Dell XPS 600 Startup Problem

[Arjento]

Hi all,

I'm back and still rocking the Dell XPS 600.

In the past you guys have helped me in getting a new graphics card which helped me tremendously (http://www.techpowerup.com/forums/showthread.php?t=107525).

But unfortunately it looks like my system may have died.

Ok for about a year now, after I've put on my PC, I would always have to restart it straight away. If not it would hard restart after about 10 minutes (I was told the pc power supply was the cause).

But now when I put the pc on. This happens:

The fan goes into overdrive mode making so much noise and my pc won't boot up into windows (I have a suspicion it is the power supply in my pc)

The power on button stays "amber" whereas it usually turns "green" when starting up.

Do you think it's the power supply? And is it easily replaceable.

My PC Stats are:

Intel(R) Pentium(R) D CPU 3.00GHz
XPS 600, PD, 830 (3.00GHZ) 2X1MB, EM64T
MEMORY DUAL CHANNEL 2048MB (4X512) 667MH
250GB SATA (7200RPM) HARD DRIVE WITH 8MB
NVIDIA GEFORCE GTS 250

Thanks.

 

[theeldest]

There are a few fans in that system.

Can you tell us which fan is making all the noise? If it's the CPU fan, it sounds like the heatsink may not be seated properly anymore and just needs to be removed, clean, and reset. (if it's not seated properly, it gets real hot and the system trys to cool it back down. When it can't it won't let it start up to protect the hardware)

 

[Arjento]

There are a few fans in that system.

Can you tell us which fan is making all the noise? If it's the CPU fan, it sounds like the heatsink may not be seated properly anymore and just needs to be removed, clean, and reset. (if it's not seated properly, it gets real hot and the system trys to cool it back down. When it can't it won't let it start up to protect the hardware)

The fan in question is under the green box on the bottom right of the picture.

The close up of the fan.

 

[erocker]

That's your CPU cooler fan. Most likely your CPU is overheating. To fix this, the cooler needs to come off, clean the old thermal paste off, reapply new thermal paste and reseat the cooler. You could also try getting an aftermarket cooler for it (socket 775 compatable) which would work much better.

 

[Red_Machine]

It may not actually have cooling paste. My Dimension 4550 and my Inspiron 8100 laptop use some sort of thick foil between the CPU and heatsink.

EDIT: He said bottom right. That looks like the PSU, but it's an odd place to put it...

 

[theeldest]

Hmmm. Those are strange beasts.

For reference, the PSU is actually the entire bottom of the case. It's a proprietary PSU. In the first picture, you can see about 1 inch of black along the bottom of the case. That's the power supply.

If the fan that gets loud is pushing air through the power supply, then that is probably your problem. If it is pushing air somewhere else, then I think it's still the heatsink on the PSU (mostly because I'd had a problem with this at one point in the past)

 

[Arjento]

Hmmm. Those are strange beasts.

For reference, the PSU is actually the entire bottom of the case. It's a proprietary PSU. In the first picture, you can see about 1 inch of black along the bottom of the case. That's the power supply.

If the fan that gets loud is pushing air through the power supply, then that is probably your problem. If it is pushing air somewhere else, then I think it's still the heatsink on the PSU (mostly because I'd had a problem with this at one point in the past)

So I take it that the bottom right black unit in picture 1 is my PSU (photo 2 is the close up of this).

When I turn it on this fan goes crazy and pushes the air outwards.

You think I will need to replace the PSU?

 

[Arjento]

Done some research and it looks like the fan that is making all the fuss is the "PCI card shroud and fan" (http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/systems/xps600/en/sm/techov0.htm)

What would you recommend the next course of action to be, for getting it fixed?

 

[Jstn7477]

Does your Dell have the four green/yellow LEDs on the I/O panel like most non-budget Dells from the last decade? If so, observe those and you can match the pattern with a code in the service manual for your Dell.

After a quick Google search, found your manual, and your system does have the lights. I dislike Dells but at least they write detailed documentation for their personal computers.

http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/systems/xps600/en/SM/adtshoot.htm#wp1054589

 

[Red_Machine]

Y'know, I'd love to get my hands on one of these systems. Would be awesome with my 8800 Ultra or a 7950GX2.

I would say that your PSU is most likely going to be the cause of this problem. Dell will charge a fortune for a replacement, so try looking for one on eBay or the like.

With regards to that fan, I have my doubts that it is the cause of your issue. It would just be a symptom.

 

[Arjento]

Does your Dell have the four green/yellow LEDs on the I/O panel like most non-budget Dells from the last decade? If so, observe those and you can match the pattern with a code in the service manual for your Dell.

After a quick Google search, found your manual, and your system does have the lights. I dislike Dells but at least they write detailed documentation for their personal computers.

http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/systems/xps600/en/SM/adtshoot.htm#wp1054589

Yes. When I first put on the electricity the number 4 lights up.

Then when I turn the power off then on again 3 lights up!

I'm at a loss