No Video? :(

[DemonicPenguin]

I've built a computer for a relative that consists of the following specs:

// Intel LGA 775 Pentium 4 520 2.8 GHz, 800MHz FSB, 1MB L2 Cache,
Hyper Threading Technology

// Intel "BOXD915GAVL" 915G Chipset Motherboard For Intel LGA 775 CPU

// Hitachi 80GB 7200RPM IDE Hard Drive, Model HDS728080PLAT20, OEM
Drive Only

// APEX Super Case with 350W Power Supply, Model "PC-132"

// Kingmax 184 Pin 512MB DDR PC-3200

// Optorite 8X DVD+RW/-RW Drive Model DD0405

Anywhoo, I'm able to turn on the computer, the PSU, CPU, and side fans all spin and the Power LED and HDD LED appear on the front of the case. The only problem is that for some reason there is no video. I plugged in numerous different monitors and it seems that the computer is unable to output any video result. I even put in an old PCI video card and used that (hooked the monitor up to it, etc.) and it still wouldn't output any video. Basically, the computer doesn't POST. The monitor does not display anything at all.

If somebody has any idea as to what could be wrong, that'd be most appreciated. If you need more information, just let me know and I'll post it as quickly as I can.

Thank you for your time.

Also, I'd like to point out that the motherboard does have onboard video.
The motherboard came with an Intel Media Graphics Accelerator 900, or something like that.

 

[bluewall21]

Is the 12 volt connector plugged in?

 

[DemonicPenguin]

Yes it is.

 

[mechBgon]

Welcome to the Forums DemonicPenguin Looking at Newegg's photos of the board, I see it uses a 24-pin main ATX cable in addition to an ATX12V plug and a 4-pin drive plug for power delivery. Does your PSU have the full complement of power fittings?

Also, the freebie PSU that came with the case may simply not be up to the task here. Got a high-quality PSU you could try in there, maybe a Fortron, Antec or Enermax in the 350W range?

 

[mechBgon]

Also, consult the manual for the correct DIMM slot to use for single-channel mode, if you have just one module.

 

[DemonicPenguin]

Thank you mechBgon (I found your guide very helpful by the way :x). Anyways, the PSU actually..is not a full 24-pin main ATX cable, although it does have an ATXV12 plugin and a 4-pin drive plug. I do have another PSU that is 400W, and is from a Rosewill case I just bought. I'll have to inspect to see if it has a 24-pin main ATX cable. Thanks for your help.


And I'll have to look at the manual soon. I unfortunately don't have the computer with me at the moment.

After looking at the other PSU, it's just a 20-pin main ATX cable. Although, if memory serves correctly, the manual had configurations for both 20-pin and 24-pin, so wouldn't a 20-pin still work? Just wondering.

 

[mechBgon]

I wouldn't bother with the Rosewill Rebadged L&C. Ewww, ewwww!

Does the motherboard's manual say whether the full 24-pin is required v. optional?

(thanks for the compliment about my guide btw )

 

[DemonicPenguin]

Well, the Rosewill (I'm getting an Antec True430 when I have the money) is the only other PSU I have on hand, unfortunately . And, the manual has full diagrams, information, etc. regarding placement of the 24-pin main ATX cable AND the 20-pin main ATX cable, so I'd assume that if they went through that much trouble, it'd probably be optional.

(You're welcome. )

 

[mechBgon]

The other thing you might try in the meanwhile is to do an out-of-case benchtest with only the essentials. That would help narrow down the list of suspects.

Yeah, with just the onboard video, the extra power lines ought to be optional for you, and if they show where to put it in for 20-pin, that sounds like it's meant as a viable option all right.

Some random things to check, along with the out-of-case benchtest: is the PSU set for the correct voltage for your area (115 or 230) on its little slide-switch; and is the keyboard in the purple port (since I've seen boards that won't POST with the kb in the green mouse port).

Hang in there

 

[DemonicPenguin]

The keyboard is in correctly...and it's set to 115 volts. As for the benchtest, I'll have to try that and see if I'll get something out of that.

 

[DemonicPenguin]

Well, I finally got the computer back and I set everything up (put in the speakers, mouse, keyboard, and monitor). Everything works except for the onboard video, like I suspected. Although, I did notice that the monitor WAS recieving power. Without it connected to the onboard video slot on the motherboard, it would say, "Please connect cable" or something along those lines. Whenever I plugged it into the VGA slot, it would then stop displaying that message and I could hear a sharp, high-pitched sound that seemed like it was transmitting power to the monitor. It did this both when connected to a PCI video card and the onboard video slot.

The whole time while doing this, the monitor just displays a yellow LED, whereas it would be green if it were working correctly. I hope this information helps some :\. If it does not, think of this as a large bump.

 

[mechBgon]

Could the monitor cable simply be faulty? Or the monitor itself? Maybe some cross-testing will help narrow down the list of suspects

 

[DemonicPenguin]

I've tried the computer with three different monitors, and it didn't work with any of them.

 

[DemonicPenguin]

Well, if I can't fix this problem as it is now, then I'm assuming that my hardware is faulty. The question is, what would it be? I'm assuming either the processor or the motherboard, but I have no idea. Any help would be appreciated.