MSI GTX 960 GAMING 4G upgrade (from GTX 745) - no display

XrayDeltaOne

Commendable
Mar 21, 2016
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Sorry in advance if this is a duplicate - I see similar threads here, but not with these exact circumstances.

I have a Dell XPS 8700 that came with a GTX 745 card.

I bought an MSI GTX 960 Gaming 4G as an affordable upgrade, but upon installation I have a blank screen via both the monitor output and HDMI 2nd screen I was using before.

-I am reasonably certain the board is fully seated, as there is really no physical way for it to be 'in' any further.

-The logo on the card lights up (LED) and both fans spin initially upon startup, then wind down and stop.

-The 8-pin power cable is installed, but I needed the 6/8 adapter cable provided with the card.

Here is a pic of the power supply label for reference:
(link provided, since thumbnail is too small to read)
http://vignette4.wikia.nocookie.net/xd1/images/c/c3/20160320_210758.jpg


Also, since I am new at this, what is this 'slot' for, and is not having it connected to anything part/all of my issue?
20160320_221822.jpg


Thanks for any help, I was really hoping this would be a smooth install, but that never happens for me.
 
Solution
Final analysis:

The issue ended up being a combination of an under-powered PSU, and an out of date BIOS (A08 vs A10).

Updating the BIOS to A10 was the final piece of the puzzle.

Hopefully this thread helps someone else having a similar issue one day.



Thanks for the SLI info.

The only connector I'm aware of is the power from the PSU. There was an adapter cable included with the GTX960 - which I used to connect to an existing available power connector. If there is something else to connect, it was not used by the GTX745 I had before, and there was no cable for it included in with the card.

The PSU is a Delta Electronics D460AM-02. Here is an image of the label from the PSU for reference. If I use the in-forum image tags, the image becomes a thumbnail, and is too small to read:
http://vignette4.wikia.nocookie.net/xd1/images/c/c3/20160320_210758.jpg
 
Well, sorry, your PSU canT support your GPU.

For 2 things:

1) +12 Volt continuous current rating of 28 Amps or greater (yours have 460w)
2) it requires 400W. (Your have 460w, but it isn't certified and non real wattage).

Good choices are XFX ProSeries or Seasonic PSU (And, try to go for 500W if you can or 550W).

 


your power supply is garbage, most likely it is not actually capable of delivering what is says it can

also, the only adapter you should be using on a 8-pin gpu slot is a dual 6-pin pcie cable to single 8-pin
 


I've now upgraded to a TS XFX 650 Gold PSU. Runs great with my system - it's even quieter than the p.o.s. dell PSU it came with.

However, STILL having the same issue with the GTX960. The "MSI" logo lights up, and both fans spin when first powered up, but then they stop (as they're probably supposed to, with the card not being worked very hard), and no signal ever gets to the monitor(s).

I've tried re-seating the card a couple times, but it's bottomed out - no room to go any further into the slot, and no difference.

I've tried using the dedicated monitor output only, HDMI only, and both - no luck.

I've even tried using the other PCI-E plug in the line - not that it should logically matter in my mind - no luck.

I'm at a loss.

Is it possible that this motherboard somehow won't support the 960? I don't see how, but as I said, I'm at a loss.
 




go into the bios and disable secure boot

 


This is just one /facepalm after another.

I am unable to access UEFI Secure Boot via Win10.

Shift-clicking "Restart" brings up the menu system that grants access to advanced options and ultimately the option to "Change settings in your PC's UEFI firmware" - - however, when selecting this restart option, it's back to a black screen w/ no monitor signal indefinitely.

An old-school no frills manual boot (unplugging drives and booting off the board alone) grants access to the system menu, but is this a legitimate workaround, or does bringing the drives back online cause Win10 to override selections made this way? When accessing the Safe Boot toggle this way, disabling nets the same result as everything else I've done, i.e. the next boot with the GTX960 = everything in the tower appearing to function normally, but still no signal to the monitor. Dead black screen(s).

Am I really considering rolling back to Win7?
 
Final analysis:

The issue ended up being a combination of an under-powered PSU, and an out of date BIOS (A08 vs A10).

Updating the BIOS to A10 was the final piece of the puzzle.

Hopefully this thread helps someone else having a similar issue one day.
 
Solution