Could my monitor problem be the motherboard?

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squirrel15

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Feb 1, 2010
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My acer P191w monitor isnt working. I finally build my computer and I turned it on for the very first time, I got the monitor from my brother who never had any problems with the monitor before. Here is my build:
Thermaltake V9 case
Gigabyte 890gx mobo
Gskill 1600 cas 7 ripjaws ram
Antec truepower 750w PSU
ATI (xfx) 5850 (stock not overclocked)
Seagate barracuda hard drive
LG cd dvd writer
AMD 955 BE CPU

My monitor turns on fine, it says "ACER" then it says "no signal" about 4 seconds later. Both the mobo and monitor have a DVI cables/ports. My computer turns on fine, all the fans and PSU works too. I looked all over the internet and have tried the power cool down with the monitor (unplugging monitor and holding down the power button), I've tried unplugging and blowing in the cables and making sure theres not bend wires or anything and plugged them back in and still nothing. I have read that it could be the motherboard. Any ideas as to whats wrong and how I can fix it would help greatly. Thanks.
 
Solution
bilbat
OK - gimme a little bit to look into the G.Skill p/n, and I'll get back with some procedure; do you have a USB 'thumb drive' handy? (I'm sure you didn't bother with something so archaic as a floppy drive 😉 - they're damned handy for flashing BIOS...)

I'm a bit slow, here, had a 'plumbing disaster - ten gallons on water on the bathroom floor, replaced a supply line, water behind the shower enclosure, in the basement, and now it's threatening to drip into the power supply for my water-cooling setup built into the basement ceiling 😱

Couple things - the DVD connection 'type', and - do me a favor, pick any damn thing as 'best answer' (so I don't accidentally dig into it) and start a new thread - this is wearing out my scroll wheel :??:
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I am debating whether we may want to leave the memory alone for the time being, except to test it, if possible. The reason is I know a little 'trick' to allow us to read the configuration tables off the RAM, and compare it to the current setup - but - requires a bootable OS to do...

I will think some more - have questions and projects for you:

Before you attempted to run the MemTest disk, did you change the boot order in the BIOS per the above?

Plug the DVD's SATA cable into one of the middle two of the blus SATA connectors at the edge of the board; unplug any other drives...

Try again to boot to memtest; if not working, try to boot to it on the machine you burned it on - maybe the burn didn't complete properly...

This is a canned piece from one of my stored overclocks:

I want to teach you a new skill involving the BIOS: Do the <DEL> at the boot to enter the BIOS; notice, at the bottom, the <F11> "Save CMOS to BIOS" - hit this, and you should get a menu that will show a number (the count varies by BIOS) of empty 'slots', each of which will store an entire set of BIOS parameters, to be re-loaded from the corresponding <F12> "Load CMOS from BIOS"; this is a wonderful overclocker's feature. What I do with it, is to save my 'baseline' working parameters, so if I change something that 'irritates' the board, and forces a reset of all the parameters to defaults, or, even worse, get so screwed up I need to do a 'clear CMOS', I can get back to my starting point with no effort, and without having to remember 85 separate settings! Another thing it prevents is two hours' troubleshooting, having forgotten a change to a crucial parameter - like, "wait a minute - didn't I have the Trd at seven?!" It's pretty self-explanatory, and I alway urge people to start right away by taking the time to give the 'slots' names that mean something: in two hours, "Try2" and "Try3" will not be very helpful, but "450@+10MCH" and "450@+15MCH" will! Another use is for 'green' settings; overclocks, as a rule, do not 'play well' with green features, such as 'down-clocking' and 'down-volting'; with the storage slots, you can set up one profile, say "Green", with all the settings at 'stock' values, and all the 'green' features enabled; another, say "Balls2Wall" with a full overclock, and all the 'green' stuff turned off... Another neat feature of this 'slot' system is, for most BIOS, the mechanism itself will keep track of which ones have booted successfully, and how many times (up to, I believe, a max of five)!

What I'd like you to do here is the <F11> store, and name that first slot "Baseline"; the idea is that, should we screw up something in the BIOS parameters now, I want you to have a way to get back to those settings quickly and easily, without any grief... We will be testing something in a bit that always carries the risk of coorupting CMOS - should that happen, I want you to be able to do a reset, and recover without your heart jumping into your throat :ouch:

On whatever else you've got available, format your USB stick, and select 'FAT32' as the format type...

Download this file:
http://america.gigabyte.com.tw/FileList/BIOS/mb_bios_ga-890gpa-ud3h_f4.exe
put it in an empty directory, somewhere you won't lose it - then run the .exe (double-click it) to extract...
copy the "890GPAD3.F4" file to the root directory of the USB key...



 
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I honestly only understood about 70% of what you said but I think I have an idea of what you meant by saving the different wokring parameters and stuff. So what do you want me to do first? Make the baseline parameter first or try and use the memtest thing first? How do I format my usb stick to FAT32? You really need to walk me through this. And I think I did have the boot order in the BIOS for cdrom for first boot.
 
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I'm about done for today - just swallowed my nightly handfull of knockout drops, so good for about twenty minutes or so 😴

First explanation:

There are parameter tables stored on your RAM, they're called an SPD (serial presence detect - yeah, I know - doesn't make any sense!) When we did the Load Optimized with one stick in, we were trying (and partially sucessfully) to get the BIOS to read those tables, and set itself accordingly; they contain 'standard entries' to configure the RAM for a few, fairly low (but 'standard' for DDR3...) bus speeds. There is also, in most faster-rated RAM, an additional table entry, that contains the 'setup' to run the RAM at that higher speed - but we failed to get that... The trouble here is that the timings quoted in the advertised specs usually show the parameters in the form of "CAS-tRCD-tRP-tRAS", thus: 7-7-7-24. Unfortunately (for all of us! :cry: ), there are a crapperload of additional parameters, (usually referred to as 'sub-timings), that are 'settable' from your BIOS, but are never published by the RAM makers! For a peek at them, either look on page 43 of your manual, or take a peek here:
http://forums.tweaktown.com/f69/memory-timings-explained-w-suggested-timings-memset-vs-bios-27283/
under "Advanced Memory Timings"...

First, the problem - Intel and AMD have a 'pissing contest' going on - they specify the ordering and functions of that 'extra' faster table slightly differntly; the AMDs (inherited from nVidia chipsets) use a standard called EPP (enhanced performance profile, I think...); Intels use XMP (extreme memory profile, I think...) - as far as I can tell, just to really confuse the hell out of everyone! And, some memory either has neither, or uses a proprietary table! :kaola: My 'trick' - know of a couple programs for various boards that will allow us to actually 'see' the contents of that faster table, and, will show us our actual current BIOS settings - so we can compare the two, and, hopefully, figure out how to get 'full speed ahead' out of the things - but - those programs only run on an installed OS; so we may want to (if it proves stable) run the memory at a slower speed, install seven, and then 'tweak' the RAM...


So far as MemTest goes - don't know where or how you're getting that message - you should be able to simply 'stick it in' your DVD drive, on the new system, with the CD set to 'first boot', and it should just boot and run (should give you a 'DOS-looking' blue reporting screen... If you do get it to boot - let it run overnight, check in the morning for errors reported...

Good luck, and good night! 😴
 
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No, I tried using the burned cd a few times and no luck. Would it help if I installed the driver that came with the cd/dvd burner maybe?
And yes I do understand what we are trying to do, it seems a little much but it seems like it would be very beneficial to have.
I already have the OS installed, but is there another way to do the memtest? I'm sure I can just do it on the computer itself because I did install the OS and can go on the internet and everything.
 
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Nah - no drivers are loaded when the boot should be happening... Were you able to see if it'd boot on a different system?
it seems a little much but it seems like it would be very beneficial to have.
Click to expand...
Well, my policy for machines I'm gonna use is - I wan't that puppy to work as close to telepathy as I can possibly get it - and will take infinite pains to make sure each sub-system is optimized to the Nth...
For ones I build for others - I want them to be happy, not whining around here twice a month for the rest of my life... I do the 'little stuff'; when I put the parts in, I keep a file listing every major component; the drive, vidcard, memory, CPU, etc. part number and serial number. Should something fail, I can't trust some of 'em to figure out which end of a screwdriver to hold onto, and don't wan't them to have figure out how to open the box and remove anything - just 'look on the list' & 'give 'em a credit card'! I install the latest BIOS, back the BIOS and at least one OS to HD using the XpressRecovery util, have 'em bring over their monitor so it's properly configured, give 'em a shortcut to GB's website for drivers and BIOS releases - try to think of anything that'll wind 'em up on my doorstep... :lol:

If you'd like, we can proceed to flashing the new BIOS (which may help with the memory cofig 'finding' the proper parameters), configuring to get your external vidcard working, and re-installing the OS (Several reasons to do this: I'm betting the vidcard wasn't in when it was installed? Can be fixed, but much easier to just crank it in the first time! Betting you partitioned the whole drive for seven? Wanna leave a 'space' at the end to let ExpressRecover put its backup into - just in case!)
 
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Nope still no luck. I'm still getting that error. The OS has pretty much been installed the whole time while we have been doing this, fyi. So where to do we go from now? Update the BIOS from F3 to F4? Keep with RAM? Try fixing the video?
 
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Yup - to update:
First, you have already done the 'Baseline' thing for the CMOS? We take a chance here - no a big one - of trashing the CMOS setup...

Start by powering down, putting your USB drive in, and booting up - see if it boots OK... Then, reboot it, and see if it still boots OK... If everything is still 'go', first, enter the BIOS and do the <F11> save CMOS once again, but this time, when it shows you the 'where do I put it?' screen, select 'other storage devices' (or whatever they're calling it in your BIOS - I can't help here, as they don't give me screenshots to work with, and it's different for different BIOS!), and 'navigate' to the USB drive - store the CMOS there, as well (the BIOS flash will 'erase' your 'Baseline' stored in the BIOS!)...

Now, boot again, enter the BIOS, and select <F8> for quickflash - it will also let you 'navigate' to your USB - select the "890GPAD3.F4" we put on there earlier, & 'let 'er rip! You should get a confirmation message at the end, and be able to reboot....

More technique here:
http://forums.tweaktown.com/f69/bios-flashing-how-qflash-guide-27576/
should there be questions...
 
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There's a 'test number, a pass counter, and an error counter - it does several types of 'tests' per 'pass' - we wnat the pass counter to be at (at least) one, and the error counter to be at zero (we hope!)... Takes a while to complete - it's very thorough... I usually let it run a few passes (overnight), but one is good here - as I said, much more confidence that the 'flash' of the BIOS will give us no troubles, and after the new BIOS is in, we're going to 'redo' the "Load Optimized", in hopes that the new BIOS will give us the parameter set to run the memory at the speed you paid for!
 
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My computer isnt turning on :/ I turned it off and now it wont come back on. Was I just supposed to reboot? I have class now, I was so happy when the test ran and now it wont even turn on! Oh man, well I'll be back later.
 
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Spark? SPARK??? "a little bigger spark than usual than I noticed it wont turn on"

Sparks are NOT part of a proper build... Please describe how you mounted your MB...
 
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Well I used the screwdriver method because my power switch wasnt working and usually when I turn it on I see a very minor like spark but nothing big and it turns on fine. So I turned it on but I didnt realize it was on, I thought it didnt work and I didnt hear it turn on so I put the screwdriver back and then "SPARK!" wont turn on now.
 
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/facepalm/....

Squirrel15, I have NO idea what you just did.... But I think, at this point that it would be in your own best interest to take your collection of bits to a competent PC shop and have them troubleshoot / repair / assemble your PC before you make some (more?) serious mistakes that very likely will be rather expensive (if not already).

The power on header has no amps at all, it is just a signal waiting to be told to do something. Your power button is just a momentary on switch. ANY spark, even a wee one, is a sign that something is really wrong.
 
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