Gfx Card's fan won't start.....

[Dillybob]

This is really perplexing. I just built a new system, and I couldn't get it to display video to the new monitor....so I switched the old monitor in (which I KNEW worked), and still no video. Hooked up the new monitor to the old computer, and, lo and behold, it too works well. I opened the case with the PC powered on, and the GTX 280 is getting power (there's a green light at the end of the card), but the fan on the card won't start. I have tried both cards (I have two for SLI, and one is from my last build from about 2 months ago, so I know it should work), and have tried booting without my NIC or sound card (Killer NIC, 400mhz M1 edition/ X-fi Titanium Fatal1ty Champion edition). This leads me to believe that it's the motherboard, but I can't update the BIOS without video....can I?

The build is as follows:

-790i FTW Digital PWM Edition (EVGA) Motherboard
-Corsair HX1000 1000 watt power supply
-8GB (4x2GB DIMMs) Corsair DDR3 1600
-2 GTX 280 cards (Both EVGA standard version)
-Q9550 Processor
-2 OEM 150GB WD Velociraptor Drives/ 1 500GB WD Caviar Drive (for Backups)
-Killer NIC (400mhz M1 edition)
-X-Fi Titanium sound card
-LG DVD Burner
-Cooler Master HAF Full-Tower Case

As I have said, the X-fi and killer NIC aren't in right now, and are therefore NOT contributing to the problem.

I have tried resetting the CMOS (there's an onboard button for that), but it doesn't help.

I've been trying to figure this out for like 3 days.....I need help. X(

ANY information on fixes for this would be highly appreciated.

 

[phaxmohdem]

IS there a 4 pin Molex power connector on your motherboard? My ASUS M2N32 board has one that is supposed to be used in conjunction with high power draw SLI cards. Also, generally if your video cards aren't getting enough power you will hear a god awful squeal from the card. (at least that's what my 8800GTX does.)

Only thing I could suggest is to try each card in single card mode in ever PCIe slot on the motherboard and see if anything works... or if you can get your hands on an older 6000, 7000 series PCIe card you know for sure works to test with & possibly update the BIOS.

If nothing works, and from what you've stated, I'd RMA the board if you bought it from a reputable seller and try again.

 

[Dillybob]

I hooked up an 8800GTX, and the fan actually started spinning up, but still no video... made sure the monitors worked (and they do).

All the fans and lights work, and I've made sure that the power wasn't an issue...

Got a new board today, and I get the code "80" on the mobo's LED (I got FF on the last one). Anybody know what that could mean? I don't want to have to return a second board.....I'm starting to think I should switch brands, as both have been EVGA "FTW" Boards.

Might just switch over to Asus...... XD

 

[Dillybob]

Hey, guys. Here's an update:

Took it down to a local shop. A guy hooked up the CPU, RAM, And video card to a new 790i Mobo (an Ultra, but also made by EVGA), and he got it to boot on the bench.

So I get it home, install it in the case, and same problem. Take it to a different shop down the street, then check it in.
It's been there for about 2 days, and they called today to say that my machine had a variety of problems.

-Mobo Grounded out in 5 places
-CPU improperly installed
-RAM improperly installed

Now, the RAM and CPU being installed incorrectly seems highly unlikely, as I had not touched the CPU after it booted in the shop.
I did move the RAM around, but I had no trouble with it.

I CAN believe the grounding thing, though, as getting three bad mobos is near impossible (unless the chipset is bad).

I think these guys believe me to be an ignorant teen with his first build, and hope trick some more money out of me for parts.

What do you guys think about this? Is what they're saying possible, given the circumstances, or are they just trying to steal my money?

 

[RadiclDreamer]

Originally posted by: Dillybob

I think these guys believe me to be an ignorant teen with his first build, and hope trick some more money out of me for parts.

I think you hit it right there, not to dog on you or anything, but anyone who is convinced to buy "killer nic" needs to read up a bit on their pc parts. It doesnt sound like they are taking your for a ride.

 

[Dillybob]

Hmm.....I bought it because several reviews had stated that it improved ping and overall performance of online games by about %10 (these were printed in magazines, PC Gamer and Maximum PC, not online). I'd heard that it wasn't quite necessary for newer builds, but I find that when you delve into the settings, it can in fact outpace onboard LAN anyday, and frees up the processor from doing the networking on the PC. I know some people say it's a waste and that onboard is fine, but those same people have probably used everything onboard that they could (maybe with the exception of the video card), and probably have yet to experience non-onboard soundcards (which are also worth it to me for the increased quality and performance).

But that's beside the point. I found out where my mistake was: My Grandpa was convinced that using the majority of the standoffs that came with the case was a good idea, and I wasn't thinking at the time. The grounding out of the motherboards was caused by their contact with said standoffs. They are stress-testing the system now, though it seems as though it works, and there may not have been any damage. Still don't believe that the CPU was improperly installed (or the RAM, for that matter). As I've stated, this was my second socket 775 build (the last one consisting of a Q6600, 4GB of DDR2 800 RAM, and a 3870x2 on an x38 mobo), and that was successful to begin with, so I suppose I may have been a little overconfident.

 

[RadiclDreamer]

The onboard nics use so little cpu when playing games its absolutely not able to be perceived. Now during a large file transfer it can hit a few % but gaming is very low throughput.

Also, as far as pc mags go, they never give much of anything a bad review, remember ads from these same companies keep them in business.

As for the standoffs, this is a common new builder mistake, learn from it and try to check into future things before jumping in feet first. Always do your research and you will be fine.

 

[Dillybob]

Fair enough. I'll keep that in mind for future builds. Hopefully nothing was fried in the process, though. If I can finally get this thing running, it's going to be the fastest system I have ever had (though now that it's taken me this long to get it online, it would almost have been worth it to wait for Nehalem! XD)

 

[RadiclDreamer]

Originally posted by: Dillybob
Fair enough. I'll keep that in mind for future builds. Hopefully nothing was fried in the process, though. If I can finally get this thing running, it's going to be the fastest system I have ever had (though now that it's taken me this long to get it online, it would almost have been worth it to wait for Nehalem! XD)

No doubt it will be a nice machine, and good luck, those standoffs misplaced usually take something with them.

 

[Dillybob]

Yeah....maybe a couple of SATA ports died in one way or another. Have it in at a different shop now. Here's what happened:

-I was able to get video normally again, and was able to create a stripe of my two velociraptors.
-All hard drives were seen by the mobo, and then by the vista install (64-bit upgrade disc, was going to do no-XP workaround).
-PROBLEM: Couldn't install vista on the array.
-I seperated the array again, and was able to install on a single drive in about 12 minutes.
-Installed drivers.
-After restart, I couldn't boot (except in safe mode). I isolated the problem to the Video driver. If that was uninstalled, I could boot normally again.
-After googling the issue, I formatted the drives. Now Vista won't install on ANY of the three in there!

So yeah...it's in the shop, and they're going to install XP and do the Vista installation by the book. I don't see how the SATA ports COULD be an issue, as the drives are seen, but Vista will always stay at 0% completion until I shut it down. It's being fixed, it's just I'd like to know what you guys think the problem might actually be. Thanks for all your help so far, though.

PS: @ RadiclDreamer: You said they rarely give a bad review of products? Just out of curiousity, have you ever read maximum PC? It's actually quite the opposite of what you said....their parent company (Future US Publishing) puts the ads there. They usually give said stuff BAD ratings (usually because they're a stupid gimic). Just saying, they seem to be pretty objective from what I've seen.

 

[boomerang]

I think I may be able to shed some light on the improperly installed CPU issue.

I had a system over here that ended up needing a new HD. I installed a new one and installed Windows and drivers. Transferred her data and went online, downloaded updates, etc., etc. The system was running great and was very snappy.

I decided to remove the HS/Fan to see if the thermal compound was in place. The BIOS showed the temp to be very high.

When I removed the processor to clean off the old goop, there were three bent pins in the socket. I was able to straighten out all three, but on one of them, the extreme end snapped off.

You can see what I'm talking about here; http://www.pcstats.com/article...?articleid=2231&page=2

The system ran like a champ before and ran like a champ after. The temps came down to normal and I believe the bent pins may have been the source of the high temperature readings. Which I feel were bogus to top it all off.

The processor is keyed to only go in one way, I'm betting this may be what they were alluding to.

 

[Dillybob]

Yeah. It wasn't really, as far as i could tell. There's a little yellow triangle on one corner of socket 775 CPUs. Plus, there's a little semi-circle that has to line up with a certain point, so it's actually quite hard to make it fit wrong.

UPDATE TO THE SITUATION:

We were able to get vista installed completely (both parts of the upgrade work around) and acts just as vista should to a point....UNTIL THE VIDEO DRIVER IS INSTALLED.

I seriously hope that the grounding issue took one or (god forbid) both of the video cards....they display correctly until the driver is installed (latest WHQL driver, not the Beta...have tried the most recent THREE).

Have to boot into safe mode and uninstall the video driver to get it to boot normally again. Can anyone shed some light on a fix, or am I set to buy another video card? X(