[SOLVED] Video card shorted?

treeness · 09-30-2008, 03:50 PM

Hey there.
I have a computer with the following specs:
Manufacturer: Gamma
Processor: AMD Athlon(tm) 64 Processor 3200+, MMX, 3DNow, ~2.0GHz
Memory: 2048MB RAM
Hard Drive: 160 GB
Video Card: NVIDIA GeForce 6200 TurboCache(TM)
Monitor: Plug and Play Monitor
Sound Card: Realtek AC97 Audio
Speakers/Headphones: speakers, subwoofer & headphones
Keyboard: Zboard
Mouse: X7 Gaming mouse
Mouse Surface: A3 white paper
Operating System: Windows XP Home Edition Service Pack 3
Motherboard: Asus A8N5X

Now to my problem. I recently took it apart and cleaned all the boards and fans with a small paint brush and a vacuum cleaner. I then proceeded to put it back together and everything works as normal except that I cannot get the screen to pick up any signal from the pc. It is properly inserted into the video card, and the video card is properly inserted into the video card slot (PCI-e x16). The video card has no fans or LED's I can use to observe wether it is working or not. Would it be that I have shorted out the video card while handling it? Or is this a problem with the CPU or something else altogether? There is no other port on my pc that I can use to plug my screen into. The motherboard relies souly on a video card. I can not get my hands on another video card to test my theory. I just don't know.

Can anybody help or backup my theory?

**wrench97** · 09-30-2008, 05:49 PM

Did you have the motherboard out of the case?
Did you unplug the power supply wires 20/24 pin main and 4 pin CPU ?

treeness · 10-01-2008, 12:47 AM

Yes. Everything, absolutely everything, is plugged in exactly the same as it was before I cleaned it. I made absolutely sure of it, so it's not a connection error. I also got a new motherboard (duplicate to my old motherboard) as I thought this might be the problem. No such luck there. The same problem.

**wrench97** · 10-01-2008, 12:54 PM

Trying do this to eliminate the the possibility of a short in the case

How to Bench Test Your System

treeness · 10-04-2008, 07:04 PM

Ok. I have tried this. I attached 1 RAM, the power cords, the CPU (and CPU fan) and the video card. I turned it on and the light on the motherboard came on and the fans came on with the familiar sounds. The screen however, remained unchanged. I then tried this with a different stick of RAM. Same result. Does this mean my video card is indeed shorted?

**wrench97** · 10-05-2008, 03:00 AM

Does your motherboard have a smell speaker on it that beeps?
If it does remove all the ram and try to boot, it should beep continuously, if it does see if you borrow a video card to test it with.

treeness · 10-05-2008, 01:58 PM

I don't think it does. I tried this anyway and I heard no beeping. The system seemed to start up alright as the green status LED came on indicating that the pc is on and working.

**wrench97** · 10-05-2008, 02:07 PM

See if you can borrow a video card to test with either a PCIE or PCI.

treeness · 10-05-2008, 02:33 PM

Unfortunately nobody is willing to let me borrow the video card in their machine (big surprise there lol) and nobody has a spare one lying around. So I guess I'll have to buy a video card and see how that goes. Thanks for the advice by the way.

treeness · 10-07-2008, 03:06 PM

Ok. So I brought a brand new video card....and the problem still persists. The only other thing I can think of is that the CPU is at fault??? Any ideas?

**wrench97** · 10-07-2008, 03:39 PM

Either Power Supply or Motherboard did you test the power supply?

treeness · 10-07-2008, 06:53 PM

Er...It turns on...But no, I don't know how to test it. As for the motherboard...it is a new motherboard. It was brought when I first had this problem about 2 weeks back and is exactly the same as the other motherboard, so it should be fine. How do I test the power supply?

**wrench97** · 10-08-2008, 01:44 AM

Have a look here> Test your power supply with a multi meter

treeness · 10-08-2008, 05:36 PM

Ok, I just tried that (except the POST thingy which I will try later) and it seems fine.

treeness · 10-09-2008, 03:02 PM

I tried the restarting POST thingy near the end of that post and that didn't work either. I'm really confused now so I'm going to take my pc to a technician later today unless you guys have any other ideas.

treeness · 10-09-2008, 03:40 PM

I just read somewhere that a PCIe-x16 graphics card needs 650W to run. My power supply says output DC 300W and the model number is ATX-300GTF. Is this enough to power my graphics card? It used to power my graphics card fine so I don't think it is a problem. But could it be that my older graphics card doesn't work and my newer one isn't getting enough power?

**wrench97** · 10-09-2008, 03:46 PM

What card did you buy?
And a PCIEx16 card needs 26 amps on the 12v rail to operate properly under load.
Higher end cards can use up to 34 amps.

treeness · 10-09-2008, 06:23 PM

http://www.ascent.co.nz/productspeci...?ItemID=366708
That card. I have sent my pc off to get checked. Will see how it goes. thanks.

treeness · 10-09-2008, 11:19 PM

Ok, so the computer repair guy reckons my two video cards are perfectly fine. He says that my motherboard is at fault, which annoys me because my brand new motherboard is faulty.... Oh well.

09-30-2008, 03:50 PM	#1 (permalink)
treeness Registered User Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: New Zealand Posts: 29 OS: Windows XP Home Edition Service pack 3	[SOLVED] Video card shorted? Hey there. I have a computer with the following specs: Manufacturer: Gamma Processor: AMD Athlon(tm) 64 Processor 3200+, MMX, 3DNow, ~2.0GHz Memory: 2048MB RAM Hard Drive: 160 GB Video Card: NVIDIA GeForce 6200 TurboCache(TM) Monitor: Plug and Play Monitor Sound Card: Realtek AC97 Audio Speakers/Headphones: speakers, subwoofer & headphones Keyboard: Zboard Mouse: X7 Gaming mouse Mouse Surface: A3 white paper Operating System: Windows XP Home Edition Service Pack 3 Motherboard: Asus A8N5X Now to my problem. I recently took it apart and cleaned all the boards and fans with a small paint brush and a vacuum cleaner. I then proceeded to put it back together and everything works as normal except that I cannot get the screen to pick up any signal from the pc. It is properly inserted into the video card, and the video card is properly inserted into the video card slot (PCI-e x16). The video card has no fans or LED's I can use to observe wether it is working or not. Would it be that I have shorted out the video card while handling it? Or is this a problem with the CPU or something else altogether? There is no other port on my pc that I can use to plug my screen into. The motherboard relies souly on a video card. I can not get my hands on another video card to test my theory. I just don't know. Can anybody help or backup my theory?

09-30-2008, 05:49 PM	#2 (permalink)
wrench97 Moderator, Hardware Team Join Date: May 2008 Location: S.E. Pennsylvania Posts: 18,469 OS: Win7	Re: Video card shorted? Did you have the motherboard out of the case? Did you unplug the power supply wires 20/24 pin main and 4 pin CPU ? __________________ Power Supply and Selection

10-01-2008, 12:47 AM	#3 (permalink)
treeness Registered User Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: New Zealand Posts: 29 OS: Windows XP Home Edition Service pack 3	Re: Video card shorted? Yes. Everything, absolutely everything, is plugged in exactly the same as it was before I cleaned it. I made absolutely sure of it, so it's not a connection error. I also got a new motherboard (duplicate to my old motherboard) as I thought this might be the problem. No such luck there. The same problem.

10-01-2008, 12:54 PM	#4 (permalink)
wrench97 Moderator, Hardware Team Join Date: May 2008 Location: S.E. Pennsylvania Posts: 18,469 OS: Win7	Re: Video card shorted? Trying do this to eliminate the the possibility of a short in the case How to Bench Test Your System __________________ Power Supply and Selection

10-04-2008, 07:04 PM	#5 (permalink)
treeness Registered User Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: New Zealand Posts: 29 OS: Windows XP Home Edition Service pack 3	Re: Video card shorted? Ok. I have tried this. I attached 1 RAM, the power cords, the CPU (and CPU fan) and the video card. I turned it on and the light on the motherboard came on and the fans came on with the familiar sounds. The screen however, remained unchanged. I then tried this with a different stick of RAM. Same result. Does this mean my video card is indeed shorted?

10-05-2008, 03:00 AM	#6 (permalink)
wrench97 Moderator, Hardware Team Join Date: May 2008 Location: S.E. Pennsylvania Posts: 18,469 OS: Win7	Re: Video card shorted? Does your motherboard have a smell speaker on it that beeps? If it does remove all the ram and try to boot, it should beep continuously, if it does see if you borrow a video card to test it with. __________________ Power Supply and Selection

10-05-2008, 01:58 PM	#7 (permalink)
treeness Registered User Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: New Zealand Posts: 29 OS: Windows XP Home Edition Service pack 3	Re: Video card shorted? I don't think it does. I tried this anyway and I heard no beeping. The system seemed to start up alright as the green status LED came on indicating that the pc is on and working.

10-05-2008, 02:07 PM	#8 (permalink)
wrench97 Moderator, Hardware Team Join Date: May 2008 Location: S.E. Pennsylvania Posts: 18,469 OS: Win7	Re: Video card shorted? See if you can borrow a video card to test with either a PCIE or PCI. __________________ Power Supply and Selection

10-05-2008, 02:33 PM	#9 (permalink)
treeness Registered User Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: New Zealand Posts: 29 OS: Windows XP Home Edition Service pack 3	Re: Video card shorted? Unfortunately nobody is willing to let me borrow the video card in their machine (big surprise there lol) and nobody has a spare one lying around. So I guess I'll have to buy a video card and see how that goes. Thanks for the advice by the way.

10-07-2008, 03:06 PM	#10 (permalink)
treeness Registered User Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: New Zealand Posts: 29 OS: Windows XP Home Edition Service pack 3	Re: Video card shorted? Ok. So I brought a brand new video card....and the problem still persists. The only other thing I can think of is that the CPU is at fault??? Any ideas?

10-07-2008, 03:39 PM	#11 (permalink)
wrench97 Moderator, Hardware Team Join Date: May 2008 Location: S.E. Pennsylvania Posts: 18,469 OS: Win7	Re: Video card shorted? Either Power Supply or Motherboard did you test the power supply? __________________ Power Supply and Selection

10-07-2008, 06:53 PM	#12 (permalink)
treeness Registered User Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: New Zealand Posts: 29 OS: Windows XP Home Edition Service pack 3	Re: Video card shorted? Er...It turns on...But no, I don't know how to test it. As for the motherboard...it is a new motherboard. It was brought when I first had this problem about 2 weeks back and is exactly the same as the other motherboard, so it should be fine. How do I test the power supply?

10-08-2008, 01:44 AM	#13 (permalink)
wrench97 Moderator, Hardware Team Join Date: May 2008 Location: S.E. Pennsylvania Posts: 18,469 OS: Win7	Re: Video card shorted? Have a look here> Test your power supply with a multi meter __________________ Power Supply and Selection

10-08-2008, 05:36 PM	#14 (permalink)
treeness Registered User Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: New Zealand Posts: 29 OS: Windows XP Home Edition Service pack 3	Re: Video card shorted? Ok, I just tried that (except the POST thingy which I will try later) and it seems fine.

10-09-2008, 03:02 PM	#15 (permalink)
treeness Registered User Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: New Zealand Posts: 29 OS: Windows XP Home Edition Service pack 3	Re: Video card shorted? I tried the restarting POST thingy near the end of that post and that didn't work either. I'm really confused now so I'm going to take my pc to a technician later today unless you guys have any other ideas.

10-09-2008, 03:40 PM	#16 (permalink)
treeness Registered User Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: New Zealand Posts: 29 OS: Windows XP Home Edition Service pack 3	Re: Video card shorted? I just read somewhere that a PCIe-x16 graphics card needs 650W to run. My power supply says output DC 300W and the model number is ATX-300GTF. Is this enough to power my graphics card? It used to power my graphics card fine so I don't think it is a problem. But could it be that my older graphics card doesn't work and my newer one isn't getting enough power?

10-09-2008, 03:46 PM	#17 (permalink)
wrench97 Moderator, Hardware Team Join Date: May 2008 Location: S.E. Pennsylvania Posts: 18,469 OS: Win7	Re: Video card shorted? What card did you buy? And a PCIEx16 card needs 26 amps on the 12v rail to operate properly under load. Higher end cards can use up to 34 amps. __________________ Power Supply and Selection

10-09-2008, 06:23 PM	#18 (permalink)
treeness Registered User Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: New Zealand Posts: 29 OS: Windows XP Home Edition Service pack 3	Re: Video card shorted? http://www.ascent.co.nz/productspeci...?ItemID=366708 That card. I have sent my pc off to get checked. Will see how it goes. thanks.

10-09-2008, 11:19 PM	#19 (permalink)
treeness Registered User Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: New Zealand Posts: 29 OS: Windows XP Home Edition Service pack 3	Re: Video card shorted? Ok, so the computer repair guy reckons my two video cards are perfectly fine. He says that my motherboard is at fault, which annoys me because my brand new motherboard is faulty.... Oh well.