Question Monitor suddenly lost signal, now unable to display anything when connected to GPU

[DeanTheDean]

As usual I was playing a game when my monitor suddenly blacked out followed by a Windows Notification sound. Of course I was unable to see what caused the notifcation sound since the monitor had no more signal. My computer was working perfectly fine, I could hear friends talking on discord and the game was still working but the monitor showed no signal. However, when I plug the monitor's cable into the motherboard, everything seems to be working fine on the CPU Graphics. The problem occurs whenever I plug the cable into the gpu slots, it just refuses to show anything and says "no signal". I have tried HDMI and DVI-D, both work fine on the mobo slot but not on the gpu slot. I have also tried plugging the cable into another monitor and got the exact same result. My monitor is a BenQ XL2411Z but I do not think it is the problem. This is the first time this has happened and I am now no longer able to have the monitor receive signal through the gpu slot, only the mobo. Any help I can get is greatly appreciated.

Here are my PC specs:
Intel Core i5-6500
ZOTAC GTX 970
16 GB RAM
MSI Z170A PC MATE
Corsair RM650x PSU

 

[Phaaze88]

I think the gpu is done.
Did you overclock it at all?

 

[DeanTheDean]

No, the GPU has been at Stock speed ever since I have started using this PC. However, keep in mind that this computer is almost 4 years old so the 970 has been through a lot of gaming over the years. Nonetheless, this happened very suddenly and I do not understand why. The only thing I might have done differently is that I have had a long gaming session today, one which lasted about 8 hours (I played Destiny 2 on low Graphics, so it shouldn't put alot of strain on the Graphics card). I am not sure if my drivers are completely up-to-date, but I am 100% certain that they are very recent. I have atleast updated to the gpu drivers that were released during summer so I do not think that is the problem. Additionally, neither GeForce experience or CPU-Z detects the gtx 970 when I am using the Intel HD Graphics via the mobo connection and I am not sure if this is normal or not.

 

[Phaaze88]

It's normal for gpus to die. You've had it a fair amount of time.
You've tried different monitors/cables... Tried different gpu drivers - if you could.
You've got a great power supply. Gpu temps were good while you had it?

I'm not sure what else to tell you. The card has breathed it's last.

 

[DeanTheDean]

I haven't tried different GPU drivers - mainly because Geforce Experience doesn't allow me to adjust anything since I believe it doesn't "see" the GPU when I'm viewing it using the CPU graphics. When it comes to temperatures, it remained at a decent number. Sure, it got a bit hot under lots of stress every once in a while but it never exceeded any safety limit. I also have not taken the time to open up the case and check the cable connections, do you think it's worth trying that before officially concluding that it is dead?

 

[Phaaze88]

Try this then.
Download Display Driver Uninstaller: https://www.wagnardsoft.com/
Download an older driver package, or a few of them, if you wish - don't install them yet.

Disconnect your internet - to keep Windows from installing a default graphics driver - and run DDU(requires safe mode).
Select the Nvidia driver, clean and restart. After the restart and you've logged back into Windows, install one of the driver packages - DON'T INSTALL GEFORCE EXP! - shut 'er down, and reinstall the gpu. Boot.
If it doesn't work, repeat the process with DDU and install a different driver package.

Still nothing? Then get the casket ready...

 

[DeanTheDean]

Hi, I haven’t had the time to properly reinstall the drivers yet but I have noticed that there is an issue which occurs when the display is connected to the motherboard. The screen often goes black for a few seconds before coming back on, sometimes it flickers and other times the monitor keeps on displaying everything but the entire display looks like its vibrating. What I mean by this is that for example the desktop screen slightly vibrates on the display even though the monitor isn’t being moved. Could the fact that I have the GPU still installed create issues with the integrated CPU graphics from the MOBO connection? Or is this something that can be motherboard related?

 

[Phaaze88]

Since the monitor is plugged to the motherboard, and not the gpu, then the display is running off the cpu's igpu, and the gpu should be idling and doing nothing. What does device manager show you as the primary display adapter?

As for the black screen and flickering, have you ever updated the motherboard's drivers?

 

[DeanTheDean]

The device manager is telling me that my primary display adapter is the Intel HD 530 graphics.

I don’t think I have updated my motherboard drivers manually ever since I bought the computer, or not as far as I can remember. Could the bad mobo drivers cause flickering? It’s not very consistent, sometimes it happens with long breaks while other times it repeatedly occurs every few seconds. The input slots that are on the motherboard are also a bit dusty since I have not used them in years. I’m not sure if the dust buildup could interrupt the cable connections. The fans on the GPU seem to work as well and I can feel that the GPU is slowly heating up over time.

 

[Phaaze88]

I don’t think I have updated my motherboard drivers manually ever since I bought the computer, or not as far as I can remember.
Could the bad mobo drivers cause flickering? It’s not very consistent, sometimes it happens with long breaks while other times it repeatedly occurs every few seconds.

That's no good. You should keep up with that from time to time. So you're running with long out of date graphics drivers...

The input slots that are on the motherboard are also a bit dusty since I have not used them in years. I’m not sure if the dust buildup could interrupt the cable connections. The fans on the GPU seem to work as well and I can feel that the GPU is slowly heating up over time.

Sounds like you need to give your PC a good dusting as well. Try to do that like 2-3 times a year(depending on climate).
Dust build-up reduces cooling efficiency, and will cause everything to run warmer.

 

[DeanTheDean]

By saying I run with out of date graphics drivers, do you mean the drivers which are used for the intergrated graphics on the CPU? Because I have kept my Nvidia drivers up-to-date consistently, I just haven’t installed any new motherboard or BIOS drivers over the time I’ve had this PC. Also, do you think the PSU can cause issues with the GPU like this one? Perhaps it could malfunction as well, but I am not sure.

 

[Phaaze88]

By saying I run with out of date graphics drivers, do you mean the drivers which are used for the intergrated graphics on the CPU? Because I have kept my Nvidia drivers up-to-date consistently, I just haven’t installed any new motherboard or BIOS drivers over the time I’ve had this PC.

Yes.
Your Nvidia drivers do not apply to the Intel igpu.

Also, do you think the PSU can cause issues with the GPU like this one? Perhaps it could malfunction as well, but I am not sure.

Like what? You've got a damn good power supply, and total system draw approaches about half of that unit's max output - no sweat.
With the gpu out of the equation, your system doesn't even pull 200w... why would that give your psu trouble?
Everything else is working fine, save for the igpu - I think you simply need to update the drivers for it.


1)Clean your PC.
2)Update your motherboard drivers.
3)You've already tried different monitors and cables.
4)Tried with different Nvidia drivers.
5)Made sure everything is plugged in securely.

Still a black screen after all that's done... get a professional to take the card apart and see what's up, because anything past that will be beyond your ability to deal with.

 

[DeanTheDean]

Sorry if I sound stupid, but how do I install new motherboard graphics drivers and from where can I get them? Looking at support for my mobo on the MSI website is confusing, there are lots of different drivers for different things and I am not sure which of them to choose.

 

[Phaaze88]

All the driver packages are right here: https://www.msi.com/Motherboard/support/Z170A-PC-MATE#undefined
The package specifically for the igpu is labeled 'On board VGA Drivers'.

 

[DeanTheDean]

Wouldn’t the On board VGA driver only affect the VGA connection? What about HDMI or DVI which I use? Also I’ve noticed that it is possible to update drivers through the device manager, would that work as well?

 

[Phaaze88]

Wouldn’t the On board VGA driver only affect the VGA connection? What about HDMI or DVI which I use? Also I’ve noticed that it is possible to update drivers through the device manager, would that work as well?

1)All those are still on the motherboard, right?
The mobo itself doesn't have a graphics processor, so what else on the mobo does?

2)Yeah, Windows will use it's own drivers. No idea how well it works, though.

 

[DeanTheDean]

Yes, the mobo does have a HDMI and DVI output which I can use. Will updating the On board VGA driver also affect those inputs as well? I know that the CPU has a graphics card and not the motherboard itself, I just want to make sure that updating this driver will also help the DVI and HDMI inputs along with the VGA.

 

[Phaaze88]

They all run off the cpu's igpu, so I don't know where you're going with this...

 

[DeanTheDean]

Sorry for confusing you, whah I’m trying to say is that I don’t have a VGA cable right now and must resort to hdmi or dvi. Because of this, I wanted to be sure that updating the vga driver(which according to the name is for the VGA connection only?) will also update the motherboard’s hdmi and dvi inputs so that I can use those without experiencing screen flickering.

 

[dotas1]

Vga drivers = graphic card's drivers (iGPU in your case)
Vga connection/cable =a way for your GPU to communicate with your monitor.

You are confusing the connection with the iGPU.