Read the FAQ... still no video out!

[THE4MAN]

So I read the FAQ regarding this problem, but still I get no video out of my machine.

My system had been running rock solid for two years, then *all the sudden*, I go to boot the machine, it hangs during the bootup process, powers itself off and won't reboot with any video out, although it does power on. The video card itself is good as checked in another system. I replaced the power supply and even swapped the motherboard, but still no video out. Since I have nothing else hooked up other than the video card, RDRAM and CPU, I am leaning towards the CPU at this point but don't really have a way to check it for sure. The new power supply and used motherboard only set me back $50 but a new CPU will be more than double that and so I am apprehensive in buying one since this is a spare computer. But nevertheless, it *is*, *was* a good working machine and I'd like to fix it. If anyone has advice or would like to confirm my suspicion of a faulty CPU, I'd love to hear from you.

Thanks in advance for any help you can provide.

Dave Fore

 

[franklin97355]

So, you get no video, not even the bios messages? Have you tried the monitor on another computer?

 

[THE4MAN]

Thanks for the reply.

Still no video - not even the bios messages. The monitor doesn't even power on like it's supposed to when it sees an incoming video signal (power LED just stays orange instead of kicking on to green), but the monitor itself tests good with another system. By process of elimintation, the only things left are the CPU or the RDRAM. When I pop the RAM out, I still get the same problem *plus* I don't get any "beeps" out of the system speaker indicating that there is no RAM installed.

I guess I am dancing around the inevitable, but I just need someone to smack me on the head and tell me for sure that it's the CPU before I buy another one. I've never had a CPU go bad on me and I don't have a way to directly test it but my suspicions tell me the CPU is the problem.

Thanks again in advance for any help.

Dave Fore

 

[vbrocks]

Have you tried disconnecting the hard drive and floppy drive, and the keyboard and mouse, and remove all cards except the video card. Sometimes a bad component can drag everything else down.

 

[THE4MAN]

Yeah, everything is disconnected excpet the CPU and the video card. And since the video card tests OK in another system, and this is with a new power supply and duplicate motherboard, that leaves the CPU. Am I right?

 

[vbrocks]

There is nothing left except maybe the video cable.

 

[THE4MAN]

Video cable is good
I think by default I have answered my own question...
Thanks anyway for the help.

Dave Fore

 

[shmoes]

I had the same problem with a memory stick..

the ram went and not the CPU... did you test the ram in another comptuer?


~Shmoes

I lay claim to nothing and everything. My words may be wisdom or disaster. In the end you make a choice. Noone is perfect.

 

[shmoes]

for that matter, pull the ram out of the other computer assuming they're the same type and try it in the broken one.

~Shmoes

I lay claim to nothing and everything. My words may be wisdom or disaster. In the end you make a choice. Noone is perfect.

 

[ceh4702]

An old cheap PCI video card would be nice to have at this point.

If you think about it you could buy a new motherboard with integrated video and an AGP port and try that out. Since this is a spare computer, it is not too much of an investment. The worst part would be having to buy new DDR Memory and a processor.

You can also try a different power supply. They go bad all the time. Sometimes they still have enough power to turn on for a while but will not boot up a PC.

If a computer lasts over 2 years it has outlived its warranty in most cases. It may not be worth messing with. Sometimes they get too much dust in there and they just burn up.

If you do not like my post feel free to point out your opinion or my errors.