MSI GeForce GT 240 1GB GDDR5 doesn't start with my P5GD1-VM

[WarmerVlad]

So I'm basically from dinosaurs era.

The fan of my 2006 Gigabyte GeForce 6600 GT 128 MB (GV-NX66T128D-3) stopped working in June.
The video card didn't ended in flames because I keep a room ventilator fixed on the unit.

I might mention I'm no hardware expert at all so I might sound funny to many of you.

In July a friend from Ireland (irrelevant but I'm Vlad from Romania) decided to help me and sent me 3 days ago this video card he stopped using two weeks ago (on a comp with Windows 7)...

The model of the "new" video card is
MSI GeForce GT 240 N240GT-MD1G/D5 1GB 128-Bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready Video Card

I'm on Windows XP SP3, Pentium 4, 3Ghz, 4GB RAM, 400W powe source
My motherboard is P5GD1-VM

I inserted the new card. Started the comp. The monitor doesn't react at all. It's in stand by mode, like I'm away and the system is off.

The fan of the new inserted video card spins.
This model doesn't come with other additional cables to connect on the motherboard.

I only have a VGA cable from my monitor.
If I connect the VGA cable to the onboard / internal VGA signal... It shows of course Windows in low resolution, I can enter the BIOS... (Still with the new MSI GeForce GT 240 kept inserted in the single PCI Express slot my motherboard has)

In the ADVANCED > CHIPSET section of the BIOS... There's a BOOTING GRAPHIC ADAPTER PRIORITY section... It's by default set on PCI EXPRESS/INTERNAL VGA. (I must mention my BIOS runs on a version dating mid JUNE 2005, called 1011, the latest being 1015 from 2007)

So I can't see why the new video card isn't loaded naturally... Just like the old one... By my system.

>>> Also please know I didn't uninstalled yet from DEVICE MANAGER the driver of my old (still current) video card.

Because it's tricky to me that it won't even boot with the new card...

Is this the matter the comp/bios... doesn't even recognize at all the new MSI GeForce GT 240 as part of the system?

I'm deeply confused and googled everywhere with no clear answer.

...If I uninstall the driver of my old card... Will it boot with the new card and enter Windows XP, hopefully asking for the new driver to be installed?

 

[1LiquidPC]

It's sound like a compatibility problem w/ the card and your motherboard. The card itself is a 2009 card. What happens(see this with OEMs sometimes), and I'm sure other boards, is the same problem you describe. The PC will turn on, card fan will spin, but your system won't POST, hence nothing on screen, no boot. Updating your BIOS to the 2007 version 1015 may fix it. This is really the only course of action that I'm aware for your situation. Since your friend was using the card, assuming it wasn't damaged in shipping or removed from their system, we know the card itself works. If the BIOS update doesn't work, you most likely going to be out of luck. This is why when you look at the detailed info on BIOS/UEFI updates for motherboards, they often are made to iron out bugs as well as compatibility problems. Even though it "should" work according to the PCI-E spec, backwards compatible, ect. it doesn't always work out that way.

 

[WarmerVlad]

Thank you deeply for helping, 1LiquidPC.

Indeed that is my fear. And I'm not ready to risk and upgrade the BIOS (never done that in my life, I looked for how it's made and I need an USB drive, store that new file from a .zip I already analyzed, it just weird and too risky to me...)

I'm also scared I will fuck up my current situation, setup, BIOS and possibly having my old version of the system not working/not being able to return to...

I talked even on their live chat rooms with an assistant from Nvidia... Ending by advising me in fair skepticism that the BIOS upgrade to the latest 2007 version could be the only solution to my dumb problem.

This is anyways... A super tight SAFE MODE measure til September or October (2 months max hopefully) until I manage to save all the money I need for my new super awaited computer. I plan this since more than an year ago. Something around 1600 euros.

I'd rather stay with this shit fan-broken hyper old video card, I stayed in all these super messy money-less years anyways, and wait for the magic moment of the new build come.

I'm simply too freaked out to try and upgrade the BIOS, on their site it only talks about "support new CPUs" (nothing about new video card types): https://www.asus.com/ae-en/support/Download/1/22/3/2/HIaTej0gN00zmLOa/11/

I'll analyze for fun the PDF MANUAL of my motherboard... Maybe there's an easy way to upgrade the BIOS. Lol.
https://www.manualowl.com/m/Asus/P5GD1-VM/Manual/263604

_________________

Eventually you can advise me later (anyone!) about what kind of ideal system to buy in this money. I'm not a hyper gamer per se (thanks to this lame old video card I regret even today I never had the chance to play Max Payne 3 since I'm a big fan), I'm a music blogger who wants Mozilla, Chrome and Maxthon open in the same time, each with 100+ tabs loaded. I'm sick of the freezes I get with this Mesozoic system. Pretty much, for the sake of all this suffering, I kinda dream about a graphic designer/gamer kind of powerful system, assuming that will assure me no freezes when working with soliciting web-browser activities and working with music mixing programs, editing images for the cover arts I make for the blog, being able to watch videos in 1080p or higher on youtube or any kind of sites and softs like VLC or Potplayer without delays and freezes...

 

[1LiquidPC]

I can try to assist you when your ready to purchase parts for the new build. Just PM me if needed. As for your BIOS update, I can understand your hesitation. All probably extremely rare these days, it's possible to "brick" your system if something goes wrong. In this case though as you mentioned, your better off leaving as-is until you can purchase a new system. I'm still sure that the BIOS update is the only thing that *may* work, as I can't think of any other options for you to try other than the BIOS update.

 

[WarmerVlad]

Thanks again for coming back, 1LiquidPC...

Earlier today I tried the risk... But Destiny said no.

AKA: I found in the manual the idea that I can update the BIOS in Windows... With no boot floppy diskette or CD with the update on...

And you have to use the official CD of the motherboard, there is ASUS UPDATE application.

With that you select the new update and just restart and everything is eventually magic.

BUT!

When I try to install ASUS UPDATE I get a weird error followed by "this system doesn't have an ASUS motherboard"... Whaaat? Are you kidding me?

As explained here and there online... It seems to be caused by the fact that ASUS UPDATE works only with Windows XP SP 1... While I'm on SP3.

Who knows...

So pretty much... Not even this solution with updating BIOS from inside Windows, easily, isn't meant to work for me.

The ultimate final gesture would be to copy the 1015 BIOS update on a clean CD... And insert it and boot with it on... And hopefully BIOS will find it and take the update from it...

But again: I'M TOO SCARED TO PLAY BOSSY.

So by all means... I will pray to COMPUTER GODS to make my fan-less old and present video card RESIST til October... When I'll hopefully manage to pay for a new computer.

THE ONLY QUESTION I WOULD ASK THE ASUS help team, if they would ever reply to my email in this millenium, would be: WOULD THE BIOS 1015 UPDATE FROM 2007 MAKE THE MSI GeForce GT 240 N240GT-MD1G/D5 video card work correctly and display actual images on my ACTIVE monitor?

Oh, my dear...

Thank you so much for being around.

It's really shitty not being rich. Who says MONEY ISN'T EVERYTHING LIES.

Money gives you confidence, makes you help others, makes you feel OK and gives you the chance to not waste your life with shitty old builds from before first larvas formed on Earth.

Hugs,

V

 

[1LiquidPC]

I've never really been a fan of Windows BIOS updates, I typically do from within the BIOS via a USB stick. I have updated a few Dell PCs using Windows application though. I also doubt you'll get a response from ASUS for your specific question, as your motherboard has been out of production for many years now. BIOS updates for systems like yours required floppy disks or a CD, as you mentioned, whereas modern is pretty much all USB. I believe my first BIOS update circa 2002 or so was using a floppy disk. If your not gaming and just using basic windows tasks, your card that functions minus fan probably won't get hot enough to worry until you can get the new build purchased/assembled.

 

[WarmerVlad]

I got finally a rigid resolvation from ASUS motherboard help team...

_____________


Dear Vlad,
My name is Adrian and I will try my best to assist you issue.

Regarding the graphics card issue that you are experiencing, it might be possible to have a compatibiliity issue.In this matter I can only suggest if you have the chance to connect the GPU card to a different motherboard just to check if it is functional(preferably an older motherboard).
Please let me know how it worked.
Should you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to get back in touch with us.
Regards,
Adrian
ASUS Technical Support

Thanks and Regards

______________


I replied in clear:

WOULD THE BIOS 1015 UPDATE FROM 2007 MAKE THE MSI GeForce GT 240 N240GT-MD1G/D5 video card work correctly and display actual images on my ACTIVE monitor?


I don't have a friend to test the video card with him. I can eventually try and find one in the few days from now...

But generally I'd be interested to know if Motherboard P5GD1-VM supports MSI GeForce GT 240 N240GT-MD1G/D5 video card, with a power source like mine 400w Chieftec

__________

A compatibility issue is what I'm fearing currently too.

So I'll pray for this fan-broken old card of mine to resist the war of summer heat and stay with me til fall when I'll be hopefully rich enough to buy the new computer.

 

[1LiquidPC]

Yeah, if your just browsing, I think your 6600GT being a low TDP card should be fine for temps. I wouldn't however try gaming, unless your taking your sidepanel off your PC and maybe point a small deskfan at it.

 

[WarmerVlad]

I used to play Max Payne 1 and 2 or Project IGI 1 and 2... But now I'm bored and just working my music blog Warmer Climes.

As I told you, every summer, I keep a room ventilator fixed on the unit already.

So now it's safely cooled.

The funny part will come in late September or early October when temperatures will fall to 20 or 15 Celsius degrees... aka COLD!

Please, money gods, make this dream possible and bring me the new build! LOL.

So deskfans as a solution for a broken video card... Sounds divine on a Tom's Hardware topic! )

 

[1LiquidPC]

Hehe. I had an old ATI Radeon 8500LE card(still have actually) that I lost the push-pin for one side of the heatsink/fan assembly. I had it apart for some reason or another at one point. Anyways, since I couldn't find it, it was "fixed" with a rubber band wrapped around the heatsink and card itself to hold it together, as it didn't block the contacts to install into the motherboard. Ran it this way for 2 years or so.

 

[WarmerVlad]

Pick as the solution: WE ARE THE RUBBER BAND CHAMPIONS!