Blank screen on startup

I've got this problem where my machine is sometimes blank when it first
starts up. The BIOS work fine, but when when Windows tries to load it
dies. I can't remember whether it's while the Windows logo is on the
screen or whether it's before then.

I know this is slightly OT, but you guys will know about this stuff
(and the machine is homebuilt). It has happened twice so far, and
worked fine on both occasions after turn off, and on again. Today was
a bit warmer, so I don't know whether that is related. Anyway, there
are two possibilities I can think of Windows, or my PSU. I'm running
XP pro, and it is a clean install though (only a few months old).

My specs are :
300W AOpen PSU
Abit KD7 motherboard (with a passive Zalman northbridge cooler)
Athlon XP 1700+ (48.9 Watts IIRC)
512Mb DDR 333MHz Samsung
MSI Geforce FX5500 128Mb
SB Audigy 2 ZX
LG DVD-ROM
LG DVD-RW
Floppy drive
120mm Akasa Amber fan (my only fan)

Would you expect my PSU to struggle with this? My PSU (and m/b) is
about 2.5 years old, but the graphics card and sound card have only
been in there for a few months.

.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: windows hardware error message
    ... coupled with the spontaneous shut-downs "to prevent damage to the computer" (probably meaning to prevent your CPU and Mobo from frying) seem to point in that direction. ... Of course, if a faulty power supply *has* led to other components overheating, it may not be *just* the PSU *anymore*... ... I can also offer the following sad story from my youth as a cautionary tale: In my early PC days, when the idea of opening one up, let alone building one was alien to me, I had a Compaq Presario Windows 95 system that developed a problem whereby the PSU fan kept stalling. ... Finally, the semester ended and I took the system in to replace the PSU, and for good measure, I had them install a new HDD and more RAM too. ...
    (alt.comp.hardware.pc-homebuilt)
  • Re: windows hardware error message
    ... I vote with peter and the psu guys. ... windows 2k, new graphics cards, single graphics card, turning off ... shadowing in bios, turning on and off ECC in bios, updating bios, ... basic graphics card, changing the battery. ...
    (alt.comp.hardware.pc-homebuilt)
  • Constant freezing
    ... Windows XP SP1 + All updates etc ... my problem is that im getting intermittent freezes in games. ... pushed my graphics card to a much higher overclock... ... replaced the PSU temporarilly with another 300 watt but this is temporary ...
    (microsoft.public.games)
  • Re: XP Pro SP2 wont warm boot
    ... When you restart the machine then the memory is ... > It even locks up at the same point when I exit the BIOS to Windows. ... > software (AnI am wondering if this could be a PSU problem? ... > All hardware has the current drivers. ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.general)
  • Re: Blank screen on startup
    ... I can't remember whether it's while the Windows logo is on the ... >are two possibilities I can think of Windows, or my PSU. ... >120mm Akasa Amber fan ... but the graphics card and sound card have only ...
    (alt.comp.hardware.pc-homebuilt)