Hey everyone, I was running a game along with Chrome, VSCode, and two virtual machines (don't judge), and out of nowhere, my PC *popped*, sparked, and now it smells like burnt popcorn! Now, it won't boot up at all – just makes a sad clicking noise. Is the power supply unit (PSU) dead? Did I fry the motherboard? Or did my PC just decide to quit on me for good?
3 Answers
Have you checked for any visible damage on the motherboard? Look for scorch marks or burnt components. If you're not able to spot anything, start by swapping out the PSU – it’s usually quicker and cheaper than replacing the motherboard.
It sounds like a classic PSU failure. That pop and the burnt smell definitely point to it. You might want to test with a spare PSU if you can before swapping anything out. There's a chance it could have fried other components too, so be careful!
It’s likely that your power supply unit has died. The sound you heard was probably a capacitor going off or a short-circuit spark. And those fumes can be toxic, so it's a good idea to air out the room. Don’t plug your PC back in until you get a new PSU!
Yeah, and remember, if you do have to replace the motherboard later, make sure to get the same model and reapply that thermal paste when you put the CPU on the new one!