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well, problem has reccured, and I've also just noted for the first time that when the monitor loses signal, the keyboard and the mouse also lose all power. I'm assuming it is the PSU causing the problem for sure. I'm currently using a Bestec ATX 300-127, been looking online and I'm advised to avoid cheap PSUs, but I've seen some ranging up to £300, and my current PSU has lasted just under 3 years despite being cheap.

well in that case I don't have an onboard graphics card. if it is the PSU, how much would it cost me to replace, and are there any diagnostics I can perform to confirm that's the problematic piece of hardware here?

thanks, glad to be here :) I'm not sure if I have an onboard graphics card or not, nor would I know how hook up to it if I needed to, I will certainly try it next time I have a problem though, system is running okay right now but was unstable earlier in the day.

I have to apologise in advance, I am a reformed technophobe with no real hands on knowledge of hardware, so I may not describe this accurately. I was gaming earlier in the week, when both monitors (I was dual monitoring on one system) seemed to cut out. neither were receiving any signal from the actual computer, but the system was still running. it then started to omit some kind of little beeping noise, which I'm told is something to do with BIOS and voltage? I powered it down, gave it 5 minutes and rebooted. again, the system started and I could hear the fan and the processor (sic?) but the monitor (I had taken the second screen out at this point) was still receiving no signal. the fans seemed to be going extra hard and were very, very loud in comparison to how they usually run. I gave up, assuming I would need to seek assitance. the next day, I booted up again in the morning before work, and all appeared normal. I went to work, came home, and it was still working. I played some games and surfed the web for a while, until the monitor once again, randomly lost any signal from the PC. again, if I rebooted I would get no signal, and a noise from the fans. this time, I took the back off and cleaned the insides of the PC with a cloth and some compressed air. the fan above the heatsink and the heatsink itself were caked with dust, as was the fan on my graphics card. I removed the card, cleaned it up, checked for any connections that had become frazzled that might require soldering, and I couldn't see anything. plugged the card back in, and the system booted up fine. next day, same story, after a couple of hours the signal died to the monitor, if I tried to reboot the little fans went crazy, and here I am now. the reason I am wondering if the issue is being caused by my graphics card, is that I read online somewhere if your card was overrheating, you can disconnect the CD-ROM drive to resolve the issue. my CD-ROM drive continues to work when there is no output from the graphics card. I have tested multiple monitors and inputs on the graphics card to make sure there is nothing simple causing it. any advice on where I can take this? if you need to know the model of GFX card, motherboard etc then you'll need to direct me to where I can find that, because I haven't got a clue! hope to hear from someone soon :(