computer posts intermittantly then freezes

[Chame1eon]

This is my system:

-MSI K8n Neo4-f 2.0
-AMD Athlon 64 x2 3800+
-Corsair value select 1GB ddr400 cas3
-EVGA Nvidia 6800 gs
-NZXT PF400, +3.3V - 22a, +5V - 35a, +12V - 20a
-IDE1 - Hitachi 400gB, Western Digital 40 gB
-IDE2 - Samsung dvd rom cd rw
-Windows XP SP2

a few days ago i my onboard lan card suddenly dissappeared in windows and in the bios after the computer had been on all night. I restarted several times after this with no problem except sygate crashed everytime untill i reinstalled it. Then my computer restarted spontainiously and froze on the windows screen. after i restarted, windows booted then it restarted again. I cleared the cmos. The computer would post and enter bios, but freeze. Now, with he ide's unplugged, my computer will only post after sitting untouched for several hours then freeze before i can get to bios. If i have attempted to boot it the fans will spin, but i won't get a beep or display.

i tried a different psu but the best i could find was 300 watts

i tried clearing the cmos via the button and leaving the cmos battery out all night.

i tried starting the computer after taking each peice out untill i had only the motherboard and psu and never got any beeps

i noticed that sometimes the computer will start after it has power even when the front panel power button is unplugged, even when the motherboard is sitting out of the case on a wooden surface.

I don't have any other parts to test with.

I tested the +12 and +5 volt on the psu with a multimeter, but couldn't test anything else.

Does this mean the motherboard is dead? Is there anythign else i could try?

[clocker]

Does this mean the motherboard is dead?
The Magic Eightball says "yes".

Edit:
Look at all the caps on the board and see if any have bulging/leaking tops...

[Chame1eon]

Thanks Clocker. I checked the capacitors and they seem to be ok. I kinda wish they were bad so i had some proof it was manufactured wrong before i rma it. I hope it wasn't the cheap psu.

Edit:
Does MSI still have that problem. I actually hadn't heard about that untill after i got that board. I was hoping that they had fixed the problem.

[clocker]

Bad caps are not a MSI-specific problem...any board can have them.
It's just the only visible way to check a board.

My last DFI Expert acted like yours right out of the box.
The replacement works fine.

Motherboards are very complex pieces of engineering...it shouldn't come as a surprise when one goes toes up occasionally.

[Chame1eon]

All right I won't defame MSI :D

Thanks agin for the information. :)