorting out.
rhltechie
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January 4th, 2012 18:00
thanks for replying. i took the cmos battery out..no go. should there be any sort of amber light on my mobo? there isnt a light on the board....just the PSU. should i spend the money on a PSU first? it looks like i can return the product if necessary.
Kerfee
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January 4th, 2012 18:00
I'm having the same problem with an Inspiron 518 that I got a couple years ago. I went to turn it on today - nothing happened when I pressed the power button, there's a green light when the power cord is plugged in, and I hear a tiny zap when I plug it in. (But I don't know if that's new.) I suspect that something has been going on for a couple months, because I'd come in to find the computer off a few times after leaving it on, and I always blamed my 4 year old. He might not be the culprit after all!
Anyway, I'm going to try resetting the CMOS by removing the battery and was just wondering - what will that do?
Kerfee
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January 4th, 2012 19:00
Hi all - I found info about the CMOS here, so no need to reply: en.community.dell.com/.../19091339.aspx
Please keep the thread up to date if you find a solution, because I think I'm having a very similar problem!
rhltechie
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January 5th, 2012 05:00
i suspect i will be ordering the power supply mentioned earlier....
" I suspect that something has been going on for a couple months, because I'd come in to find the computer off a few times after leaving it on"
This also has been happening to me. I always leave my computer on, but in sleep mode. the last few times i have left it, i come back the next day and its completely off. i have never had a power supply fail on me.....i'm a lil disappointed in my Dell. :emotion-6:
rdunnill
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January 5th, 2012 08:00
The problem is not unique to Dell -- it happens.
Kerfee
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January 5th, 2012 20:00
Yes, I think I'll try a new power supply, too. Except I need a 300 Watt ATX for my 518 instead of the newegg one suggested above for the 540. I've never bought a power supply before - are "300 watt" and "atx" the only specifications I'll need to know to purchase the appropriate one?
By the way, rhltechie, you mentioned there wasn't an amber light on your motherboard - there is a little amber light on mine. I don't know if that matters, but since you mentioned it, thought I'd let you know what I am seeing.
rdunnill
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January 5th, 2012 20:00
300 watts or greater and ATX.
I've had great results with one of these; it's very quite and minimizes cable clutter.
rhltechie
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January 17th, 2012 19:00
Hi guys...just wanted to check back in to say it was indeed my power supply. I ordered the new egg deal, it fit perfectly in my Studio Slim 540s. As others have stated, the cables were a bit long but i would rather have long than short! I'm hoping for many more power cycles from this one!
Thanks for your help!
rdunnill
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January 17th, 2012 23:00
Glad to be of help and thanks for letting us know it worked!