All components have been swapped.
All components have been swapped.
Hi everyone, I'm really struggling with some advanced troubleshooting here. This PC is a compact form factor model, which means it differs from standard builds in several ways. It's been running smoothly for almost two years now, but I need to explain the setup details since it's quite unique. The motherboard uses an STX design—smaller than ITX but similar to a slim client with a direct 19V barrel connector. It runs on a Pico power supply, so you'd connect an external case and split the power internally: one path feeds the Pico for SSD/GPU, another goes to the motherboard. The GPU is powered through an M.2 slot via a riser cable.
The problem started when I upgraded the RAM from 8GB to 16GB. After reassembly, the system became unstable and would only boot intermittently. I tried several fixes: reinstalled the original RAM, swapped in a different CPU, unplugged the GPU, used the motherboard video output instead, removed the SSD, and even replaced the motherboard with a new STX unit. All components were either disconnected or swapped out. I also tested three different power supplies to eliminate that possibility.
I used spare parts to build another system, but it didn’t work either. The cables look like everything is either missing or damaged. I’m at my limit with troubleshooting and feel stuck. I’m sharing this so the community can help—any ideas or insights would be greatly appreciated!
The situation involves a plastic casing, so it shouldn't be a short circuit. By the time you hit the 'two systems' phase, you were just running tests on individual components. Regarding the destructive scenario, I'm curious about which part of the build it was—did the PSU behave differently when powering up the new motherboard? Since the 200W Pico is the largest power brick I've tried, even if it wasn't heavily loaded, it's possible it played a role.