Inspiron 3847 Power Light Blinking Amber

Usually, a blinking amber power light indicates a defective power supply.  Unfortunately the Dell manual for the 3847 does not detail any troubleshooting lights/codes so its not 100% but as noted usually the power supply is the problem.

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@joym8wrote:

I might order a power supply. But I wonder if anybody had comments on the video link I posted according to which the issue is external, not internal.

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That's not really how you fix or troubleshoot dead computers. It's closer to this:

https://www.dell.com/community/Alienware-General/Alienware-Desktop-General-Hardware-Troubleshooting/m-p/5555517#M57436

And that paragraph (in all the Dell manuals) should probably be written more like this:

"If the Power-Supply test LED responds favorably, then there is a 90% chance your Power-Supply is good. You might want to look elsewhere for problems. Have this machine diagnosed and repaired by a qualified computer technician."

Got it diagnosed at local shop. They tried replacing power supply and RAM, detaching hard drive and whatever else they could think but no luck. They say everything points to a motherboard problem. But not 100% sure. If I somehow manage to get a new motherboard for that and it does not resolve the issue, that's waste of time and money. Used motherboard is no good either as I don't know how long it's going to last?

What would you recommend at this point? I can't believe a brand new PC, running perfectly for 3 years could just die all of a sudden one morning without any warning signs.

Sadly a component can fail at any time.  I've been in computers for many years and have seen similar things happen - all brands.  I've had components fail in my own systems (self built desktops).  I've had components fail while in warranty and "prematurely" out of warranty.  

I have no idea of your location or where you have to PC located, but it needs to be where there is adequate cool air flow.  Heat is a known potential cause of early failures.   Another issue is AC power.  If you have not used a "good quality" power surge protector or UPS system there is the possibility that there was a power surge at some point and it weakened components and like with overheating it can eventually lead to failures.  The overheating or power failure could have been a year ago and it took that long for a failure.  

Its up to you, but if it were mine I would look for a new PC.  I would also buy an extended warranty with whatever you buy to cover things such as this.  I would seriously consider a UPS system that will provide both surge protection and AC power (for a short time) if there is a power failure.  Most power failures are momentary or short duration and a UPS will help with these situations.  At my residence I have a UPS for my desktop PC, and another UPS for my 55" HD TV.

Hi All,

I know this is an old thread but I thought I would throw this out there.

I had the same problem.  My computer's power button blinked Amber 2 times - pause - blink 2 times.

I removed one of the 2 x 4GB RAM chips and everything came up fine.  Updated the BIOS.  Reinserted the 2nd RAM chip and viola.  Good to go.

Hope that helps someone

-RJ

@rjemmett​ , I had the same exact issue as you. I checked my two chips and one of them was loose. I made sure it was properly inserted into the motherboard and it worked just fine.

@rjemmett​ thank you for posting your solution. I am also taking the opportunity to update drivers and BIOS at this time. This is a 10 year old computer and it is still working fine. 

@rjemmett​ Thank you very much. Removing one stick of RAM solved my problem.