No beeps, no boot, FF code

[TechLady]

Customer brought in Cyberpower gaming rig that won't boot. You see Cyberpower post screen and then a blinking cursor--that's it. Can get into BIOS but nothing else. No beeps at any point.

Has ASUS Z97-P motherboard (LGA 1150), Intel Core i5-4690 processor. Stock cooler, not overclocked.

Motherboard is now completely out of the case and running barebones on the bench. Swapped out video card, no change. Tested PSU and RAM--both fine. Swapped out different RAM and CMOS battery just in case--no change. Code I'm getting is FF, which as I understand is either motherboard or CPU.

Have had it over a year, so no longer covered by Cyberpower...although I don't know if that gets extended by Costco or not (that's where they bought it). They are concerned about expense and this looks expensive any way you slice it. And I can't say for sure if it's CPU or motherboard.

Edit: no changes to system and it went down without warning, customer says.

Any experiences with this to share?

 

[glennd]

Customer brought in Cyberpower gaming rig that won't boot. You see Cyberpower post screen and then a blinking cursor--that's it. Can get into BIOS but nothing else. No beeps at any point.

Has ASUS Z97-P motherboard (LGA 1150), Intel Core i5-4690 processor. Stock cooler, not overclocked.

Motherboard is now completely out of the case and running barebones on the bench. Swapped out video card, no change. Tested PSU and RAM--both fine. Swapped out different RAM and CMOS battery just in case--no change. Code I'm getting is FF, which as I understand is either motherboard or CPU.

Have had it over a year, so no longer covered by Cyberpower...although I don't know if that gets extended by Costco or not (that's where they bought it). They are concerned about expense and this looks expensive any way you slice it. And I can't say for sure if it's CPU or motherboard.

Edit: no changes to system and it went down without warning, customer says.

Any experiences with this to share?

would bios give a beep if the cpu was faulty?

 

[NviGate Systems]

Sounds like board. Have any spare boards you can put the chip and ram into? Cyberpower isn't known for quality components.

 

[MichaelEC]

Without being able to swap the processor out you won't know which component it is, but I'd lean towards the MB.

 

[Diggs]

I've also seen systems go quiet when the memory fails. It's either that or they tend to scream (long steady tone).

 

[cypress]

I would lean towards the MB as well. But now that you say it was bought at Costco, I believe they add another year on top of manufacturer warranty. I would have client call Costco to double check that.

 

[nlinecomputers]

You tested the PSU but did you replace it? I've had PSUs that test OK and still be faulty. Having said that to me this looks to be a mobo issue. You can chase down warranty but that is your time if you don't bill them for it. Be cheaper just to source a new mobo and replace it.

 

[TechLady]

Yes, replaced PSU. No change. I agree it's probably motherboard; I've hardly ever seen CPUs go bad. That particular mobo is out of stock most places and I'd rather not use the same one anyway. But using a different one will require an OS reload and that runs up against their concern about money. But I'll see what they want to do and they did say they're going to call Costco. Thanks for all the input!

 

[TechLady]

Incidentally, how much would you charge for all this? The diagnose, the picking out new board, installing, and reloading OS? Any ballparks, hourly or flat rate, etc?

 

[MichaelEC]

MB swap $100, $80 OS reload, $30 hr for diagnostics, plus shipping and markup on the part. That includes all updates, driver check & load if necessary, final clean up and defrag.

That's what I charged the last time I did a MB.

 

[cypress]

I would charge an hours labor for motherboard replacement, plus $125 for a reinstall of Windows and markup on the parts.

 

[mr m]

This is why the residential market has dried up for me and I'm sure some of you. I charge about what you two charge but most clients would rather buy another low end $300 PC than spend $200 plus to fix their older low end PC.

I charge about an hour and a half labor for the house call. $150 to set up and fine tune the new PC, add the printer, migrate data, whatever. Some users balk at that.

 

[Larry Sabo]

$95 (CAD) to order and install replacement MB; $125 CAD to re-install Windows. Only makes sense for more expensive laptops.

 

[Porthos]

This is why the residential market has dried up for me and I'm sure some of you. I charge about what you two charge but most clients would rather buy another low end $300 PC than spend $200 plus to fix their older low end PC.

TRUTH.
Then there is "I really dont use the computer, I just use my phone/tablet".