My computer at home fried a week or two ago. I have some new parts at home now and I hope to rebuild it this weekend. I actually put the mainboard, AMD processor (new for me) in to the new case, attached all of the doohickies and thingamadoobers, added the add-on cards, said my prayers and tried to start it... nothing. So now I have to talk to the computer store about those forementioned doohickies and thingamadoobers and why they are not powering my expensive new mainboard and processor. Anyways I'll end that there as I'm already venting.So I haven't seen my flightsim in 2 or so weeks. Perhaps someone would be kind enough to post a PIC767 action shot so I can go to my happy place ;-) The screenshot forum is full of plastic stuff lately (see Denny_VR's EXCELLENT post on my feeling of plastic which I share with that user).Regards,Dan Pergauhttp://www.flyacva.com/dan_banner.gif

Dan,I thought I hadn't spotted you on my Whazzup list for a while. Now I know why.Building your own machine is so rewarding, but not alas when it fails to come to life on power-up :(You might want to check the dooadoobers and the thingamahickies as well :)Hope you get it sorted soon.For a quick 'fix' one of my repaints on a splashscreen.http://ftp.avsim.com/dcforum/User_files/3d4a8152287142a1.jpg

wow what a screenshot!!!!!!! thats a beaut!Many thanks Dean!

Dan, make sure your power supply (PS) is sufficient to power the Athlon processor. They require more umph than Intel's. You need a PS that can dish out at least 300W to be safe. More is better. Also, cheap PS may not deliver their reported power. Also make sure you've made the necessary changes in the BIOS. I don't know what components you have so I don't know what changes to make, but make sure you assign the correct front side bus speed, processor speed, and memory speed in the BIOS.Another thing to think about is your OS. Are you going to reformat the hard drive? That new motherboard may have a different chipset that requires special drivers. For example, if you had an Intel chipset before and now have a Via chipset, you'll need the Via 4-in-1 drivers. Having said that, your system should boot up so that is not what's causing your other problem. It's just something to realize. Your system will probably run, you will just need to get those new drivers pretty soon to get the best performance.

Hi Ken,The power supply should be 300 watts... but thats only what the label says. Unfortunately I can't get into the BIOS yet as the PC doesn't even power on =) I hope that will change tonight or if needed the store's resident guru can have fun with the unit.I plan to completely wipe the drive once the PC boots up. I had difficulty with my USB Pedals and the VIA chipset on my old board so I made it a point to avoid those problems with this new board. At this point though a PC that actually powers on would be ideal ;-)Regards,Dan

Hey Dan,I recently made the same upgrade as you and have a few things you can check:1. Those silly connectors that connect your motherboard to the power switch on your case are FREQUENTLY mis-labeled...which caused my biggest headache (and the exact same problem you are having). If everthing else is hooked up right (and otherwise functional), I bet that is the problem.2. If it is a new power supply, and it has a switch to change it to/from 120/220, make sure it is on 120! (Nothing bad will happen if its on 220, it just won't work.)3. Make sure the main power plug to the PS is firmly seated into the back of the PS. I've had that come loose before. The same thing with the cord that comes out of the PS and connects to the main connector on the MB. Sometimes the clip does not "click".Let us know if any of these things work.Regards,Steve Dra

If you installed all your add on cards, try removing all of them except the video card and see what happens.Next, if you have a new motherboard, some of them come with a clip that locks down the agp card. If this is in the forward (locked) position, it will prevent you from seating the agp card properly.This is a bad pic, but the only one I could find on short notice.http://www.lostcircuits.com/motherboard/gi...Oxe/agplock.jpgMake sure your agp card is seated proplery, as a improperly seated card can cause the trouble you are having also.Regards,Steve Dra

Good tips... I'm betting on issue 1 that you listed. Thanks Steve!

Checked that too... quite the invention that AGP lock down =) Thanks again!

Hi DanAlso check that your CPU and RAM are seated correctly. Even if they LOOK like they are, they might not be. I've had incorrectly seated RAM cause a system to play dead in the past.Regarding PSU's, pay no attention whatsoever to what rating it has on the label unless it is a good QUALITY one. You will end up replacing a cheap PSU every 12 months or even more often, they're just not worth it. In particular, be wary of Micron, I've had 3 of those fail within the last 5 years.If you're in the US or can wait for them to ship you one, the BEST without a doubt are those from PC Power and Cooling. They have PFC - Power Factor Correction and they're rated at very high input air temperatures for their max rating. Plus their staff are very helpful and polite.I couldn't wait, unfortunately, so I got an Enermax which is the next best thing, else you could also try Antec.I'd recommend that you get a decent supply even if you do find that the gremlin lies elsewhere...you won't regret it.Best regards//Neil

Hi Dan,Make sure your RAM is properly seated. It takes quite a lot of force to do so, more than feels comfortable in fact.Good luck,Bruce.