Quick question regarding computer power supplies

[sweetdiesel]

I got the new PS installed and all cables hooked up. Turn the computer on and the lights on the disk drives and floppy drive all light up. The center panel light also lights up and does the flashing movements and the hard drives sound like they are running. But when I turn on the LCD, it says "no signal".

What is the next step to troubleshooting it? Could it be possible that the graphics card went bad when the power supply went out?

edit: did some searching on the net and it is a good possibilty that my PS took out other components when it went out, including the motherboard. Arrgg.

 

[FastEddy]

Use the monitor and the cable on another computer to check and see if its a bad cord. Or if you have another video cable swap it out. KISS. If it isnt the cable, remove the video card and re-install it. It may have come unseated somehow. If that doesn't help, watch the DVD I sent it may give you a few ideas.

 

[.21Rc10GT]

Is there a power connector for the vid-card? I just set up my new comp from scratch. amd fx-62 pcu, asus crosshair mobo, 4gb ddr2-6400 ram, 2- 7900gtx vid card in sli, 750w psu, etc etc. I'm not sure, but most stock cards (or onboard vid cards) do not have a power line from the psu, but it is possible. Could just be seated bad. Do you have another card, or a friend with a card that you could swap in to test it? Had to do that with my friend's comp recently. What kind of slot is it? AGP or PCI-X?

 

[sweetdiesel]

I connected the monitor to my laptop and it works. When I power up the PC I notice that the "link" light on my wireless card comes on after a few minutes. This leads me to believe that the motherboard is working and that the graphics card is the bad item. I did try removing it and reseating it but it still does not work. Almost broke the damn thing until I realized there is a tab you had to push on the side to release it.

RC10GT my graphics card is an Invidia GeForce MX420 64MB AGP card. I'll try a new card in the morning.

Eddy I watched the DVD and it didn't help. I threw up a couple times but that's about it.

 

[HeartBreak]

I had a power supply go fruity on me, and the worst that happened was my computer crashed constantly (harddrive would clack and the computer would freeze) and the mouse port acted up (sometimes wouldn't work at boot). Changed out the supply, the computer has acted normal ever since.

Did you connect the CPU Core connector (it's a four wire plug, two yellow, two black, located within about an inch or so near the processor)? If not, that could cause the symptoms that you're describing. The CPU core connector is only used on pentium 4 class boards (that I know of... The newer AMD's might use it as well?).

 

[sweetdiesel]

I installed a Radeon 128MB card this morning and everything seems to be working. The video drivers refuse to install but the screen looks normal.

Thanks to all for the help!

 

[rocknbil]

Was your previous video an onboard video? You may have to disable the onboard to get your Radeon to work, either in the bios or via Windblows. The Radeon drivers will give you more display options than the Windblows default.

And I will bring this back from the dead, in case you haven't, GET THAT UPS! We live "out of town" and it's common occurrence for the power company to decide, "hmm we're bored, let's flip this switch and see how many people we piss off." The power goes in and out for anywhere from 1 to 10 seconds and happens at least twice a month. A surge protector is worthless.

I have a Conext here, I think it's a 7 amp (??) It's been in service 2 years and drives two comps, two CRT's, two LCD's and the network hub, other small items. Recently I pulled the battery and had it tested at the battery shop. Guy said, "well I can sell you a new one but it wouldn't be much better, this one's fine."

Get a UPS! This is the best thing anyone can do for their computer.

 

[sweetdiesel]

The wife and I were discussing this morning how to prevent this from happening again and the UPS is now on the shopping list. Eddy recommended 500va or larger and I am leaning towards one that has a user serviceable battery. Are there any brands to avoid? My local Frys Electronics carries APC, Belkin, and Tripplite.

Bill, my previous video card was an AGP card. I am going to try downloading the drivers from the manufacturer website and see if they work.

 

[robmob]

I use this one from APC and have had no problems with it.

[ame="http://www.amazon.com/APC-BE500R-Back-UPS-Office-Computers/dp/B000BFWJM6/sr=8-1/qid=1167429201/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/104-9902637-4650340?ie=UTF8&s=electronics"]Amazon.com: APC BE500R Back-UPS 500VA for Home/Office Computers: Electronics[/ame]

 

[FastEddy]

I use these at the shop. Similar to the one that Rob listed.
http://www.staples.com/webapp/wcs/s...0051&langId=-1&productId=141888&cmArea=SEARCH

Its a 485 and will do just fine for a home computer. An average runtime of 8-10 minutes for no power. You will plug it in to your computer and program it to shut it off if the power is out for X amount of time.

If you are looking for something better the larger units have user replaceable batteries. they usually start at around 600-700 VA. If you are going to spend the bucks for a larger unit get the largest you can afford. Its a great tool if we have an earthquake or foul weather. It can provide electricity for your radio, lights, heater, or whatever else you may need during an emergency. At home I have an 1100va APC and it gives me a warm fuzzy knowing its there.

Dom, PM

 

[.21Rc10GT]

Ouch man, Radeon... Athough, almost anything is an upgrade from that 64mb card, lol.

BTW Heartbreak, yes, the newer AMDs use the 4 (mine uses the 6 pin) pin connecter to the left of the pcu.

 

[HeartBreak]

lol, agreed on the ATI - I almost bit on a X1300 Radeon, but managed to find a 6800LE for about half the cost... The downside; I'll probably end up with border taxes, since it's comin outta Canada.

I was pretty sure about the ATX/BTX adapter (6 additional pins on the mainboard power socket), but wasn't sure about the CPU core connector. You can tell I'm not an ATI/AMD person, can'tcha? lol

 

[markallen]

Come on guys there is nothing wrong with ATI.I ran ATI for years and played all the newest games without one hiccup..But I did go Nvidia this time because my local computer store pushes Nvidia really hard so I bought a 7900GT and it rocks..

 

[HeartBreak]

I've always been a fan of nvidia, simply because of the value you get for the price. It's all preference, kinda like losi vs associated.

 

[rocknbil]

... there is nothing wrong with ATI. I ran ATI for years and played all the newest games ...

Don't get me started. If things don't go right you can sit for days disabling this, installing that, searching their worthless site trying to read between lines to get your monitor to go ftom a jiggly white line to a desktop display . . . It sounds like they cleaned up their driver act with the 9600+, but they had already lost me by then. Speaking from years of fighting with their cards and several of them going out the window.

I'm beginning to get the understanding that there are two main schools of thought on video cards, gamers and "the rest of us." All the time I was working with these things all I ever heard was " it works great with the new version of Propellerhead III."

 

[sweetdiesel]

Now you guys have me worried. The card is a Diamond Multimedia Radeon 9250. Purchased on sale at Frys for $30 after the rebate. Do the card problems only happen when you play games? We do not play any games on this computer. It is used mainly for photo editing, word processing and internet. I hate to have the card malunction while the wife is working on the pc. We plan on opening up a home based business next year and I want to have a reliable machine.

 

[markallen]

Don't worry SD the ATI card will be fine...Those ATI haters still have a bad taste in their mouth from using ATI back when they did suck.ATI has come a really long way in drivers for their cards.Like I said I ran an ATI 9700 pro for over 3 years and it was still working fine when I gave it to a bud of mine who needed a good card.

Mark

 

[WoodiE]

SD,

You've made a fine choice with the ATI card. In fact personally for just surfing the net and a few photo editing tasks a simple 32MB plain jane nothing fancy at all card would have done just fine.



-Michael

 

[rossb]

I've been using a 64MB ATI Radeon 7500 AGP for 5 years and it has always worked great for the web, email, heavy duty photo editing, and normal Windows stuff. I do not play games on my PC.

 

[sweetdiesel]

Thanks for the confirmation guys. The ATI was the cheapest one at the store, I'm glad it wasn't the worst purchase I could have made.

I have a UPS on the way so I should be all set now. Appreciate all the help!