Installing Zotac geforce 9800gtx graphics card problem

[firegarden90]

Hi all,


I've just attempted to install a Zotac geforce 9800gtx from a Nvidia geforce 9400gt, and I'm getting a "no signal input check video cable" error – a blank screen. The fan on the card powers upon starting up the computer. I'm sure I have PCI Express slot, as my last graphics card was PCI. I've just checked my power supply and its 450W and I have no onboard graphics.

The 9800gtx is a very tight squeeze in my case, to the extent it obscures the first 2 out of 4 SATA inputs on my motherboard which are connected to two hard drives. Q. Will moving the SATA cables from the 1st and 2nd inputs to the 3rd and 4th cause my hard drives not to work? OR will I have to go into bios to make the computer see them.
When I also inserted the card the manual instructed me to attach a small power cable to the system Power Supply Unit. What is this? The end of this cable has SPDIF and GND printed on it.

Also will I have to uninstall my current drivers for the 9400gt before I attempt to fit the new card or is it fitted and THEN the drivers are installed?

Anything blaringly obvious as to why I'm getting blank screen?

System specs below.

Operating System: Windows Vista™ Home Premium x64 Operating System
Motherboard: ASUSTek Computer INC. P5N73
BIOS: Phoenix - AwardBIOS v6.00PG
Processor: Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo CPU E8400 @ 3.00GHz (2 CPUs), ~3.0GHz
Memory: 4GB RAM
DirectX Version: DirectX 10
Graphics Card: NVIDIA GeForce 9400 GT
Power Supply 450W
2 Hard drives

Thanks everyone!

 

[boudy]

"I'm sure I have PCI Express slot, as my last graphics card was PCI"

PCI and PCI-E are not the same. Not nearly the same. However, after a quick google search, it seems that your motherboard does have a PCI-E slot.

This very well may have to be due to how you installed your graphics card. You need to uninstall the drivers for the 9400GT, then remove the 9400GT, then install the 9800GT and download the most recent drivers.

"When I also inserted the card the manual instructed me to attach a small power cable to the system Power Supply Unit."

That would be an extra power connector that is needed for the graphics card to run properly.

You should also check to see if your monitor is hooked up properly.

 

[firegarden90]

Ah! it's ok, I meant PCI Express card, the card runs perfectly, I just forgot to attach the extra power connectors...first time for everything. I was worried I'd damaged the card or my computer or something. I was confusing the SPDIF cable with the power supply unit. Everything runs fine now, thanks!

 

[boudy]

Ah, i'm glad to hear that you fixed the problem. Happy gaming!