Posted on 07/20/2024 4:25:06 PM PDT by Paul R.
Geez, is there some requirement an OP must repost / reply in under an hour? Some of us actually have lives!! And I needed to look at the computer again to get info. for replies, and it was, ya' know, not right at my fingertips.
Anyway, here goes AGAIN:
I've inherited a huge gaming computer from my brother. It seems to turn on ok, except that there is no video from either the Motherboard or the dedicated graphics card. Once the computer is on, the CPU gets warm, the RAM gets warm, the dedicated graphics card gets warm, controls for fan speed (four fans!) appear to work, but there is no indication from either the VGA output or HDMI output on the motherboard, and none from the dedicated graphics card. I even tried the MB video outputs with the dedicated graphics card pulled out of the machine. The monitor I'm using for this runs fine off my laptop (both HDMI and VGA.)
The CMOS battery was dead, but I replaced it. The HD seems to be spinning, but doesn't seem to do searches across the disk, etc. (It is a 1 TB HD, not a SSD.) I'd still think I should see an initial BIOS message on the monitor even if the HD is defective? Oh, BTW, RAM is 32 GB of DDR3, 4 sticks of 8 GB. The DVD player / writer "ejects" and "loads" (no disc in there) but I can't get much further than that without an OS.
Yikes again. Call the Geek squad unless you have components to swap out or you can tether the HD to try and view the contents..
Unless it is a home built computer, computers have stickers from the OEM. That might provide a clue to what operating system the computer was running..
BTW, other posters indicate the CPU must be working ok, so, unless a last resort, I won’t pull it. If the CPU was bad, I’d almost certainly have to ditch the machine as not practical to go further with... :-(
No sticker. I believe my brother built this puppy. Another (if sentimental) reason to put a bit of effort into it...
But again, even if the HD was dead or pulled, I should be able to get an initial VGA or HDMI screen, unless the BIOS (or at least the part of it that controls the POST) is shot...?
My daughter’s friend who likes to mess with old computers is out of the area for another week, but, if something fairly “simple” doesn’t turn up, to him this will go... My buddy with a DVI input monitor should be back this Sunday.
PM’s started working again, thank heavens. :-)
Heh, or better put than my earlier reply, if the CPU or MB are not working, unless my daughter’s friend has something, this machine is probably history. I might be able to sell the graphics card for a few $$. If the HD works, a 1 TB drive, if only for nighttime backups, would not be bad to have around...
It was just a shot in the dark. You have other problems.
Well, see if you can get the MB to beep. You could also have a bad PS that feeds the MB..
All the PS voltages check ok in operation (idling). No beep, but I’ve not yet tried disconnecting everything reasonably disconnectable. (HD, all but 1 RAM stick, etc.)
If no keyboard, should the machine still “beep”? I really wonder about this combination keyboard + mouse socket.
Check the net for beep codes. It varies from bios to bios. Ancient stuff is difficult to deal with, that is why I flamed you with my initial response.(sorry about that). In a previous lifetime, I supported research equipment. Sometimes the vendor went out of business and the vendors that swooped in failed as well. We did HD imaging and scoured the internet for identical PCs as backups. I wish you luck on solving your problem..
I’m copying this to the others who have given good advice about my “monster” when I get back on my “main” desktop machine. (The PC I’m on now is my new Win 11 Pro machine, which I’ve been putting off getting fully set up (install 2nd HD, data transfers, apps / programs installed, etc. So, it’s pretty bare at this point, but, DOES have a spare SATA and power connection for testing (ta-da!) the HD out of my brother’s machine.)
The result:
The HD out of my brother’s machine appears to be fine, and it has Windows 7 SP1 as the OS on it. The last file modified was about 2 weeks B4 my brother passed away - right about the time he had to leave home for better care.
I’ve rechecked literally everything everyone has suggested including the PS voltages, swapped RAM, disconnected everything but the MB, speaker*, keyboard, and CPU (didn’t pull the CPU.) Num lock, scroll lock, and caps lock all still flash green almost immediately on power up, but, no beep, no video. That last includes trying the DVI outputs on both the MB and the monster graphics card, and, again, VGA and HDMI off the MB. (I’m still unable to find a speaker, but have not completely disassembled the front of the machine.) Having having become familiar with most of the rest of the layout of the machine back when and shortly after I originally created this thread, none of these rechecks and added checks took long. Maybe an hour at most. :-)
But, what the deuce is going on? The machine appears to have been in use perhaps literally the day my brother left home.
The only suspicion I have left is that combination keyboard / mouse connection on the back. Is it possible the machine “thinks” there is no keyboard if just a standard keyboard is plugged in there? Could I possibly do something by connecting a keyboard to the MB in some other way? Would the MB manual state that somewhere? It sounds “crazy” that this could be the problem, but...
Haha, I’ve done the same or similar (scouring the internet for identical PCs as backups). Or even just similar machine with full length slots for audio testing h’ware / s’ware packages...
That kept me at it with my well pump outage last weekend. Granted, THAT was desperation, in a house with a wife and daughter...
(I ended up pulling apart (no easy task itself!) and repairing the old pump -- the replacement I bought wouldn't freaking pump water even after 8-9 attempts to prime it!)
That was supposed to be: I’ll check back later when I get back on my “main” desktop machine. :-)
Thank you for including me in your update to this problem.
You mention not receiving video but eveything is “green.”
I’m not sure of the age of your equipment but I’m sure you had to disassemble and reassemble everything, yes?
By chance, do any of the connectors, ports, adapters require pins? Like old VGA cables have adapters with pins. If a pin is missing, you might not get video or some other piece of hardware or peripheral may fail.
With the power off and the system unplugged, I suggest carefully reviewing all your connections to make sure all your pins (if any) are accounted for. If any are missing, examine the port it goes into to see if any have snapped off inside. (Carefully remove them if you can or check youtube to see if there are any DIY tricks for removing a snapped pin from a port.)
If a connection doesn’t use pins, make sure the connector itself still has enough metal to make contact inside the receiver. Possibly, a cable is so kinked that wiring inside is bad or broken.
Replace cabling that have missing pins or worn out connectors. …Or just replace all the old cables with new (or at least different) ones.
I hope that helps. i hope its something mundane like that! Best of luck to you and I hope you can bring your system back!
Hi, Thanks much for the response.
I forgot to mention that the HD IS spinning, but I don’t detect any other vibrations or sounds from it, as one normally would, when it is in the computer from my brother. When in my spare desktop, it seems to behave normally in all respects.
I tried all 3 DVI outputs today (2 on the graphics card, and one on the MB), but only have 1 DVI cable. It is brand new - I took it out of the package today. I also tried previously the VGA output (2 different cables, one with very little use) and the HDMI output (2 different cables, one new, one with little use) which come off the MB. All of the VGI and HDMI cables test ok on a different computer, feeding a different monitor.
There is also no audio from the system speaker, any of the 7.1 outputs, a USB speaker (if individually connected), or the headphone output.
ALL ports and connectors except the USB ports and those at the rear of the HD and DVD player are of the pin & socket type. All look fine including internal connections / connectors. And all have been reseated. I’ve not done a conductor by conductor check of internal cabling, but in the case of the video that would not apply anyway, as all ports are directly on the MB or video card.
This is just “bizarre”, given that the machine was evidently working when my brother to had move out to get supervised care, and other files had dates on them in the weeks and months earlier. Crash report files are all dated much earlier. A couple weeks after he moved out, my brother was dead, and a couple weeks later we transported the machine here, to my home. (I did not try to run it at his place.) Something inside could have jostled free when we moved the machine, but I can’t imagine what else to check, except the CPU to MB connections, and it seems VERY unlikely there is a problem there, given the machine working earlier, and the very secure appearing mounting.
I tend to also think “something mundane”, but, I am stumped! It is almost as if the BIOS (or UEFI) has simply disappeared.
Me, too! I can’t imagine what it could be. I’ve been surprised when a kinked cable was the problem I had on a computer long ago. I remember when a faulty font hiding in the Trash on a Mac brought it down.
Are you using one video monitor? Does the gaming unit have ports for more than one? If you have only one monitor but it can support more, try adding more monitors of the same or a comparable brand? …Or switch ports for the one you have? (Probably you’ve done that and I’ve overlooked it in the thread.)
Happy hunting and I hope you can get the issue resolved!
…So that you have multiple monitors going at once.
Maybe look in the system preferences on the gaming computer, if you can, to what the monitor settings are. Maybe it’s looking for a particular layout scheme with two or more monitors and the monitor you are hooking up with seconday monitor that doesn’t display unless the primary is also displaying.
(That’s a shot in the dark.)
Well, I have no way to look at the system preferences, but, I can try hooking up two monitors. With the goodies I have here I can connect to any combination of the 3 video outputs on the MB: VGA, HDMI, and DVI. OR, I can connect to VGA or HDMI and one of the two DVI outputs on the graphics card. I’d have to get another DVI cable to connect to two DVI outputs simultaneously. (I’ll look tonight inside the empty (somewhat smaller - more like an old 386 style “full tower”), never used gaming case we also brought back: I basically just used it as a box to stuff as many cables, drives, and so on into it as I could, but we were way too rushed for me to make an inventory.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.