To answer you question about the ram, Yes, one stick of bad ram will stop the computer from starting up all together, Ive had it happen to me once or twice before. I kind of doubt that the PSU isn't powerful enough. A lot of people think you need a 500 W or Higher PSU to power a modern computer, but that is not true, most computer will work with a 300+ PSU (and some older ones will work with less, go look up some power draw charts if you don't believe me).
So, as others have said, try going back to just the CPU, Ram and Video card (if you MoBo has an onboard Video card use that) If it doesn't work then you know it is one of those 3 pieces that is having trouble. Generally, CPUs will not fail unless you break a pin or overclock them (you know if you Overclock it, you would change voltage, FSB, or multiplier). Even static charge is LESS likely to break a CPU (but no impossible). I guess poor cooling can do it (did you use thermal grease and is your fan working?). VERY Rarely (Pretty much never) will a manufacturer send out a broken CPU. So if it is broke you probably did it.
For the Ram, it is a bit more volatile (small pun). Shocking the ram (not grabbing your case before touching the ram), Overclocking it, and even the occasional bad stick are all possibilities. you are MUCH more likely to get a bad stick of ram then a bad CPU. It is also possible (but rare) that your motherboard does not support the ram you have. This is more an issue with other Mother Boards.
And your motherboard. Pretty much they arrive dead or alive and work forever. They susceptible to shock, but it is unlikely that you did that. I have seen it before where the terminals at the bottom of the board where touching the case, once I installed the elevation pins everything worked fine. Some motherboards can have their capacitors blown out. Check to see if there is unusual bulging on the cylinders on your mobo (they are the capacitors). Overclocking can kill a MoBo as well (see CPU stuff). One other thing is the fans may be dead on the MoBo, but that usually does not kill it, just causes instability.
For the videocard, Honestly I have never heard of a DOA Video card, so I assume they are rare. Shock, and overclocking would be the most likely killers. But shock is really not all that likely, just worth mentioning.
Your PSU might be dead, but I doubt it. When PSU's die they usually go up in smoke (and take a few other components with them) you probably would have smelt something.
As a side note, Above I mentioned that PSU's at 300W can handle most modern computers, that is not wrong, I ran my Core 2 Duo on a 400 W ThermalTake with a Nvidia 7600 GS, 2 hds and 2 Cd/dvd burners. I even managed to overclock it up to 3 GHZ. After that I needed a better PSU because it only supported the 4 prong spare connector and not the spare 8 prong, which provides a more stable voltage and thus a higher OC. The key to a PSU is really brand name. The Wattage does not mean a whole lot. A Quality brand 400W PSU can run circles around a Generic 800W. Never use the PSU that comes free with your case. With PSU's the adage is true, you get what you pay for. So if you spend $30 for a 600W PSU, chances are the PSU sucks, you should be spending above $50 for a PSU, with that being $50 for about 400W $60 500 and so forth.
Good luck, and I hope this helps
:) ;) :) ;) :) ;) :) ;) :) ;) :) ;) Im Happy
