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Is the Graphics card damaged?

Discussion in 'Audio and Video' started by I Hear Voices, Sep 29, 2006.

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  1. I Hear Voices Newcomer, in training

    Hi,

    I recently replaced the Heatsink and Fan of my Radeon 9800 Pro (too noisy). My motherboard is an Asus A7V880.

    After I replaced it, I put the card on again and I get no image... The power LED on the monitor just blinks but the system passes the POST and continues on to Windows.

    I try another card (an FX5200) and it works well...

    If the graphics card was really damaged it shouldn't even pass the POST right?

    I forgot to turn the PC Speaker on when I was building the system so I can't hear any beeps but anyway, like I said, if there was a hardware problem the system wouldn't POST.

    Anyone have any solutions/suggestions.

    Or maybe I just can't accept that the card is busted... :p
    I Hear Voices, Sep 29, 2006
    #1

  2. wolfram TechSpot Paladin

    Hello and Welcome to Techspot!! :)

    Did you connect the 9800's PRO power connector? Is the new fan spinning correctly?

    And yes, I think that the system shouldn't POST if the VGA card is damaged. Hopefully, you just forgot to connect the power molex connector.

    Regards :wave:
    wolfram, Sep 29, 2006
    #2

  3. Sharkfood Newcomer, in training

    You should inspect your installation job closely.

    It's very, very easy to break or damage a capacitor or other circuit when you removed the old fan/installed the new. Also look for any tracings on the circuit board you may have scratched or damaged. A gouged circuit trailing on the board can also have this impact.

    If you have indeed damaged the card in some way, it may not be a total loss. If you're good with a soldering iron, sometimes a cap/resistor can be replaced.. or a scratched tracing can be bypassed by carefully soldering a small wire to complete the (now broken) circuit.

    Lastly, check the back-plate of your new cooler if it has one. Some of these are metal and have a rubber side & metal side. Make sure it's not shorting on the back of the card!
    Sharkfood, Sep 29, 2006
    #3

  4. I Hear Voices Newcomer, in training

    Hi,

    Thank you for the replies. Just for reference, the new fan is a Zalman VF700 AlCu.

    Yes and yes :)

    When I first got the card, I forgot to plug-in that connector and during POST there was a message (red background) saying that I didn't connect it :p

    ---

    Sharkfood: The installation went smoothly. While removing the old fan and installing the new one, I never had to apply any out of the ordinary force that could have broken or scratched the card.

    ---

    One thing I forgot to mention.

    I was interrupted right after I cleaned the thermal paste of the old fan and could only resume installation a few hours later. The card was a bit warm.

    Could that have done something to the GPU?
    I Hear Voices, Sep 29, 2006
    #4

  5. wolfram TechSpot Paladin

    Maybe that affected the GPU. I'd test the card on another system to check if it works okay.
    wolfram, Sep 29, 2006
    #5

  6. Rick TechSpot Staff

    Well, I can tell you from experience this isn't correct. I've seen my share of cards that would allow a system to POST, but not display an image. The card probably works well enough that the system knows it has a graphics card installed, but is broken enough that it won't display video.

    I don't know if you used any sort of paste or epoxy to secure your heatsink, but much of it is conductive and if spills over the edges onto the PCB, you could have a number of problems, including this one.
    Rick, Sep 29, 2006
    #6

  7. I Hear Voices Newcomer, in training

    wolfram: I just tried it on an old computer I have and it does beep (1 long two short which means video problems) and halts on POST.

    But I'm not really sure if the card fits and is making correct contact with the slot. The small Riva TNT 2 that the system has is a sucker to fit. :p The Radeon is quite big in comparison.

    Rick: I just applied the thermal paste as the instructions said. Maybe I could try to reapply the thermal paste?
    I Hear Voices, Sep 30, 2006
    #7

  8. wolfram TechSpot Paladin

    If the fan spins, then it's making good contact.

    I'm afraid that your card is toast. Maybe someone more intelligent than me (Sharkfood, KingCody, Rage, etc.) will suggest something else.

    I'm out of ideas :(
    wolfram, Sep 30, 2006
    #8

  9. I Hear Voices Newcomer, in training

    The fan spins because it's not connected to the card :p

    It connects to a normal molex through an adapter. I could have the fan working on its own.

    OK, I will await more responses. Thank you for the replies so far.
    I Hear Voices, Oct 1, 2006
    #9

  10. kangaruffian Newcomer, in training

    Hello n question/suggestion more.. do you have CRT or TFT monitor if its a CRT reason might be too high refresh rate you can check it on windoze safe mode
    kangaruffian, Oct 1, 2006
    #10

  11. I Hear Voices Newcomer, in training

    I have a TFT. I wish my problem was the refresh rate... :)
    I Hear Voices, Oct 2, 2006
    #11

  12. kangaruffian Newcomer, in training

    hmm

    try DVI instead VGA connector or anothervise, on bios try it to drop back agp 4x mode. clean golden pins on card with some cleaning fluid (isoprophanol alcohol)
    kangaruffian, Oct 2, 2006
    #12

  13. I Hear Voices Newcomer, in training

    Bah... the card is busted. I tried it just now without any video card in and it still POSTs...

    Oh well... Thank you for the help guys.
    I Hear Voices, Oct 4, 2006
    #13
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