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None of the above is applicable because even the BIOS doesn't start
for 30 minutes. As soon as the BIOS starts, there is no indication that
anything is wrong.
I also moved the hard drive to another machine and everything runs
normally.
I decided to give it up and bought a new machine.
Thanks for the response.
Jack
For future reference here is the general procedure:
Inspect system for loose cables, cards, and vented
capacitors, particularly larger capacitors around the CPU
socket. Take PSU voltage readings with a multimeter if you
have one.
Strip system down to nothing but motherboard, CPU
w/heatsink-fan, 1 memory module, video. This means
everything else is disconnected from data cables and power
supply cables.. No keyboard, no lan, no drives, no nothing
but above parts (and the case switch if you can confirm the
switch works properly, otherwise short the two power-on
motherboard pins with a metal object to turn it on).
Clear CMOS while AC is disconnected.
Retry powering it up. If it still takes 30 minutes without
the other parts connected, you have very few remaining
suspects. If it does not take more than a single-digit # of
seconds now, then first make sure the bios is set as you
need it to be (per features and proper CPU speed, etc), then
save those settings and reboot. Next try powering it off,
then on again. If it stops working properly after changing
bios settings, unplug AC and clear CMOS then retry it. If
it still works properly after bios changes, unplug AC and
begin adding back parts one at a time, retrying it,
unplugging AC, add another part, etc. IMO, you should add
the hard drive last, so you are stuck waiting on windows to
load, and becaues a failing drive can sometimes make it
stall.
It won't be CPU since it does eventually prove to be working
correctly. Same goes for memory. Maybe it's not 100%
impossible for these two to be the problem but very close to
100%, assuming they do work once the system does finally
POST.
Video card is unlikely, but if you had another system in
which you could test the card, do so, or if a lower powered
PCI (or at least a different) video card to try in that
system, do so.
More often it's the PSU or motherboard itself. You wrote
that you swapped PSU, so we might assume the replacement PSU
was not only working, but also capable of the specific
demands of this system... but only you can assume it really,
since we don't know that it is qualified for this use and
already proven working properly. What then remains is the
motherboard itself.
So "IF" the PSU is working properly, motherboard remains.
My guess as to what is most likely would be vented
motherboard capacitors since you had replaced the PSU.
