I've experienced two motherboard failures in less than a week, and I'm trying to figure out if thermal issues could be the culprit. The first board was an Asrock X470 ITX that needed a BIOS update for my new 5900XT. After the update, it wouldn't boot, not even with a CH341a flash. Then, I ordered an Asrock B550M ITX to replace it for next-day delivery. After installing it, I stress-tested it by playing Cities: Skylines 2 for about two hours. The display suddenly cut out, the fans quieted down, but the lights stayed on. I couldn't get it to POST again, so it seems that board is dead too. I've already swapped out the CPU, GPU, RAM, and PSU while troubleshooting and tried everything I could think of, including clearing the CMOS and removing it from the case. I know modern motherboards should automatically shut down if they overheat, but is it really possible for thermal issues to completely destroy them? I was running a 5900XT and a 5070Ti in a compact ITX case, and while my CPU temperature peaked around 80°C under load, could any of this have contributed to the damage? Or do you think it's more likely a faulty motherboard?
3 Answers
You should definitely keep an eye on the power supply. It's a common factor that can cause weird issues like this.
It sounds like the PSU might be the real issue here. If it had a fault when updating the BIOS on your first motherboard, it could have killed the second one too. I'm not convinced temperature is to blame here.
I get what you mean, and I wonder about that too. If it is indeed the PSU, that could be a huge pain to deal with!
Yeah, I share your suspicions about the PSU. If it's faulty, it could definitely fry motherboards without any clear thermal indicators.
That's a valid point. Was the PSU a new one, or how old is it? Also, could there be problems with the outlet or any power strips you're using?