New system, no display?
July 28th, 2013
The problem is that i recently decided to build a new system so i bought all the parts separately and put them together. When i power it on i can see the CPU and PSU fan running and hear my HDD running but nothing is displayed on the monitor, not even the BIOS. Another thing is that my graphics card fan also does not spin at all.
The setup i am is using is:
Motherboard – Asus P8H61-MLE
CPU – Intel i3 2100 @ 3.1ghz
GPU – Gigabyte 1gb DDR3 GT 520
HDD – Western Digital 500gb SATA 3
PSU – Vantec 520w
RAM – 2 x 2gb Kingston DDR 3 ( got from a friend )
Also have a Creative Sound Blaster 5.1vx sound card installed
I have tried taking out the graphics card and trying to just run of the onboard graphics, switching the position of my ram sticks, taking everything out and setting it all up again but i have still gotten no where. So any help would be greatly appreciated.
Did you connect the 4PIN plug near the CPU socket?
Yes, i made sure all the power connectors are properly connected.
One of the RAM sticks could be faulty, Try each one individually. Also, You do know that all the clips (of the RAM slots)
should be closed regardless to whether there’s a stick in em or not, Right?
I tried both sticks individually in the DDR3 DIMMA_1 slot having the other slots clips closed (which by the way i was not aware of) but still no response.
Try a different PSU.
Try removing the sound card, Could be a strange incompatibility.
Also, Remove all RAM sticks and power up, If it doesn’t beep, The motherboard is faulty, Do note however
that for this test to be effective, The Case speaker has to be connected to the motherboard.
This PSU worked in an older setup i was using previously, i installed the PSU to test it on that system and it worked perfectly less than a week ago.
I have tried removing the sound card but no dice.
Unfortunately i am not entirely sure about the wiring of case speakers as i got the case from a friend and the wiring doesn’t exactly make sense with what my motherboard manual is saying.
BigSenator replied: and the wiring doesn't exactly make sense with what my motherboard manual is saying.
Mind being more specific?
It really shouldn’t be that complicated.
The case i am currently using was given to my by a friend who no longer uses it, there are 5 cables coming from the front panel of the case.
These are the separate small pin connectors the 5 said cables have:
1. Power SW
2. Reset SW, HDD LED, +P LED, -P LED
3. 1 +5v, 1 Ground, 1 -D, 1 +D
4. 2 +5v, 2 Ground, 1 -D, the last one is missing with just the copper wiring hanging out but i could only assume it would be 2 +D
5. GND, Spkout L, Spkout R, Return L, Return R, MIC-BIAS, MIC-IN
So i am kind of confused as to which connector goes where besides of course Power SW, Reset SW, HDD LED, +P LED and -P LED.
Your case doesn’t have a speaker, Those Spkout/Return/MIC connectors are for the front audio ports.
The other ones are for the front USB, You might find this guide useful:
http://www.directron.com/installusb.html
Clearly you can’t perform the test, But I’d say odds are that the motherboard is at fault, Have it replaced and hope
for the best.
Thank you for the guide, it seems quite helpful.
If not my motherboard what else would be most likely to be at fault?
PSU, But you did say it worked with your previous build so it’s not very likely.
It’s rare for all RAM sticks to go bad at once, Even rarer for a CPU to arrive DOA, And you did try using
the integrated graphics to rule out the card so the Motherboard & PSU are the only remaining possibilities.
Does the fact that my graphics card fan does not spin matter?
Not necessarily, Just because it doesn’t spin it doesn’t have to mean it’s defective or got a non-working fan, It does
get it’s power from the motherboard and if it has issues and the power doesn’t reach then it won’t spin, You’ll only know
for sure after you replace the motherboard (or you could test it right now if you got another PC) but obviously, This is another matter which is unrelated.
That makes sense, well i shall take the motherboard back to the shop and see if i can return it.
Thanks you for all the help.
Well today i took my Motherboard, GPU, PSU, CPU and RAM too my friends house to test all the components separately on a known working system. I first tested the RAM in his system and both sticks worked fine. I then tested my GPU in his system and it ran fine as well. I then tested my setup with one of his Nvidia GT 250’s instead of my GT 520 (which in theory should work fine with a 520w PSU right?) although still nothing came up. So i have come to the conclusion that it is the Motherboard that is faulty, does it sound like i would be correct in this assumption?
i had this problem once i dunno how i fixed it
BigSenator replied: then tested my setup with one of his Nvidia GT 250's instead of my GT 520 (which in theory should work fine with a 520w PSU right?)
That was kinda pointless considering the CPU has integrated graphics which is supported by the motherboard, And yes that “theory” is correct.
BigSenator replied: So i have come to the conclusion that it is the Motherboard that is faulty
Gee, I wonder where you got that idea from…
Sorry, I just find it pretty funny that your taking ownership of a conclusion that I originally gave you
BigSenator replied: does it sound like i would be correct in this assumption?
Provided you also tested your PSU on his PC , Yep.
Yeah i realized only after we had done the test that i had already tried the onboard, my friend wanted to test it with another card as well.
Sorry that part was poorly worded, i was testing on the basis of your assumption that the motherboard was the problem, which seems to be correct.
I was not able to test my PSU on his system but after this motherboard is replacement and the problem continues all signs would point to just the PSU right?
BigSenator replied: I was not able to test my PSU on his system but after this motherboard is replacement and the problem continues all signs would point to just the PSU right?
Yep, But it’d be a good idea to know for sure before replacing anything.
Go back to your friend and try out his PSU, Or alternatively, Buy a cheap digital multimeter and I’ll guide you
on how to measure the voltages, It’s a fairly simple process.
BigSenator replied:
i was testing on the basis of your assumption that the motherboard was the problem, which seems to be correct.
Much better now
I was using the same PSU less then a week before i bought my new system so i am quite sure it works but your right i should test whether the power is sufficient for my setup at the moment.
Well, These things are sudden, Just because X device worked fine a week ago it doesn’t mean it’s still good now.
Anyways, What happened to your old system? Can’t you test the PSU with it?
If you can’t be bothered going to your friend again, Just get this DMM and I’ll tell you how to use it:
http://di-cksmith.com.au/product/Q1467/19-range-digital-multimeter
Edit: LOL the d word was censored so had to edit it a bit, Remove the – for the link to work.
right, i sold my old system actually so i don’t have a recent enough system at home to test on.
haha i was wondering why it didn’t work. I should be fine to test it at my friends house tomorrow though, that way i can also test his PSU on my setup.
BigSenator replied: so i don't have a recent enough system at home to test on.
That’s fine, It doesn’t need to be recent, Any would do really. Your current PC is not very power
hungry and this is not even the *potential* issue, An underpowered PSU can cause instability, But not
a blank screen, That can only happen when it’s defective.
Well i took my motherboard back to the shop today and said it wasn’t working at all and told him nothing was coming up on the monitory. He looked at the CPU socket and realized that a single pin was bent out of place, he then said that since it was physical damage that he had to send it back to Asus to get it repaired or get a socket and either way it was cost me $55 (which obviously sucked and would mean i would have to pay as well as have no system for quite a while). I then asked him if there was anything else i could try before that option, he said that he could just try to fix the pin himself, i agreed because it was free and i had nothing to lose and it would save me money and a lot of time if he pulled it off. He pulled out a knife and moved the bent pin upwards to the correct position and then put in my CPU, a stick of ram and plugged it all in. That seemed to work because everything ran as normal and i was needless to say very happy with how everything turned out.
Thanks a lot to everyone for helping me fix this problem.