XP boot problems when i don't have an optical drive plugged in.

[bowan_fletcher]

ok heres the problem. my psu recently blew up and im using a replacement, but it doesn't have enough molexes for me to be able to run all 3 of my HDs and my 2 optical drives at the same time, as well as being able to have some fans going so my cpu and vid card don't explode.

anyway i have figured out how to be able to set it up and it has been fine for the last few weeks. basically i can have all 3 hds set up but no dvd drive, and when i need a drive i unplug my sata drive which is for storage so i can use the dvd drive.

well today i unplugged the HD so i could burn a dvd and when i plugged the HD back in it got to the windows loading screen and wouldn't move. this has never happened before.

if i plug the dvd back in it works fine (thats how im able to type this up

if i have the HD in i can boot into safe mode fine but nothing will make it boot into windows normally, unless the dvd is in.

now it gets even wierder, i unplugged the molex that i had the fans running off so i could have all the hds and the dvd player plugged in and it still wouldn't boot! but with the drive on alone it works fine.

so does any one know what i can besides the basic stuff of reseting cmos etc. i've tried most things and im more then adept at hardware but this has me baffled.

any help would be appreciated.

 

[kcnychief]

I would start with a PSU that has enough power/molex connectors to do the job. If your PC doesn't have enough juice, it no worky

 

[bowan_fletcher]

yeah i've tried that with a friends psu with everything connected it worked fine. but i don't have the money to get a new one at the moment, and the fact that it was working fine under this setup just a few hours ago means something is up. the psu is fine its just a generic one. i have alot more stuff in my pc then most people lol.

its 400w which is plenty and its done the job nicely this far so i doubt it is the problem.

 

[kcnychief]

yeah i've tried that with a friends psu with everything connected it worked fine. but i don't have the money to get a new one at the moment, and the fact that it was working fine under this setup just a few hours ago means something is up. the psu is fine its just a generic one. i have alot more stuff in my pc then most people lol.

its 400w which is plenty and its done the job nicely this far so i doubt it is the problem.

Well, that pretty much answers your question. If you have a PSU with everything connected, and it works, it's your PSU. If you are swapping power to components like this often, you are putting extra stress on the power adapter of the hard drive/optical drive itself. You also can't rely on it being 400W. Unfortunately, 400W is not really 400W true in all units, you really get what you pay for in resistor count, load voltages, consistent power etc. The PSU is one of the most important components in ANY computer, and should not be messed with.

 

[Admiral Michael]

I have to agree with kcnychief, generic brands are garbage. Even tho they may say 400W, thats probably Peak Wattage (cant hold it there)

The quality of generics are terrible they are made with the cheapest components available. When you get a new PSU get a good one, you will tell the difference just by seeing the weight difference.

 

[Son Goku]

A coupla things: 400 w total doesn't tell you everything. There are some other specs which can be important to know, such as how many amps exist on each of the volt railes. This can very, and with a 400 w PSU, you might have more power on 1 rail, and be lacking (aka below what your mobo manufacturer might specify as necessary) on another. Need to look into it a bit further.

There are also other differences in PSUs, such as ramp up time, how clean the voltage delivered is, etc...

If it works on someone elses PSU, that does seem to answer your question. If you need to attach more devices, there are Y-splitters one can connect to a PSU's molex connector. Personally I would be careful what I plug into these (and also how many you use). I use them to connect an extra fan for instance, but with other things, if I absolutely have to, but prefer not to.

If however the problem is related to power (and not simply lacking a necessary number of connectors) a y-splitter won't help much.