Dell Dimension XPS B___r Shutting Off & Revving

[Dashiell]

Hello all!

I'm having a recent issue with my XPS B system. I recently installed a 4 port USB 2.0 card in the machine, and everything works fine.

Yesterday, I had cause to bring the machine down for a while. From its shutdown state, when I plugged it back in and hit the power button, it 'revved' for a second and then shut down again.

I pressed the power button again. Same thing. You can hear the fans spin up and then shut down. Pressing the power button continuously in a rapid fashion (revving) gets it to the post area where it becomes stable and continues to boot. There are no other problems than this.

It seems like a really odd thing... reboot works fine, machine runs fine, it just won't rise from a total shutdown gracefully.

Any ideas?

[foxyshadis]

Power supply's probably too weak (or it's about to die). There's not enough power for everything in the system during the initial startup surge, so it shuts down, like a circuit breaker. Dell uses junk power suplies, not surprising; if it's in warranty you can get a replacement, or just buy a more reliable brand. (You can get a much quieter one that way too!)

[Gerard V]

I would suggest trying out a replacement power supply as the first step. You current one may be dodgy or under powered. Do you have another you can try - even if you borrowed one.

Edit: Foxy got there first while I was typing . . .

[Dashiell]

Thank you both for replying!

I don't have a spare one laying around, but I might just march up to CompUsa or something and buy a new one.

Does anyone have and brand/model recommendations? I do work in IT and have access to spare parts, but I don't think the right one is in this environment.

[Gerard V]

Have a look at some of the overclocker or PC builder forums for recommendations, and don't skimp if you afford not to. Experience suggests that PSU problems are at the root of many PC issues - and having one thats well over spec'd should help. FWIW I have noticed many posts elsewhere and my local tech all state that the Hyena brand is not much cop so I'd try Silverstone, Thermaltake or similar as a starting place.

[mike_lee]

Check your BIOS carefully. Maybe at least turn off quick boot.

[Dashiell]

Experience suggests that PSU problems are at the root of many PC issues - and having one thats well over spec'd should help.



The one that's in there now is rated at 200w, does what you suggest above mean I should look into a 250 or 300 watt unit? Is there a danger in blowing out the motherboard?

[Video Dude]

Remember that Dell uses a proprietary connector to hook the power supply to the motherboard. You either have to buy it direct from Dell or look for a "Dell Compatible" power supply.

The minimum I would suggest is 350W. 400 or 450 might be needed depending on processor or video card or number of drives.

[Surf]

My 2 cents:

USB pci card uses awful little amount of current. I too suspect your BIOS particularly pertaining to the usb settings. Look for "legacy usb support", it must be turned on for most compatibility.

Echo-ing Video Dude's reminder, generic psu won't work, it must be dell compatible(mentioned).

[Surf]

My 2 cents:

USB pci card uses awful little amount of current. I too suspect your BIOS particularly pertaining to the usb settings. Look for "legacy usb support", it must be turned on for most compatibility. Also check other usb and power(saving)settings.

Echo-ing Video Dude's reminder, generic psu won't work, it must be dell compatible(mentioned).

[foxyshadis]

Remember that Dell uses a proprietary connector to hook the power supply to the motherboard. You either have to buy it direct from Dell or look for a "Dell Compatible" power supply.

The minimum I would suggest is 350W. 400 or 450 might be needed depending on processor or video card or number of drives.
When did they start doing that? Or is it only in XPS? I've had to swap a lot of Dimension power supplies and they were all normal ATX.

If the system ran fine on a flaky 200W for so long, a good 300W will do fine even if hardware upgrades need more juice, unless he intends to buy a X1900 and Pentium D 830, with the requisite industrial fans they'd need. 400+ is something you get for high-end SLI rigs, or in expectation of the next generations of energy-sucking graphics cards.

Although using 250 off a good 300 or a junk 450 will both be stable, the main reason I carp is that the former is usually much more energy-efficient and cooler, instead of contributing to case heat problems. (And sometimes cheaper.)

[Video Dude]

http://www.quepublishing.com/articles/article.asp?p=339053&rl=1

Google: dell proprietary power supply, for more links.

I'm under the impression that they are still proprietary.

[foxyshadis]

Go figure. Maybe the models my company buys aren't affected for whatever reason.

Nifty little doodad I saw linked: http://www.endpcnoise.com/cgi-bin/e/std/sku=dellconverter

[mike_lee]

I have a 550 watt power supply and it ain't enough. I'm overclocking the CPU and have 2 nvidia cards, but even with one big video card 200 watts is light. Have you tried rivatuner, mother board monitor or some app that monitors your temp and voltages?