How To Test A Motherboard With A Multimeter? | Simple Guide 2023

How To Test A Motherboard With A Multimeter? | Simple Guide 2023

The Motherboard is without a doubt the most critical component of any computer. It houses all of a computer’s essential features. There may be times when your Motherboard fails to function correctly owing to a circuit problem. It would be the best way to learn how to test a motherboard with a multimeter because this is the quickest approach to figure out the issue with your Motherboard.

A multimeter is a great instrument to have in this case, and getting one isn’t too expensive if you don’t already have one. There are various reasons why your Motherboard is causing you problems, but in my experience, one of the most common causes is improper maintenance. To avoid such issues, you should clean your Motherboard regularly. 

If you’re still having problems with your Motherboard after adequately maintaining it, I’m confident that this post will be of assistance. Let’s check out what problems your Motherboard is having or how to test a motherboard with a multimeter!

Easy & Effective Way On How To Test a Motherboard With a Multimeter in 2 Easy Ways!

There can be any reason for the failure of your Motherboard. Here are some of them!

Short Circuit May Be The Reason

We have listed a step-by-step guide to let you understand every step!

Step No. 1: Turn your computer down entirely, then unhook all of the power switches that are attached to it.

Step No. 2: Turn your computer down entirely, then unhook all of the power switches that are attached to it.

Step No. 3: Adjust your multimeter to the lowest setting, typically 200 Ohm. You must contact both leads simultaneously to bring the meter down to zero. After that, check it with the chassis to see whether it has dropped to zero. This is only a precautionary measure.

Step No. 4: Disassemble your computer to discover the Motherboard after that. Remove the ATX connection from the Motherboard at this point.

Step No. 5: The red wire connects to the AC ground pin on the PSU, while the black lead remains connected to the chassis. The DC connection should have black wire pins. All of the measurements should be 0 at this time.

Step No. 6: Keep the black lead in place while checking all the colored wires with the red information. It’s ubiquitous to have a total of 50 or more. If it is less than 50, you should be concerned.

Step No. 7: If the preceding approaches do not satisfy you, you can experiment with different strategies to uncover flaws. 

Remove the Motherboard from your computer. To locate the PINs on your Motherboard, use the ATX 20-pin chart. 

The red lead may be used to test each of the GND PINs. Three, five, seven, thirteen, fifteen, sixteen, and seventeen must all be zero. There’s a problem if you notice any other reading.

This is one approach on how to test a motherboard with a multimeter. Let’s check out the other one!

An interesting read: How to Tell If Your Motherboard Supports SSD?

 How To Test a Motherboard With a Multimeter in Easy Way
How To Test a Motherboard With a Multimeter in Easy Way

For DC voltage

The steps to see if the DC voltages are somewhat different are as follows!

Step No. 1:  start with assuring the 20-pin ATX connector is connected, and then switch on the computer.

Step No. 2: Set the multimeter to 20V DC after that.

Step No. 3: Now test the backside of the connection with the black multimeter test, making sure that the black test is in contact with pins 15, 16, or 17.

Step No. 4: On the other hand, the red test should be done with a 9 and 14 combination. PIN 9 should be 5V, and PIN 14 should be 3 to 5V.

Step No. 5: After that, switch on the computer. Everything is good if the measurements decrease to zero. If not, there may be some issues that need to be addressed.

Step No. 6: You must now do the red test one more time. Check pin 8 with it. It should have a voltage of at least 2.5 volts. 

Step No. 7: Try pressing the reset button to see if the reading drops to zero and then rises again. Do not be concerned if it does not. 

In this scenario, a trained specialist will undoubtedly assist you. You may easily employ them for a few dollars in your neighborhood.

Here are some other ways about how to test a motherboard with a multimeter to identify any faults in your Motherboard.

Also Check out: How many GPU can a Motherboard Support?

How to Check for Short/Open Circuits in the Power Supply and Motherboard

Step No. 1: To begin, disconnect the computer from the power outlet and wait a few minutes for any remaining energy to drain. As safety is the priority, set the multimeter to the lowest Ohm setting (about 200) and zero the meter by connecting the test leads. 

Touch the two leads to the PC’s chassis’ exposed metal. After that, the zero reading should be the same.

Step No. 2:

  1. Remove the ATX connection from the Motherboard with caution now.
  2. Keep the black test on the chassis’ metal, and use the red lead to check the A/C ground pin on the PSU and the black wire pins on the D/C connection; they should all read zero.
  3. Make sure of it on your own.

Step No. 3: After that, consider keeping the black lead on the chassis and using the red test to check the figures and values of the shaded wire pins on the D/C connection. A value of 50 or above should be obtained from all darkened wires.

Step No. 4: Consider removing the CPU from the socket on the Motherboard. To relate nail numbers to the board’s connection, use the ATX 20-pin chart.

Sum Up!

The procedure for testing a motherboard with a multimeter may appear to be excessive. You’ll need to be patient and cautious while doing so. 

Using these basic and straightforward instructions, you’ll surely learn to test a motherboard with a multimeter correctly. Do let us know in the comments section if you find this article informative. Thank you very much.


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Lawarance Hussain
By Lawarance Hussain

Lawrence Hussain is the founder of Pcvector.com, Who aims to make people knowledgeable about the actual parameters related to PC & Gaming equipment. He is enthusiastic about computers and their components, and he is constantly eager to learn more.

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