Mr.Manchester

Ok, please just hear me out on this one


I bought an Nvidia 7800GTX 256mb to replace my Nvidia 128mb 5200.

First problem was the motherboard, it wasnt PCI-E so ive bought a new one and the PSU wasnt good enough to handle the 7800GTX so that was replaced also.

So tonight me and my brother strip the PC down and start to rebuild it, we get it all in apart from the 7800GTX because the motherboard we bought had integrated graphics, so he wanted to remove them before installing the new card.
We wired it all back up switched it on but all we get is the power light on the case and nothing else so we plugged in the old PSU and that fired it up but nothing on the monitor! faulty PSU or motherboard?

Hes took it into work (microdirect) to let the boffins poke about with it but have you any ideas?

LEUVEN

Hopefully the integrated graphics hasnt been physically removed, as thats the problem
Seriously, I think you can just disable the onboard graphics in the Bios, and have the new card in on first startup (new install of OS)

I normally check the CPU and all connections by reseating them as that sometimes fixes a non booting new install.

Mr.Manchester

The thing wouldnt even turn on to allow us to remove the integrated graphics, we tried reseating the CPU a few times, still nothing but a power light on the front, no fans coming on and the PSU fan either

LEUVEN

So its actually a card thats removable?

Does it have a switch on the PSU itself? as when i got a new PSU recently, it had to be in the on position before you plugged the cord in. worth a try

Mr.Manchester

tried that mate, didnt work either, somethings wrong somewhere and im useless with PC's. Tomorrow if its all working im gonna have to install the 7800GTX myself, hopefully i wont have to reinstall windows, just a case of slotting in the new card and installing it via the CD?

LEUVEN

I'm sure most people would advise you to format/re-install windows when getting a new graphics card and motherboard.
Even getting a new graphics card would mean a reinstall for me, as it can have significant performance differences.
You dont get a 7800 and not be bothered about performance
I suppose you could just uninstall old card and drivers, then try the new card and run some benchmarks to compare.
but TBH with a new Motherboard I'd just format it.

Mr.Manchester

cheers for the advice, im just worried about it all going smoothly, ive had the card a week and cant wait to get battlefield 2 up and running

LEUVEN

I would'nt bother with the drivers on the CD, download latest from somewhere like: http://downloads.guru3d.com/download.php?id=10

D16GER

With any new build I would suggest you do a barebones install first. This is where so many people go wrong. I have seen loads of people install everything only to find the system doesn't work, then have to remove everything to find out what the problem is!!

The install should begin as follows....

Power Supply, Motherboard, CPU, CPU fan, Hard Drive, CD or DVD Drive, Floppy Drive (if needed), 1 stick of memory and Graphics Card.

Thats it for now, NOTHING ELSE!!!

Boot up and see what happens. It is very important to connect a speaker to the motherboard header. This is critical in diagnosing problems as every bios has beep codes to point you in the right direction.

If the board boots, great, on with the installation of Winblows.

If not, why not? Is something not connected? Check and double check all connections. Is the Power supply adequate? Don't be fooled by 400w/500w/600w. Bigger is not necessarily better. Look at the 12v rail. You should be aiming for AT LEAST 20amps.

Also check everything is seated correctly. Reseat the graphics card and ram. When inserting the ram, be sure to hold the edge of the motherboard as they are known to bend, sometimes preventing the ram getting fully into the socket.

Okay, it still is not working?? If so, take everything out of the case and install it all outside the case, on a non conductive surface. This way you can be sure to rule out any shorting.

If nothing is working yet, is there any beeps? If so, listen to the quantity/frequency of the beeps and check them against the list here.

It just may be that you have a faulty part. But by using simple troubleshooting, you can often find out exactly what the issue is yourself.

Good luck!

Scooby-Doo

Have you plugged the small power jumper into the motherboard ? i.e the one built into the case that connects the power button to the MB ?

Scooby Dooby Blue

Andy

Don't concern yourself with the onboard graphics, they'll disable themself once a VGA card it detected.

You said that your system 'fired up' without any display...did the machine actually post (single beep)? Did it sound like there was any hard-drive activity?

If there was no beep, the sensible money's on the memory. If you have 2 sticks, try them one at a time so see if it will boot.
When you rebuilt, did you use a new CPU cooler? If so, did you remember to remove the blue plastic from the bottom of the fan? (don't be offended...seen it a thousand times)
Depending on the CPU, did you remember to plug in the 4-pin molex as well as the 20-pin?
When you removed the old board, did you check the positions of the brass risers that raise it away from the tower? If one of these is in the wrong place for the new board, it could be shorting the board out. (see this once a week with customers determined to self-build)

What particular board (make & model) is it? There may be something overlooked with the assembly.

As D16GER said, is the PSU up to the job of running your super-dooper new 7800? It does require independant power directly from the PSU.

Paul

MJW

If you've switched motherboards you will probably have to re-install windows anyway as the currently installed chipset drivers will not be compatible. Just a thought, but have you checked that your previous CPU is compatible with the new motherboard ?

_Meridian_

iTrader: (1)

Which power supply, and which motherboard? I assume you've plugged in the aux power connector on the 7800? Have you done the same for any aux connectors for the motherboard?


M

_RIP_

Sounds like mobo to power/reset buttons on the case not wired correctly, they usually are a pita and very small and fiddly.

Mr.Manchester

At the moment im not getting any beeps or anything as i said further up the page.

When power up the PSU i get the keyboard and mouse lighting up, then il switch the PC on and i get a power light on the front but nothing else, its completely dead.

_RIP_

You wont get any beeps if the mobo wont POST (power on self test).

Try working through the problem here:

http://www.fonerbooks.com/cpu_ram.htm

_RIP_

If the keyboard and mouse are USB and are getting power, hence getting power from the mobo meaning a working PSU, then in the worse case scenario it could be your CPU which is causing problems. If no CPU is present, or it's not seated, or pins are bent then the mobo wont boot. DI6GER gave the best advice, take everything out and fit it back one step at a time. You dont even need a hard drive connected to POST. You must get the machine to at least POST.

warrenm2

Agree with this. If theres no beeps check this first (or that the PSU is actually plugged into the MB correctly, any other prob (like CPU, graphics or memory) will give you a beep code

Mr.Manchester

Well i picked up the PC all working, slotted in the new card and installed the driver and all i can say is STUNNING!

To say im pleased is an understatement!