Friends build doesn't work - black screen on startup - Hardware & Software

Right, my friend has just built a new PC today, and here are the specs: Asus M4N68T-M LE V2 motherboard ([url=http://www.ebuyer.com/product/246637]Link[/url]) AMD Phenom II x4 840 4GB DDR3 1066MHz RAM ATi HD RADEON 5570 500GB Hard Drive 450W PSU. Here's a screenshot of the entire build [[url=http://img18.imageshack.us/img18/9335/unledja.png]Link[/url]] What's happening is that when he boots his computer, all the fans rev up, and the hard drive appears to be working. Even the motherboard light comes on. The speaker doesn't beep. At all. However, his monitor just shows black. Black, black, black. Generally I'd assume it's a RAM issue. Swap the RAM slot, push the RAM in further, nope, nothing. Reboot? Nope. Graphics card? Now this was interesting. There was an Nvidia Geforce 7025 in the motherboard, and we put in a 5570. The computer had no OS. Interesting, but my friend tells me the graphics card is stuck in the PCI-e slot. Ah, bollocks. Do you have any idea how to get it to work, Facepunch - you're generally damn good at this. Thanks so much in advance.

Try flipping the motherboard speaker, he may have installed it wrong. Next time, don't get a horrible PSU. The video card just needs to be released, probably. Have to pull the tab before taking it out. [editline]18th June 2011[/editline] Make sure he actually used standoffs, too, and in the correct places.

[QUOTE=Shadaez;30547553]Try flipping the motherboard speaker, he may have installed it wrong. Next time, don't get a horrible PSU. The video card just needs to be released, probably. Have to pull the tab before taking it out. [editline]18th June 2011[/editline] Make sure he actually used standoffs, too, and in the correct places.[/QUOTE] Hello, thanks. I'll tell him to try flip the motherboard speaker, secondly - what's wrong with the PSU. He's also intent that the graphics card will not release. [editline]18th June 2011[/editline] [img]http://img87.imageshack.us/img87/1031/pict0926.jpg[/img] Motherboard picture.

[img]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/13038989/pict0926.jpg[/img] That's how you get the card out... I don't know if that will help or not.

[QUOTE=Johnbooth;30548499][img]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/13038989/IMG_0349.JPG[/img] That's how you get the card out... I don't know if that will help or not.[/QUOTE] :wtc:

Everything looks to be fine.. 100% sure that the monitor works?

We got the card out. The monitor still shows no signal.

Unplug all the headers, reset sw, power sw, hdd led, usb, audio, all of those. Unplug all SATA devices. Try again. If it works, process of elimination. If it doesn't try different RAM slots, try reseating the CPU. Try different PSU, Mobo, etc..

[QUOTE=Shadaez;30547553]Try flipping the motherboard speaker, he may have installed it wrong. Next time, don't get a horrible PSU. The video card just needs to be released, probably. Have to pull the tab before taking it out. [editline]18th June 2011[/editline] Make sure he actually used standoffs, too, and in the correct places.[/QUOTE] Speaker polarity doesn't matter.

[QUOTE=Goz3rr;30557861]Speaker polarity doesn't matter.[/QUOTE] Well, it seems to for me.

[QUOTE=Shadaez;30558129]Well, it seems to for me.[/QUOTE] It doesn't. [editline]19th June 2011[/editline] The only thing that can happens is if you have multiple speakers with different polarities, they distort eachother.

Are standoffs that important? I mean, obviously you can't just fasten the mobo right to a metal sheet, but I'm talking in the sense that if you don't secure one or two standoffs, would it really make as much of a difference as causing everything to shit out on you? Also, I thought the only plug where polarity mattered was the HD activity light, but I'm not a very experienced builder so I don't really know.

Fixed it! The CPU was misplaced. Thanks for all your help guys.

[QUOTE=MaverickIB;30558447]Are standoffs that important? I mean, obviously you can't just fasten the mobo right to a metal sheet, but I'm talking in the sense that if you don't secure one or two standoffs, would it really make as much of a difference as causing everything to shit out on you? Also, I thought the only plug where polarity mattered was the HD activity light, but I'm not a very experienced builder so I don't really know.[/QUOTE] Not as important as some people think, but it's nice support for your mobo when you're trying to jam all those cables and pci cards and such in it. I ran my computer for a few months with the motherboard literally sitting on the plastic insulation bag that it came in, which was in turn on top of a metal sheet. I also kicked it a few times because it was on the floor near my feet. Still works just fine now that it's in a case.

It always scares the shit out of me when a mobo bends when you plug anything in.

[QUOTE=Applecrap;30562192]Not as important as some people think, but it's nice support for your mobo when you're trying to jam all those cables and pci cards and such in it. I ran my computer for a few months with the motherboard literally sitting on the plastic insulation bag that it came in, which was in turn on top of a metal sheet. I also kicked it a few times because it was on the floor near my feet. Still works just fine now that it's in a case.[/QUOTE] yeah having all the stuff on the bottom shorting on your PC chassi doesn't matter at all, all that stuff is useless anyways! Right? It's totally comparable to having your motherboard on a plastic sheet. this is sarcasm, never let this person touch your computer - you have been warned

[QUOTE=Goz3rr;30563074]It always scares the shit out of me when a mobo bends when you plug anything in.[/QUOTE] This has never scared me since I have tried bending PCB. Your skin breaks on the welds before the PCB snaps.

[QUOTE=Blaberry;30563944]This has never scared me since I have tried bending PCB. Your skin breaks on the welds before the PCB snaps.[/QUOTE] I'd think the electronics would have opens in them before anything snapped, or solder would break / lose connection

[QUOTE=Shadaez;30564049]I'd think the electronics would have opens in them before anything snapped, or solder would break / lose connection[/QUOTE] Yea, i think the copper lanes would break.

Oh yeah, that's true though.

I had the same thing happen to me yesterday with my spare build, but it was working before then just stopped. I think the cpu came loose or something, i jury rigged this thing together out of random parts in my basement. half of which were submerged in mineral oil for a long time. (my brother built a pc in a fish tank full of mineral oil for his senior project) so there's no telling whats under that cpu fan, and i have no idea how to get it off

[QUOTE=poopiecrap;30565523]I had the same thing happen to me yesterday with my spare build, but it was working before then just stopped. I think the cpu came loose or something, i jury rigged this thing together out of random parts in my basement. half of which were submerged in mineral oil for a long time. (my brother built a pc in a fish tank full of mineral oil for his senior project) so there's no telling whats under that cpu fan, and i have no idea how to get it off[/QUOTE] Strong alcohol might work, just let it lie somewhere warm afterwards to make it all evaporate.

Oh, and to those wondering about the build, it was pretty good for the price. The only niggle I had apart from the misplaced CPU was the fact that the SATA cables from the PSU were really close together, and wouldn't reach between the DVD Drive and HDD without a considerable stretch of the cables. It did, however, work in the end, just a bit awkward.

[QUOTE=Blaberry;30563944]This has never scared me since I have tried bending PCB. Your skin breaks on the welds before the PCB snaps.[/QUOTE] I was once trashing some old computer parts with a frieand, a broken motherboard and some other parts. Kicked the motherboard because I thought my goddamn winter boots would be enough to protect my foot. I now know that a PCB can be a bitch against toe-nails.

I got a gas powered soldering iron (and a electrical too btw), and it has a blowtorch thing attachment. Took me 15 minutes to go through a mobo pcb lol.