PowerMac G5 wont boot

[Mac03ForLife]

Hello

It's been awhile since I've posted anything here, I've been busy on the pro gaming scene
Anyways, most of you know that i have a PowerMac G5 (Dual 1.8) that I use for video editing and photoshop, etc. I went to turn it on the other day, and found that it would not boot at all. I get a click, the fans twitch, nothing lights up on the MoBo, but the light on the power button is functioning and turns on briefly upon pressing it.

I have tried a PMU reset, and have purchased a new CMOS battery from Saft. Do you think that when I install the new battery it will fix it or do I need to do more than that?

It also has been sitting in my cold basement for over 3 months, could that have something to do with it?

Any help is appreciated. Thanks

 

[z970]

Huh. When I was much smaller, my iMac G3 stopped working, so I thought a new PRAM battery (also bought from Saft) would fix it, which it didn't.

I don't think a new battery is going to do much for you.

If they're just twitching, are you sure the fans can spin?

Yes. What humidity level would you say your basement has? And does it have an insect, or God forbid, mouse problem?

 

[Mac03ForLife]

Huh. When I was much smaller, my iMac G3 stopped working, so I though a new PRAM battery (also from Saft) would fix it, which it didn't.

I don't think a new battery is going to do much for you.

If they're just twitching, are you sure the fans can spin?

Yes. What humidity level would you say your basement has? And does it have an insect, or God forbid, mouse problem?

Okay. interesting
I have no way of testing their capabilities without another working model. I can spin them by hand though.
Very dry. Dry AsF. Insects are rare, the occasional cricket meets its doom p quick bc of my cats. Mice meet the same fate.

 

[z970]

OK, so environmental factors should not be an issue...

The fans seem to function alright then...

Hmm... This is tricky. My gut tells me that behavior would be evidenced if some component is missing, but I doubt that's the case...

Though I don't see it working, try fitting your battery. If it still refuses to boot up, I'd pin it to either a motherboard, or power supply failure.

Look around on the motherboard. See if there's a PMU reset button, which the iMac G4 and (probably) a few other computers have. If you see one, press it only once, then try again. If there's still issue, I'd probably say it's the motherboard.

If it's a 2003 model, then it most likely will be. Those models were known for logic board failures, and I don't believe the power light would come on if it was related to the PSU.

 

[pl1984]

Does the power light flash at all?

 

[Mac03ForLife]

Does the power light flash at all?

Yeah. The power light looks fine, when i push the button, it lights up and everything

@z970mp i did check on that - I did the PMU reset using the reset button and it did nothing.
The only environmental thing i can think of now is that my room is COLD (50-60 degrees in summer) and HOT (70-80) in winter. However, my family used to use it under these conditions just fine until we started having a dust problem inside the machine and I did a partial teardown in order to remedy the issue.

I had the RAM unseated, fans out, optical drive out, GPU out, and HDD.
Having remedied the issue, i reassembled everything and it booted fine. About 2 months later is when this happened, after I had not been using it a lot.

 

[z970]

Augh...

I want to say it's the PSU, but if the light is coming on and the fans are least trying to start, it's probably the MoBo.

Plus, the 2003 models are known for MoBo failures. What you could do is to try replacing it, which I tried to accomplish back in August 2016. But the catch is that you need a special long screwdriver that can reach through the heatsink to detach the processors out, which is what I failed to realize, so I had to admit defeat and put everything back together. Refer to iFixit for details.

You could still try your battery when it comes in, but I'm not confident that'll do it.

 

[Mac03ForLife]

It's a 2003 alright. It's been ticking just fine since then, and we are looking at replacing it with a 2006 mac pro. I hope i can keep it running though. Ill try everything. I have the tools I need to get the mobo out, as I am a computer repair technician and have repaired powermacs and imac g3s before

 

[z970]

"I am a computer repair technician and have repaired powermacs and imac g3s before"

I'm relatively sure that's a statement all of us here could make.

-

If it were me, I wouldn't get an '06 Mac Pro. I'd go down to the local dump and pick up the best abandoned machine I could find, clean it up, upgrade it, and...well...

Most people here know what I would do then.

Actually, that's probably what I'm going to do for my next computer, if and when my '08 Mac Pro kicks it, or gets too damn old to function.

...Assuming of course I don't already have a Talos II at that point in time.