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Help! Windows XP boots, but monitor is blank!

MajinWu

MajinWu

Senior member
I just installed Windows XP Pro for my friend's computer. It posts just fine, and goes to the Windows splash screen, but after that, nothing shows up on the monitor. When I enter Safe Mode, however, everything is fine.

He uses a Dell Mobo from 1999. Runs a 1 GHz Intel Celeron, 256mb of PC133 ram, a PCI GeForce 5200 video card, Maxtor 5400 rpm HD. I know, the parts could definitely use an overhaul (can you believe that the CPU uses a PASSIVE heatsink?! I had to ghetto mod it to mount a fan on it!)

Any help would be appreciated!
 
Remove the video card driver, reinstall it. I'm pretty sure there's a simpler way, but I can't remember it. (What's probably happening is that the video card is setting a mode the monitor can't handle. Maybe changing the resolution to something in safe mode would help).

The other possibility is that he has onboard video and another card, and the computer boots up on one, but windows uses the other (I've seen this before).

Originally posted by: MajinWu(can you believe that the CPU uses a PASSIVE heatsink?! I had to ghetto mod it to mount a fan on it!)
Click to expand...

Actually, Dell (like every major OEM) makes sure their systems are stable with their default cooling. They usually place a case fan near enough to the CPU to keep it cool. You should not have needed to do that.
 
yea, probably the refresh rate is too high, so the monitor is shutting off to prevent damage... do what CTho9305 said, do into safe mode and delete the display adapter, then reboot and reinstall it... download the newest ones while your at it
 
Actually I am having a very similar problem. But it is not the refresh rate, the computer is actually not liking the drivers for nvidia gart. I have tried every different version of the drivers and still same problem, the only way I can get it to work is to use the default vga driver. I am running a g4 Ti4200 MSI card, which I know worked perfectly in my other box on windows 2000.

I can get it to boot safe mode fine always, but after a driver installation it will goto splash then nothing, and then I have to goto last good configuration.

I have no idea why it is doing this so any help would be appreciated.
 
Sometime the video display falls out of range, and you get nothing.

If you go in through SAFE MODE, you can right click and hit PTOPERTIES
from there SETTINGS, and slide the Screen Resolution to 800 X 600.

Restart the machine, and if you get the display to work
go back into the same PROPERTIES, and correct the range.
(Don't get too aggressive, you can pooch it again)
 
the video card is sending out the wrong refresh rate, I had this with 98se and 2 different cards on LCD it would not come up but it worked fine with CRT.
 
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