No video

[nh39]

Hi,
This is a Micro ATX PC. At first the power supply failed. Replaced it. It worked for a short while. After I turned it on and off for a few times, the PC lost its video. I turned it off completely and turned it back on. It was back to normal, again, only for a few times of shutdown. Now it does not have any video at all. This time it's stopped working for good. The video card is APG. I've even tried a PCI video card and still got the same blank screen on the monitor. Tried another monitor; tried each video with both monitors - still no luck. The monitors are much newer than the PC and they work well with other PCs.
I tried the third video card (PCI) from an old PC. I was able to get it on once with this video card. Could not find anything wrong with it. Shut it down and not able to turn it back, again.
Any help or suggestion is appreciated. Thank you in advance.

 

[mattjurado]

So different monitor and different video don't really solve it... Do you get your single post beep code every time the video doesn't come on? Does it sound like the computer loads the operating system off the hard disk when you don't get video?

Matt J.

Please always take the time to backup any and all data before performing any actions suggested for ANY problem, regardless of how minor a change it might seem. Also test the backup to make sure it is intact.

 

[bcastner]

It is perfectly possible something is wrong with the new power supply or its installation. It is also perfectly possible that with the failure of the original power supply it took with it some key chips on the motherboard. Matt J. asks the good questions:

. do you hear any system sounds on startu[
. are all fans turning
. are the hard disk drives turning
. are there lights on indicating power to the motherboard
. is there any effort to boot

 

[nh39]

Thanks Matt and bcastner for responding.
It "sounds" and "looks" like the operating system starts up fine. One POST beep, power light, HDD light, FDD ligh flash, keyboard light, even NIC light and fans are all on as expected. Power supply seems to be properly installed. It's P4 compatible, so, the little 4-prong connector that is supposed to go on the mainboard is left out because this PC is old. The original power supply is a tiny 120W and the new one, also as tiny, is a 150W.
The thing I want to emphasize (though it might not lead to anything) is that the PC was able to start up with the original video card for about 5-6 times before it quit for good. The second video never ticked at all. The third one got up on the very first time right after I installed it but never came back after I shut it down.

 

[mattjurado]

I would try one other power supply to be safe. Perhaps you can simply return the one you have and exchange it.

If still no go, and you have tried multiple cards in different slots, and a different monitor, might be a damaged mainboard.

Matt J.

Please always take the time to backup any and all data before performing any actions suggested for ANY problem, regardless of how minor a change it might seem. Also test the backup to make sure it is intact.

 

[aquias]

PCI and AGP are the cards you've tried, so you've done multiple slots. An odd question, was the vga cable integrated into the monitor or did you move the cable over with the new monitor? It could be something as simple as a few bad pins.

 

[nh39]

The cable is integrated into the monitor.