New build not displaying anything on power up

skudzy

skudzy

skudzy

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16 Sep 2007
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40
Hi guys ive just finished putting together my new rig, plugged in the monitor and pressed the power button to find that nothing appears on the screen. All the fans are running and everything seems to be running fine inside the case but theres just no output! I have no clue what to do now so any ideas or suggestions?

Spec (minus the raptor):
buildxd4.jpg
 
Yep theres a red and a green light and i have plugged the 8 pin ATX cable in... arrgh this is so annoying! Does it matter which of the two ports on the gfx card i plug the monitor into? I have tried them both tho. Also, was i correct in attaching the separate power supply to the gfx card? The lead that came with it had a connector which branched off into two so i attached both ends to the power supply.
 
heh sorry, the gfx card came with what i assume to be one PCI-E cable (used that instead of the ones that came with the PSU) so i plugged that in. It splits into two connectors on the other end and i plugged them both into the power supply.

There arent any beeps no. Sorry for the lack of insightful observations! This is my first build!
 
ok i switched over to using the one that came with the PSU and plugged it into the PCI-E socket on the PSU but no change. One thing i have noticed is that when i press the power button it all starts powering up and then it kinda dies for a couple of seconds, green light goes out and then it automatically starts powering up again and then carries on running. Does this tell you anything?
 
  • When the graphics fan starts thats when the computer dies for a couple of seconds but then it runs fine once it all restarts.
  • Ive been using just one monitor so far and tested it on both DVI ports and still nothing.
  • Yep the CPU fan is plugged into the CPU_FAN header and it runs when power is switched on.
  • Just tried it with 1 stick of RAM and theres no change.

Noo this cant be the point where i just despair and start praying that it simply works! Is there anything more anyone can suggest?

On the PCI-E plug theres 2 pins that extend from the 6 pin plug but arent connected to anything... is that right? Is it worth unplugging the DVD drive and HDD and try it without them?
 
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No unfortunately i cant get anything to appear on the screen. This is driving me mad because in theory there shouldnt be any problem... plug this in, that in and switch it on! Simple! Arrgh. Could it be that it is actually booting to the bios and that i simply cant see it? The monitor just constantly says 'Check Signal' as if nothing is plugged in at all.

There isnt anything plugged into the SYS_FAN header if that makes a difference. Dont know what i would plug in there coz ive got the CPU fan on the CPU_FAN header and there arent any other fans with that kind of connection. What usually happens if the power supply isnt big enough? Could that be the issue? Also, on a side note, if ive only got a wireless keyboard would it be recognised when i first boot up to the bios (once i figure out how to get there!)?
 
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memory said:
connect graphics ...1 stick ram...cpu..monitor..keyboard...power supply
nothing else if your trouble shooting
also make sure your heatsink is seated properly on the cpu...if its not making contact properly then you wont get very far.
it does sound like a power pack problem but that doesnt mean it is

also make sure everything is fitted properly..ram/graphics/cpu
try resetting cmos too
Click to expand...

Tried all that and still no joy. I realised this morning i hadnt plugged power into the 12v Auxiliary PCI-E power socket on the motherboard but even with that in there its not doing anything. I've reset the CMOS a number of times and tried with 1 ram, both ram, disconnecting things, plugging the monitor into each DVI port, taking the gfx card out, putting it back in and still nothing. If its a faulty component could it be the graphics card? I'll try hunting around for someone with a different card i can try in there but thats about the last thing i can think of doing unless anyone else suggests something.
 
Ok, tested a different graphics card and got the same result. Only thing is ive only just realised that on my monitor i hadnt switched over to the digital source so that was why it was complaining of no signal cable. Now thats done it sits on standby but it still doesnt fire up when i turn the computer on. I guess this means its not the gfx card causing the problems. *sigh* I guess that leaves the RAM or the motherboard. Ive tried with one ram in and theres no change there. Does that point to the motherboard being the source of my unhappiness?
 
WOOO!! Just switched the 1 stick of ram i had in there with the other one and it booted to bios!! Would that indicate the first stick i had in there is faulty? Also what is it i need to change in the bios with voltages etc?

Also, just want to double check... in the bios it says the frequency of my CPU is 1.2GHz but then says the CPU operating speed is 2.4GHz. Does that sound right? The 1.2Ghz sounds a bit low...
 
After i put the voltage up to 1.9v I tested the other stick and it worked so ive now got them both in there and it works. That CPU frequency also went up to 2.44GHz after installing the second RAM stick. Next stop is sorting out the memory timings and speed. In the DRAM timing screen it has the following options, all set to Auto:
- CAS Latency Time
- RAS# to CAS# Delay
- RAS# Precharge
- Precharge Dealy
- Refresh Cycle Time
- Write Recovery Time
- Write to Read Delay
- Act to Act Time
- Read to Precharge

Basically im not sure where you set this whole 4/4/4/12 thing. Any help would be great :)
 
Ok Ive adjusted the timings for the RAM but i cant find anywhere to set the frequency of it. The only thing i can see that seems similar is DRAM speed which is a ratio of CPU:DRAM. Is that it? If so which ratio do i want? Also, theres a PCI Express Frequency set to 100MHz... is that ok?

Finally, whilst trying to install vista it crashed to a blue screen a couple of times, the second time stating IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL so i guess this is the instability you're referring to. I'll try putting the voltage up to 2.0 and see if that helps.
 
The ratio options i have are:
- 1:1.00
- 1:1.20
- 1:1.25
- 1:1.50
- 1:1.66
- 1:2.00

So not sure which one i need! The External clock is set to 272MHz and it has a min of 200 and max of 600 i can enter. Thats the only place i see the bios even mentioning FSB frequency so not sure if thats right either! Thanks for all this help!
 
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Thanks for all your help guys its really helped me get up and running!

Only problem now is that because the vista install crashed it wont start again... keeps coming up with "BOOTMGR IS MISSING" even when i set it to boot from DVD as the top priority. It does come up with "press any key to boot from DVD" but ignores my frantic key pressing. Maybe its my wireless keyboard not being detected...
 
Corasik said:
Yeah, thats a typical response with a wireless keyboard.

Go into bios, somewhere there will be an option which says something about legacy USB devices.

You need to enable legacy USB devices to get usb keyboards workout inbetween bios, and windows loading (IE to press the key)

Once you do that your wireless keyboard should be fine.. Otherwise you'll have to try a PS2 Keyboard.
Click to expand...

My man, you are an absolute genius!! Thanks! :D
 
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