No Video Feed with a new Chaintech GeForce 6600

[Coto]

I recently purchased a new GeForce 6600 from newegg.com and I seem to have encountered a problem. I have a HP Pavillion a320n, and the full card description is "CHAINTECH Geforce 6600 256MB DDR AGP 4X/8X Video Card".

My computer does have a AGP slot on its motherboard for the new card, but the old card is an onboard NVidia Geforce 4 MX 64MB DDR. I have disable the old card via the device manager and even gone as far as to directly try to uninstall the drivers (which are simple automatically reinstalled when I reboot). I believe it is when the card is disabled that moving windows on my screen will make the them move slowly and appear to lag a few seconds behind the mouse. I am assuming that means the card is disabled and I am free to install the new graphics card.

When I install the new hardware into the AGP slot and connect the monitor I get no feed as the light only blinks orange and green. I have tried both the old and new ports for the monitor to no avail. When I remove the new card the computer works just like normal with no problems.

In addition to disabling the card via the device manager I have also gone into the BIOS of the computer and from the advanced tab changed the Primary Video Adapter to "AGP/Onboard" from "PCI" in an attempt to alleviate the problem. I have tried both settings via the BIOS to get the monitor to work as well, neither have succeeded.

The latest thing I've tried has been to install the new drivers for the 6600 without the card actually being installed, as of now when I go to the Device Manager it lists "GeForce 6600" under the display adapters instead of "GeForce 4 MX" which is the onboard card. I have yet to run into any problems with this change, as the onboard card is still the only one installed.

As I've been paging though the manual for the card I've encountered a small blurb that reads "Note: When using GeForce 6600G, it is important to remember to plug an existing power connector comming from the computer power supply to the connector on the edge of the board[...]"

My question is, I only have a GeForce 6600, not a 6600GT or even 6600G, but my card does have a power connector on it. If there any difference between a 6600 and a 6600G or even a 6600GT? I know I don't have a GT and the box only says 6600 with no G, So I'm rather confused.

Upon further investigation I've noticed on the outside of the box as well it says requires a "300W power supply" So I'm assuming I will need to run a cord directly from the power supply to the card. Which I began to do but soon realized I only have a 250W power supply and the only extra cord was one for four prongs in a cube shape instead of a kinda rectangle shape.

I guess what im really asking is if anyone has any advice for me, I pretty much know I'm going to need a new power supply in the range of 400-500W so any advice there or product recommendations would be appreciated. The HP Technician said my computer uses a 20 pin connector with input voltage of 110w (North american).

In the case that it isnt just the power supply, any other tips or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I've included certain specs off my computer that other technicians wanted to know or wanted me to do, such as the card specs, DXDIAG and MSINFO. Thanks again!


The DXDIAG and MSINFO are too long to post without making 6 more replies, but I have them in .txt and can post them if they would be useful.


------------------------------------------

GeForce 6600 Specs
-------------------

Specifications

Model
Brand CHAINTECH
Model SA6600

Chipset
GPU Geforce 6600
Core clock 300MHz
PixelPipelines 8

Memory
Memory Clock 500MHz
Memory Size 256MB
Memory Interface 128-bit
Memory Type DDR

3D API
DirectX DirectX 9
OpenGL OpenGL 1.5

Interface
Interface AGP 4X/8X

Ports
DVI 1
TV-Out S-Video Out
VIVO No
TV Tuner No

General
RAMDAC 400 MHz
Max Resolution 2048x1536@85Hz
SLI Supported No
Operating Systems Supported Windows 2000/XP
System Requirements AGP 8X slot
CD or DVD ROM for software installation
64MB system RAM minimum
30MB free hard disk space minimum
Features
Features NVIDIA CineFX 3.0 Technology
Powers the next generation of cinematic realism. Full support for Microsoft DirectX 9.0 Shader Model 3.0 enables stunning and complex special effects. Next-generation shader architecture delivers faster and smoother gameplay.
64-Bit Texture Filtering and Blending
Based on the OpenEXR technology from Industrial Light and Magic, NVIDIA's 64-bit texture implementation sets new standards for image clarity and quality through floating point capabilities in shading, filtering, texturing, and blending.
NVIDIA UltraShadow II Technology
Enhances the performance of bleeding-edge games, like id Software's Doom III, that feature complex scenes with multiple light sources and objects. Second-generation technology delivers more than 4X the shadow processing power over the previous generation.
Intellisample 3.0
The industry's fastest antialiasing delivers ultra-realistic visuals, with no jagged edges, at lightning-fast speeds. Visual quality is taken to new heights through a new rotated grid sampling pattern.
Vertex Shaders 3.0
Pixel Shaders 3.0

Packaging
Package Contents S-Video Cable
DVI to VGA adapter
Manual
Drivers CD

 

[vnf4ultra]

Ok, I think you have this card, correct?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814145113
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Showi...+6600+128MB+DDR+AGP+4X/8X+Video+Card+-+Retail

It looks like it has a molex connector which needs to be connected, if it isn't connected it won't work.
A picture of a molex is attached.

If you don't have too much in your system(like multiple hds, multiple cd drives, a ton of ram, lights/fans, etc) and have a semi-basic system, I think a 250w could probably run it, at least temporarily(it may cause system instability/crashes if underpowered, or it may not work at all).

You need a molex splitter(y cable) to get it working or a new psu with more connectors. Here's a psu guide.
http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=792566
A cheap 500w psu could be worse than a 250w name brand quality one, so don't get a cheapo. Weight of a psu usually is a general indicator of quality, heaver=better.

 

[Coto]

Yeah, thats the card I have, it looks just like that, except its the 256MB version. I do have a extra molex connector coming off the PSU except it's too short to reach over to the new card. I'll try searching a few stores for for something that may extend it (if that even exists) in an attempt to see if the card works, as of now I'll just order a nice new PSU and wait for it to arrive in a few days.

A friend suggested I use one of my older 250w power supplies and simple attach that to the card and give it it's own power supply to see if that works but I'm a little hesitant to do this as I do not want to damage the new card by running too many watts through it. Would this be a safe idea to simple test the card?

Chaintech Tech's finally got back to me today but they didn't have much to say other than "Test it on another PC", which I can't, and:

"If card pass, move on to the next step.
The bios of the board must be flashed to the latest (at least later half of year 2004 for bios date) using the onboard video to visualize. At this point the card should be recognized."

Which I have no idea what that means.

I am really just hoping at this point that the card is not feeding to the monitor simple because its not connected to the power supply. It only worries me because when I remove the card, everything works like normal.

I really appreciate your help in this situation and the link for the PSU guide, I'll use that to my advantage when purchasing my new one tonight. Thank you!

 

[kol_indian]

the card will not work if hte molex connecter is not connected,instead of a new PSU u can try a Y connecter, it will just split the existing conecter and also act as a extension :grinthumb

 

[vnf4ultra]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16812189003
There's what you need a splitter/extender for molexes.

Using another psu wouldn't work without some rigging. I think psus detect if they are connected to a mobo, and if they're not, they don't work. You have to short 2 pins in the main atx connector to "trick" it into working. I think there was a thread about doing that here, so try a search on dual psu, etc.

Sometimes tech support stinks. They're telling you to flash your video cards bios, but I doubt that necessary, unless they put a defective bios on the cards from the factory.

My guess is that your card is fine, you just need the power connector/extender to get it to work.