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PC boots to Windows but no signal on monitor

Started by Elizabeth Evans4 · · 👁 3 views · 12 replies

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Participants Elizabeth Evans4Michelle Alvarez8Larry Ortiz5Jonathan Mendoza17darkowl72
Elizabeth Evans4 Elizabeth Evans4 NewcomerOP
1 message
joined Feb 2016
#1 ·
Hey there.

My standard PC setup has a 260W power supply, an Asus motherboard, 2GB of DDR2 RAM, an Intel Core 2 Duo E7400 2.80GHz processor, an Nvidia geforce 9600 GSO 512MB card, a basic DVD drive (think Pioneer), and a 320GB Western Digital hard drive.
I'm running Windows 7 32-bit. BIOS is set to default.

So, here’s the deal. The screen won't turn on, even though Windows boots up just fine—I can hear the startup sounds in the background. I have another card, a Radeon x600 pro 256MB, and everything works great with that one. But, I guess the Windows 7 index performance is way worse on it compared to my usual setup. With this Geforce card, the screen stays black. It occasionally manages to show something, but usually, it just cuts out right at the Windows boot logo. Then the monitor just goes dead. Like, the light starts blinking as if the computer itself was shut off.

What else could be causing this, besides the graphics card? And if it actually is the card, is it even worth taking it to a repair shop? This machine isn't for anything heavy; just some light gaming and some basic work stuff in Word. Since I play a few games, I'm wondering if this situation is salvageable or if there's any way to get this card working again (along with whatever else might be the issue).

Sorry for any typos, typing this on my phone. 🙂
Michelle Alvarez8 Michelle Alvarez8 Regular
299 messages
joined Nov 2015
#2 ·
This isn't even a real PC—it's an ancient relic, and honestly, you should just be glad it hasn't started a fire in your apartment yet.

As for the graphics card? Forget it. It’s definitely not worth the trip to a repair shop. You know what would actually work? Just cut back on the partying, the booze, and those ridiculous gambling habits—if you saved that cash instead, you could probably grab something modern and halfway decent.
Larry Ortiz5 Larry Ortiz5 Regular
710 messages
joined May 2020
#3 ·
Brian Edwards78 said:That’s hardly a standard PC—it’s more like an ancient relic. Honestly, you should just be happy if it hasn't started a fire in your apartment yet.

It's the graphics card. And honestly? It isn't worth the trip to the repair shop. You'd probably be better off cutting back on the partying, the bad habits, and the gambling—then take whatever you saved and put it toward something newer and actually functional.

I mean, look, it's not like we're talking about a Pentium 3 here. Sure, it's old, but it's a dual core with 2GB of RAM, which is decent enough for Word or basic browsing. Just because you're running into issues on an older machine doesn't necessarily mean you have to overhaul the entire platform just because of one graphics card...

Timothy Ramos26 Based on what you described, the issue is almost certainly the graphics card—especially since swapping it out brought the monitor back to life.
If you aren't looking to drop a ton of cash right now, maybe check out something on Facebook Marketplace or Craigslist? By the way, what kind of budget are we looking at for a replacement card?
Elizabeth Evans4 Elizabeth Evans4 NewcomerOP
1 message
joined Feb 2016
#4 ·
Brian Edwards78 said:That’s not even a real PC, man. It’s an ancient piece of junk. Honestly, you should just be happy it hasn't burned your house down yet.

It’s the GPU. And honestly? Don't even bother taking it to a repair shop. It’s probably better to just cut back on the booze, the girls, and the gambling, then take whatever cash you save and buy something newer and actually functional.

Thanks for the input. 👍

The thing is, I don't gamble, I gave up smoking a while ago, and I'm not really into drugs or anything... so you're kind of stripping away my excuses here. 😁

Anyway, being serious for a second. For Word and the basic stuff I need for work, this thing gets me by. But I was wondering if I could push it a little—see if I can get it running something like Far Cry 3 (which I could handle on my old card). I know this thing is trash and anything I throw at it is gonna struggle, but I just don't have the headspace to drop money on a whole new rig right now.
Elizabeth Evans4 Elizabeth Evans4 NewcomerOP
1 message
joined Feb 2016
#5 ·
Larry Ortiz5 said:Look, it’s not like we’re talking about an old Pentium 3 here. It’s a decent enough machine for Word and basic stuff, plus it’s a dual core with 2GB of RAM. Just because you're eyeing a beefier PC doesn't mean you have to overhaul the entire platform just because of a graphics card...

Timothy Ramos26 Based on what you wrote, the issue is definitely the graphics card. I mean, you swapped it out for another one and now the monitor actually shows an image, right?
If you aren't exactly swimming in cash, maybe check out some used deals on eBay. By the way, what kind of budget are we looking at for this GPU?


I've been browsing eBay, and honestly, if you look from $33 onwards, you can find some used gear. I guess you get what you pay for, right? 😁 But yeah, sometimes you stumble onto a solid deal for next to nothing.
But hey, what do you suggest?
If a reasonable investment can actually make this junker usable again, I'm down. 🎉

btw, just so you know, I'm a guy. 😁
Elizabeth Evans4 Elizabeth Evans4 NewcomerOP
1 message
joined Feb 2016
#6 ·
Ugh, just wanted to add another symptom to the list. So, I played it by the book—booted into Safe Mode, uninstalled the display drivers, rebooted, let Windows load, let it reinstall the drivers, rebooted again... and yeah, the PC actually booted into Windows normally. But the second I launch a game, it works for maybe two or three minutes before the monitor just goes black. After that, nothing. Not even the BIOS splash screen shows up. It’ll probably show that I pulled the battery to reset the BIOS again, right up to that point.
The GPU is definitely dead and gone.

The only thing crossing my mind lately is... is my 260W power supply even enough to handle this thing?
Larry Ortiz5 Larry Ortiz5 Regular
710 messages
joined May 2020
#7 ·
Timothy Ramos26 said:So, just to add another symptom to the list. Basically, I managed to boot into Safe Mode without any issues, uninstalled the display drivers, rebooted, let Windows load, reinstalled the drivers, rebooted again, and everything seemed fine—the computer booted straight into Windows. But once I actually launched my game, it would run for maybe two or three minutes before the monitor just went black. After that, nothing—not even the initial loading screens before the Windows logo. It probably would have shown the message about me pulling the battery to reset the BIOS, if it had even gotten that far.
The graphics card is definitely toast.

The only thing crossing my mind right now... is whether my 260W power supply is actually enough to handle it?

If you ask me, you're looking at replacing the power supply, the GPU, and the processor—maybe grab a Quad core? But honestly, it really depends on what kind of budget you're working with. It's hard to give a solid estimate without knowing how much you want to spend.
Roughly speaking... a Quad core on a 775 socket usually runs around $117, then you find a decent power supply—let's say 250-$100—plus a new graphics card, so you're looking at maybe $333 total.
Jonathan Mendoza17 Jonathan Mendoza17 Member
34 messages
joined Feb 2019
#8 ·
That graphics card should actually have two DVI outputs available. So, why don't you give it a shot and plug your monitor into the other DVI port? It’s possible—just a small thing, really—that the issue is sitting right there.
Though, I must admit, I'm a little puzzled myself... if we're looking at a faulty graphics card, I'm not entirely sure why resetting the BIOS would do much to help, right?
Elizabeth Evans4 Elizabeth Evans4 NewcomerOP
1 message
joined Feb 2016
#9 ·
Jonathan Mendoza17 said:That card should have two DVI outputs. Maybe try plugging the monitor into the other DVI port. Might just be a connection issue there.
I mean, I guess I'm a bit confused why resetting the BIOS would even help if the GPU itself is actually fried, right?


Tried the other port, but yeah... same exact symptoms.

Anyway, it doesn't happen every single time, but after I reset the BIOS, the screen just cuts out eventually. Like yesterday, maybe two minutes into a game and the monitor just went black. And once it dies? It won't turn back on at all until I reset the BIOS again by pulling the battery. Then it works for a bit, then... yeah. 😵
Elizabeth Evans4 Elizabeth Evans4 NewcomerOP
1 message
joined Feb 2016
#10 ·
Larry Ortiz5 said:I mean, you probably ought to swap out the power supply, the GPU, and the CPU too... maybe grab a quad-core or something. But I guess it’s hard to say for sure without knowing what kind of budget you're actually looking at.
Roughly speaking... a quad-core on the 775 socket usually runs about $117, then maybe find a decent PSU for like 250 to $100, plus a graphics card, so you're looking at maybe $333 total.

Like, if you actually drop that much cash, what could you even do with the rig? (Give me some examples, like what kind of games would actually run)
darkowl72 darkowl72 Regular
311 messages
joined Oct 2015
#11 ·
Max power consumption:

x600 pro = 36 W
9600 GSO = 90 W

It might be the power supply. Honestly, an old 260W unit is a miracle if it’s even running at all. Components lose their efficiency over time, so it’s likely putting out way less than what it’s rated for. Back in the day, the E7400 was a decent little "lite" processor that could handle some decent overclocking; its TDP was around 65 W for that era.

It's very possible that pathetic power supply is struggling, giving you enough juice one minute and starving the next. Bottom line: it's working too hard and could kick the bucket any second. Just pray it doesn't take anything else down with it, because those ancient power supplies have terrible protection circuits. If I were you, the first thing I'd do is grab any power supply—new or used. Anything around 400 W will be a massive upgrade over what you've got now.

Those graphics cards come in different versions, so I'm not sure which ones you actually have. Generally, a Radeon shouldn't need an extra power connector on the card itself; it should pull everything it needs from the PCIe slot. On the other hand, the Nvidia card likely has a 6-pin connector that you absolutely have to plug in to get sufficient power. But look, if you haven't plugged that extra connector into the Nvidia card yet, don't even try it. You might pull too much from that weak power supply and then—boom.

If the issue is indeed the power supply—which you can check by borrowing one for an hour to test—and the Nvidia card starts working, then you might want to hunt down an extra 2 GB of RAM (used, obviously, since we're talking DDR2). That would make for a pretty decent combo without breaking the bank.

Whether upgrading this machine is even worth it is a toss-up. You need to check which processors that Asus board with the P43 chipset still supports, update the BIOS, and inspect the hardware. You might even find some blown capacitors in there...

It’s got a SATA II controller and USB 1.0, so you might run into compatibility issues with newer parts. Everything depends on the state of the motherboard, which, frankly, could die tomorrow. All you can do is say it lasted a long time... 🤷 Spending maybe 200-$100 on a used power supply and some memory is fine, but anything beyond that... 🤷
Elizabeth Evans4 Elizabeth Evans4 NewcomerOP
1 message
joined Feb 2016
#12 ·
darkowl72 said:There are tons of versions for those cards, so I'm not even sure which ones you're running. Usually, a Radeon shouldn't need an extra power connector on the card itself—it's supposed to just pull everything it needs from the PCIe slot. But an Nvidia card? It'll likely have a 6-pin connector you gotta plug in to get enough juice. Honestly, if you haven't hooked up that extra connector on the Nvidia, don't even bother trying. You might end up pulling too much through that cheap power supply and then... well, you know, total disaster.


👍

It does have that 6-pin for power. But man, when I tried booting the PC without it plugged in, all I heard was this constant beeping sound... just beep, beep, beep over and over. Only once I actually hooked up the power to that connector did the computer finally boot up normally.
Michelle Alvarez8 Michelle Alvarez8 Regular
299 messages
joined Nov 2015
#13 ·
Larry Ortiz5 said:Look, it’s not like we’re talking about an old Pentium 3 here—that would be fine for just typing up docs or basic stuff—but this is a Dual-core with 2GB of RAM. Just because you're eyeing a beefier rig doesn't mean you have to overhaul your entire setup just to get a new graphics card, right?

A Dual-core system is at least seven years old at this point. Honestly, it should've been replaced three or four years ago already.

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