No video when booting, first try at a PC build

[DarkEnd]

ok, so i start my computer. the fans (in the psu, on the cpu and case fans) start, hdd spins up, cd drives are fine as well, but i get no video.
its a (mostly) new setup. JetWay JHA06 mobo (using onbord video), 2x1gig sticks of g.skill ddr2 800 ram, amd athlon 64x2 6000+ AM2 processor (all of that's the new part), and a hard and 2 cd drives from another computer (the drives were working just fine this morning). the mobo has a debug readout on it, but all that gives me is "FF", which the manual says translates into 'boot', but it never changes

i'm also working w/ a new 500w psu, but to be sure i swapped it with another one i had that i know works. no help there. i also tried poping in a pci video card i had around (radeon x1650), but still got nothing. also tried several configs with drives disconnected 1 at a time and 1 stick of ram at a time. cleared the BIOS between each. nothing i can think of helps...

also, isnt the mobo supposed to have some alarm when started w/out ram, because mine didnt do anything when i tried starting w/out any ram installed...

 

[CCT]

Power supply connections possibly.

That board has an 8pin and a 4 pin and a 24 pin main connector. Which did you use?

Mounting stand-offs and screws all in (correct) place?

Does it show Bios screen during boot?

 

[DarkEnd]

i'm using the 24 pin connector. should i be using a diff one/more than one? my psu doesnt have a connector for the 8 pin, but the manual says thats only needed for an am2+ processor

by mounting stand-offs i'm going to assume you mean the little weird gold things that go between the case and mobo and that the mobo is screwed into, and yes i have all of those in place. would that make a difference if they wernt in place?

and no, i dont get even a bios screen when trying to boot

 

[CCT]

I believe you will at least need the 4 pin in addition to the 24 pin.

RTFM

 

[DarkEnd]

well 1st of all, i did rtfm, and it says the 8pin may be required depending on ur processor, but says nothing about the 4pin being required, just that it supports extra 12v/5v power to my system
however, i just tried connecting it anyway, but it didnt help

 

[CCT]

So, when you enter Bios what settings are selected for Video?

Because if you can't get to Bios and don't hear 1 BEEP on post, then you have problems with something in your hardware settup.

Start with 1 stick of ram and alternate with each stick you have to see if you can boot and get to Bios.

That is step 1.


edit: which you say you did

So, stage 2 is to ensure your cpu was pasted properly and is seated and heatsinked firmly.

 

[DarkEnd]

dont know whats selected in the bios, have never gotten it to boot, not even just to the mobo logo
tried both sticks, 1 at a time in each of the 4 slots, nothing. no video, no beeps
tried with no ram in any slot, no video no beeps

edit:what do you mean by pasted properly?

 

[CCT]

So, disconnect 1 cd ( the one on the end connector if a 40 wire cable) and make sure the other is set to Master.

Did you double-check that the stand-offs and screws attaching the mobo were in the right place? They usually show you.

and my edit above:

So, stage 2 is to ensure your cpu was pasted properly and is seated and heatsinked firmly.

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

 

[DarkEnd]

disconnect 1 cd drive, check
set other to master, check
connect new master cd drive, check
try booting again, fail

ya, stand offs and screws are in correct place. and where would they be showing me? the manual doesnt say anything about how the mobo should be mounted in the case, just about how to connect other hardware and other various connections

and how would i know that my cpu was pasted properly. i do know however that it is seated properly and the heatsink firmly in place

 

[CCT]

Well, most manuals depict the mobo and show which holes are mounting holes. One way to check for errant grounding is to remove the mobo from the case mounts and construct it on a table beside the case and see if it boots.

As to the pasting, I assumed you attached your own heatsink and some heatsinks come with paste pre-applied (like a pad) and with others you have to apply some thermal 'grease' and in both cases you place the heatsink onto the cpu carefully and then tighten the clamps/screws.

 

[DarkEnd]

well setting things up on a table didnt change anything
also, the heat sink came with the cpu and with the paste pre applied

and in my infinite ability to overlook things that are probably important...
up until now i've been connecting the cpu fan to the screen on my case (readouts for cpu temp, fan speed, etc), which is in turn connected to a 4pin connector from the psu. and apparently that is where the fan has been getting power because now that nothing is in the case, i actually connected the cpu fan to the mobo and it doesnt spin anymore... so, um yeah....
and i just rechecked the other fan connectors (there are also connectors for 3 case fans) and they are fine

 

[CCT]

'the heat sink came with the cpu and with the paste pre applied'

So, it would have had a protective 'film' that you removed from the 'pad' and then attached it.

You did remove a protective 'film' didn't you?

 

[DarkEnd]

yes yes, of course i did.
and it was actually a plastic cover, but same difference

 

[CCT]

So, we are at the RMA the mobo place.

 

[DarkEnd]

darn. i was afraid of that
oh well. guess it cant be helped.

thanks for all the help!!
and now i'm off to find out how to get a replacement. good thing i have all the boxes hua?

 

[CCT]

You are going to have to remove the heatsink and then the cpu from that mobo.

DO NOT try to reuse the original heatpad.

Order some thermal paste (a small tube is cheap and you need like the thinnest layer to fill micro-grooves in the contact area).

You can find some decent application guidelines by Googling Arctic Silver application - personally, I could care less what Brand you buy, just get something mainstream and apply it carefully.

gl