pc runs, no display!

Makesy · 03-27-2009, 04:35 PM

Hi there,

A couple of days ago I decided to start playing EVE online, having not done any gaming for around a year.

For the past 2 months I'd noticed a mild buzz coming from my box, but it never bothered me enough to investigate it or worry at all. Anyway, as soon as I ran EVE, the buzz became extremely loud, but then when EVE was closed down, the buzz quietened.

I decided to test and see if the buzz was there when the GFX card was removed, and indeed, it was still present. I headed to the computer shop and bought a 600w PSU, replacing the old one.

The mild buzz disappeared and my pc appeared to run fine. I loaded up EVE and I could hear a very faint buzz. It wasn't too promenent, so again I ignored it.

Today I booted up my pc, and noticed I could move my mouse, but not click anything, though when I used ctrl+alt+delete, I could select options on that menu. This soon resolved, I ran EVE again, and played for a couple of hours.

The game became sluggish, so I restarted my PC, but on restart, nothing would appear on the screen. The HDD made the typical noises it would on boot (I'm certain it was not idling) and num lock, caps lock etc displayed lights on and off on the keyboard, showing the system had not crashed.

To me this sounds like a graphics card problem, but given how expensive graphics cards can be, I wanted views from people who are more experienced than me. Your advice will be greatly appreciated.

For reference, my spec is as follows:

Typical 600w 80% efficiency PSU
Gigabyte 965P DS3 motherboard
2GB Geil DDR2 ram
Intel Core2Duo E6300 1.86Ghz overclocked to around 2.4Ghz (this is from memory, I can't see the figure)
PowerColor ATI Radeon X1950 XT 256MB
320GB Western Digital HDD
500GB Seagate HDD
Creative Soundblaster X-fi

The CPU has been overclocked for around 2 years, and has never overheated.

Thanks in advance,
Alex

**wrench97** · 03-27-2009, 04:57 PM

While 600w is plenty for a X1950XT, what is the Brand and Model, it does make a difference.

Did you check the fan on the video card to see if it is spinning?

Do you happen to have any other PCIe card just laying around waiting to be used as a test card:)?

Makesy · 03-27-2009, 05:25 PM

Its an Atrix PSU, not bad but not great either. But i'm sure it has enough power to run the gfx card, it has done fine for a couple of days now. The fan spins, even though I can't visually see anything on the screen.

I'm trying to get hold of a card to borrow, but most of my friends have laptops so its proving a bit difficult!

Just so you know, none of this buzzing is caused by the fans, I've checked them all :)

**wrench97** · 03-27-2009, 05:51 PM

Have a look at the capacitors on the video card and the motherboard for signs of leakage or swollen tops (domed) they should be flat> http://www.badcaps.net/pages.php?vid=5

~~connor-53~~ · 03-27-2009, 08:02 PM

Is the video card overheating or as wrench said, it may be damaged and have a safety feature or something to keep it from frying.

03-27-2009, 04:35 PM	#1 (permalink)
Makesy Registered User Join Date: Mar 2009 Posts: 2 OS: XP	pc runs, no display! Hi there, A couple of days ago I decided to start playing EVE online, having not done any gaming for around a year. For the past 2 months I'd noticed a mild buzz coming from my box, but it never bothered me enough to investigate it or worry at all. Anyway, as soon as I ran EVE, the buzz became extremely loud, but then when EVE was closed down, the buzz quietened. I decided to test and see if the buzz was there when the GFX card was removed, and indeed, it was still present. I headed to the computer shop and bought a 600w PSU, replacing the old one. The mild buzz disappeared and my pc appeared to run fine. I loaded up EVE and I could hear a very faint buzz. It wasn't too promenent, so again I ignored it. Today I booted up my pc, and noticed I could move my mouse, but not click anything, though when I used ctrl+alt+delete, I could select options on that menu. This soon resolved, I ran EVE again, and played for a couple of hours. The game became sluggish, so I restarted my PC, but on restart, nothing would appear on the screen. The HDD made the typical noises it would on boot (I'm certain it was not idling) and num lock, caps lock etc displayed lights on and off on the keyboard, showing the system had not crashed. To me this sounds like a graphics card problem, but given how expensive graphics cards can be, I wanted views from people who are more experienced than me. Your advice will be greatly appreciated. For reference, my spec is as follows: Typical 600w 80% efficiency PSU Gigabyte 965P DS3 motherboard 2GB Geil DDR2 ram Intel Core2Duo E6300 1.86Ghz overclocked to around 2.4Ghz (this is from memory, I can't see the figure) PowerColor ATI Radeon X1950 XT 256MB 320GB Western Digital HDD 500GB Seagate HDD Creative Soundblaster X-fi The CPU has been overclocked for around 2 years, and has never overheated. Thanks in advance, Alex

03-27-2009, 04:57 PM	#2 (permalink)
wrench97 Moderator, Hardware Team Join Date: May 2008 Location: S.E. Pennsylvania Posts: 18,469 OS: Win7	Re: pc runs, no display! While 600w is plenty for a X1950XT, what is the Brand and Model, it does make a difference. Did you check the fan on the video card to see if it is spinning? Do you happen to have any other PCIe card just laying around waiting to be used as a test card:)? __________________ Power Supply and Selection

03-27-2009, 05:25 PM	#3 (permalink)
Makesy Registered User Join Date: Mar 2009 Posts: 2 OS: XP	Re: pc runs, no display! Its an Atrix PSU, not bad but not great either. But i'm sure it has enough power to run the gfx card, it has done fine for a couple of days now. The fan spins, even though I can't visually see anything on the screen. I'm trying to get hold of a card to borrow, but most of my friends have laptops so its proving a bit difficult! Just so you know, none of this buzzing is caused by the fans, I've checked them all :)

03-27-2009, 05:51 PM	#4 (permalink)
wrench97 Moderator, Hardware Team Join Date: May 2008 Location: S.E. Pennsylvania Posts: 18,469 OS: Win7	Re: pc runs, no display! Have a look at the capacitors on the video card and the motherboard for signs of leakage or swollen tops (domed) they should be flat> http://www.badcaps.net/pages.php?vid=5 __________________ Power Supply and Selection

03-27-2009, 08:02 PM	#5 (permalink)
~~connor-53~~ Troubled Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: New York Posts: 525 OS: Vista Home Prem. 64 bit My System	Re: pc runs, no display! Is the video card overheating or as wrench said, it may be damaged and have a safety feature or something to keep it from frying.