MSI Z590 Gaming Plus - DDR and CPU lights blinking with no post.

wrobelixo1159502e2

wrobelixo1159502e2

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So today I was cleaning out my rig, took off the cooler, new paste, and after I put the thing back together fully, I tried to turn it on but got no post. Important to note is I also installed new, faster ram while at it. All lights turned on as usual, fans ramped up, no display, no post, nothing.
I checked the debug lights and noticed that the DDR light would come on for a while, before turning off and the CPU light would turn on instead, before turning off and repeating. The DDR light is on for around 2-3 seconds, and CPU light for about a second. I found a thread before that mentioned a similar issue, but the guy there had bent pins in his socket. I know mine are fine as I checked twice now to be sure, and I cannot see anything out of the ordinary. I tried flashing new bios onto the board with the BIOS flash button, but after 2 hours nothing changed. The LED was just flashing away and nothing was happening. I'm fairly sure my motherboard is dead, but I wanted to ask here to see if there is anything else I could try. I can't afford to build a new system, so best I could is a used replacement.

Full specs are as follows:

i7 11700k
Crucial Pro Series DDR4 3200mhz CL22 32GB (2x16)
Z590 Gaming Plus
MSI GTX 1070ti
Noctua NH-D15 Chromax Black
1x 250GB Crucial P5 Plus NVME drive
1x Crucial P3 2tb
1x WD 2tb HDD
Seasonic Focus GX 650w PSU
 
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Maybe this is a silly question, but did you try going back to your old RAM kit? Also, did you remove the CPU when you were doing the original repaste?
 
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FlyingScot said:
Maybe this is a silly question, but did you try going back to your old RAM kit? Also, did you remove the CPU when you were doing the original repaste?
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I did try the old ram kit, each slot with one ram stick, of both kits. Nothing helped. And no, I did not remove my cpu when originally repasting it. The only thing out of the ordinary was the new crucial kit I installed had mild trouble getting into the slots, as if it was slightly too long to slide in nicely.
 
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Well, given the additional information you just shared with us, my mind goes down the following logic path - although, I aint no Sherlock Holmes:

Point #1: Unless you dropped something on your motherboard (which I think you would have volunteered) or shorted it with static (which is highly unlikely - especially if you unplugged it during the "surgery") then it's very hard to imagine that your motherboard chose that specific moment in time to die. I think you would probably agree.

Point #2: You stated that you did not remove the CPU during the initial repasting effort. So, that means you did not check for bent pins until you already were having POST problems. So, I think we can rule out bent pins.

Point #3: Given point#1 and #2 above, that leaves us the following "original" possibilities:
(1) You damaged the "golden fingers" of the motherboard DRAM slots. Action Point: Inspect very closely with magnifying glass and good lighting. Remove motherboard if you have to. EDIT: Also check for debris in the DRAM slots.
(2) You have too much or too little pressure on the CPU from your NH-D15 cooler. Action Point: Try loosening up the CPU cooler first. Then try evenly tightening it down.
(3) You definitely want to go back you your original memory kit for all further troubleshooting. The lesson we PC builders and tinkerers always have to be mindful of is that the best course of action is always to change one thing at a time; because it certainly helps when it comes to troubleshooting problems. But of course we all forget that one from time to time.

I'm sure others will have some additional follow-up ideas, especially if they can interpret the EZ-LED behaviour.

BTW, I have your exact motherboard in one of my PCs. I think it's a terrific motherboard for the money! I really hope you can get it working again.
 
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I will try your suggestions when I can find the time. Thank you, and yes this board is terrific for the price. My first proper, pc build, soaked up two months of student loan back in 2022 to build this pc. I'll report back here if anything changes. Thank you again.
 
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wrobelixo1159502e2 said:
I will try your suggestions when I can find the time. Thank you, and yes this board is terrific for the price. My first proper, pc build, soaked up two months of student loan back in 2022 to build this pc. I'll report back here if anything changes. Thank you again.
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I edited my original post to tidy up my typos. But I also added the point to check for debris in the DRAM slots. That can happen. Besides that extra tip, I would go over the PC very carefully looking for cables that have come dettached or loose. I also have a NH-D15 and it is a monster that can obscure your view to the top CPU power cables and RAM modules.

You should definitely double-check that your RAM is always seated correctly, i.e. the two end-tabs are locked in a vertical position. These are simple things, but they do catch people out from time to time. I continue to hope that it‘s something simple. Keep us posted.
 
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if nothing helps, I will suggest you to use Bios Flash button again but try to use other USB storage device and make sure that your system bios could be updated.
 
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