6 Posts
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1624
November 17th, 2020 17:00
Aurora R4 ALX, motherboard cooked?
I have a bad feeling about this. Press power button and get only flashing leds on GFX_PUMP FLEXBAY board. Press power supply test button and I can hear its internal protection circuit click. After PSU dead until unplugged.
So I remove all RAM, peripherals, power, and usb connections from MB. PSU test button will power up fans, vents, and internal lights. Same result for PS1 connected to MB. Connect PS2 to MB and only get PSU protection circuit switched. Never any beeps.
Is my MB cooked? Is it worth replacing or should I just upgrade MB, CPU, and GPU. I like the case too much to just junk it.
Thanks
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speedstep
9 Legend
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47K Posts
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November 20th, 2020 04:00
https://www.dell.com/support/home/en-us/product-support/product/alienware-aurora-r4/docs
https://downloads.dell.com/manuals/all-products/esuprt_desktop/esuprt_alienware_dsk/alienware-aurora-r4_owner%27s%20manual_en-us.pdf
Theater-Lighting Batteries
(ALX Chassis Only)
Alienware Aurora-R4 Owner's Manual
Prerequisites
Removing the Theater-Lighting Batteries
Replacing the Theater-Lighting Batteries
Postrequisites
WARNING: Before working inside your computer, read the safety information that shipped with your computer and follow the steps in Before You Begin. For additional safety best practices information, see the Regulatory Compliance Homepage at dell.com/regulatory_compliance.
Prerequisites
1.Remove the left side-panel. See Removing the Left Side-Panel.
2.Open the PCI shroud. See Opening the PCI Shroud.
3.Remove the drive-bay shroud. See Removing the Drive-Bay Shroud.
Removing the Theater-Lighting Batteries
1.Turn the drive-bay shroud over.
2.Open the theater-lighting battery compartment door.
NOTE: Your computer ships with two AA rechargeable batteries.
3.Remove the two batteries from the theater-lighting battery compartment.
https://www.amazon.com/Energizer-Rechargeable-Pre-Charged-Over-Charge-Protection/dp/B08HJNZSQ7/
power supplies die.
If they didn't they would be soldered to the motherboard.
Try new rechargeable AA batteries then try a new power supply first.
Given the age of the unit the Theatre LED batteries are also bad.
redxps630
9 Legend
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15.2K Posts
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November 17th, 2020 17:00
sounds more likely just PSU is failing. Test the motherboard with a good PSU and you will see. A dying psu can commonly still turn on fans and led but there is not enough current or voltage to turn on motherboard.
r72019
6 Professor
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5.3K Posts
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November 17th, 2020 18:00
@jcgaede Is the flasing led labeled LED4 CHARGE? It is right near the gfx pump flex you mentioned. I believe that just means you need to replace the two rechargeable AA batteries for the theater case lighting. You can get replacement envelope batteries on amazon. For some reason this prevents booting the pc.
r72019
6 Professor
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5.3K Posts
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November 17th, 2020 19:00
I forgot to mention, this is where you find the batteries that need replacing. Image 1 is where to find the shroud holding the batteries. Batteries are behind the red arrow.
r72019
6 Professor
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5.3K Posts
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November 19th, 2020 20:00
Only thing I can think of is an abnormal draw from the MIO board, which connects to and charges the batteries .. has the PC been sitting unused and unplugged for a long time and then you booted and this happened?
r72019
6 Professor
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5.3K Posts
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November 19th, 2020 20:00
@jcgaede You can test it without spending any money by removing the two batteries and trying to power up. When the batteries are completely dead an the R4 and won't hold a charge it completely prevents a boot, all you get is the flashing led noted above. But you don't need the batteries to boot, it will boot without the batteries. It is odd.
jcgaede
6 Posts
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November 19th, 2020 20:00
I'll try that but it seems more than a little odd that those batteries being dead would trigger the protection circuit in the power supply.
jcgaede
6 Posts
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November 20th, 2020 16:00
Tried this. Whether these batteries or replacements are in, the PSU protection circuit trips when pressing the PSU test button. Pressing computer power switch just shuts the blinking LEDs off.
jcgaede
6 Posts
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November 20th, 2020 16:00
The computer had been in use the day before. The next day it had shut down and pressing the power button yielded only the blinking lights.
jcgaede
6 Posts
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November 20th, 2020 16:00
These batteries have no impact on observerd behaviors. They may if I get past the initial power problem since they are dead. Are these just regular rechargable AA batteries? They are identical in size and the people at Batteries+ store claim standard AA.
jcgaede
6 Posts
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November 20th, 2020 16:00
Already replaced PSU. Behavior is the same.
redxps630
9 Legend
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15.2K Posts
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November 21st, 2020 02:00
sounds like there is a short circuit somewhere when psu is connected to motherboard.
if nobody has a better suggestion, try removing the motherboard from case after uninstalling AIO cooler. Inspect backside of board to rule out obvious problem. Put motherboard on top of a cardboard box and do a diagnostic test. nothing connected to motherboard at all, just a bare bone board/cpu combo. now make sure psu is tested working in another system. Connect psu 24 pin ATX to board. Try to turn on power by temporarily shorting front panel power switch. Do you observe same behavior of psu tripping and no light on motherboard turned on?