I've been asked to post the following message from a friend who is currently unable to access the board on his own computer.Message follows:-------------------------------------------------------------------Hello all, I was using my system the other day when I heard a small 'pop' and then it died. SYSTEM IS:ASUS P4c800 E MBP4 3.4 cpu4gig Kingston Hyper X memory PC3200Western Digital HD 7200 rpmAntec 480 watts power supply. Plenty of cooling, never overheats.ATI 9800 PRo AFP What I tried to see the problem.another computer, both monitors work great. Another ved card, ATI X1950AGP no changeanother memory set, PC 2700 no changeanother power supply Antec 650W no changeanother HD, one I know works no changeanother CPU a 3.2 I know works no change Logical conclusion..............the MB died.Found another one, used but cust swore it worked fine and he tested it before he shipped. NO CHANGE SYSTEM WILL NOT EVEN GO TO THE BIOS SCREEN.....MONITORS REMAIN BLANK. HELPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP please-------------------------------------------------------------------

All I can think of is to try to boot the system up with the absolute minimum of hardware eg. one memory stick (at a time), no HDD (it should still get to the BIOS screen), no FDD (doesn't sound like he has one anyway). You can even start it up without a video card, a maybe even without memory, and the BIOS should beep a few times to show you that the motherboard is still alive.If that doesn't work, it is possible that whatever failed may have smoked the replacement motherboard. You can either try the components from the failed system in another computer (risky, as you could kill that one too), or just give in to the urge and get a complete new system ;-)Gary

Do you get a post signal - this is the first beep before the BIOSis loaded. The post beep should be a "happy" beep. You will get various otherbeep sequences for different failures of core hardware.If you are not getting a post - then it is quite likely that oneof the supply voltages of the powersupply has gone. +12/-12/-5/+5and whatever the supply required for the CPU.Tom

B52Drivr may have had multiple hw items get zapped in the power surge or whatever happened. You said he swapped individual items, but if more than one item is fried, then that sort of test won't catch it.RhettAMD 3700+ (@2585 mhz), eVGA 7800GT 256 (Guru3D 93.71), ASUS A8N-E, PC Power 510 SLI, 2gb Corsair XMS 3-3-3-8 (1T), WD 150 gig 10000rpm Raptor, WD 250gig 7200rpm SATA2, Seagate 120gb 5400 rpm external HD, CoolerMaster Praetorian

Most MBx will have debug LEDs that indicate when the CPU, memory and video cards are detected as it boots up. Using the MB manual and these LEDs (assuming you have them), you should be able to get some clue as to what piece is not working.

Hello All, First, thanks for your reply's to my problem. As it turned out, the MB was bad, and had taken a good shot. The cpu, ram, and most everything else survived. My biggest problem was I bought a used MB, and it too was bad -- fortunately, the individual I was dealing with was very honest, sent me another which worked perfectly and 'baby' is running again in tip top shape.Again, thanks load for all of your suggestions, the one on posting was what made me confirm the first and second MB were bad.Best to all, Clay