Only thing I forgot to add to my pc was lighter fluid and a match :)

[ghostsama]

So I would really appreciate any help anyone can offer me. This is my first full build but Ive always done my own part swaps etc.

Heres the build...
Antec 1200 atx case
EVGA 780i sli mobo
EVGA NVIDIA 9800 gx v-card
Intel Core 2 Extreme cpu
Sound Blaster Titanium sound card
Corsair 1000 watt power source
Zalman 120mm heat sink
8 gig Corsair Dominator ddr2
(would be) Windows Vista Ultimate 64
And peripherals I shouldnt have spent so much on lol...

Ive wired this thing like a trailor queen and I thought everything was perfect. Naturally when I click the power button everything lights up and the fans come on but nothing comes on my monitor. Heres what troubleshooting Ive done..

Swapped the two dvi cables, also used an rgb cable with a dvi connector to make sure it wasnt the monitor wires.
Pulled one stick of ram at a time to make sure it was not the ram.
I have already tested my monitor on another pc so I know it isnt that.
I pulled the video card and tried it in all sli slots to make sure it wasnt something with a bad mobo slot.
I check the connections for the cpu and video card from power source but everything checks.

I havent messed with mobo jumpers yet because Ive read it was ok to wait until BIOS setup to do that and I havent tried another video card yet.

Im just praying it's not a bad part lol..

Anyone got any ideas that might help? Thx.

[Alaron]

Welcome to PCM.

Please follow our troubleshooting steps here: PROBLEMS with a NEW BUILD? Try This!! and report back.

[ghostsama]

Ill unload the case when I get home then and try to jump it with the screwdriver. I notice it does beep btw when I turn it on. Once I turned it on and got many repeated beeps every 3-4 secs until I rebooted it.

(At least I know all my fans and heatsinks work well...dropped the entire room temp after 5 min lol.)
Thanks for the help.

[minsonngo]

Do you have the 6-pin PCI-E connectors from the PSU hooked up to the video card?

Are you sure you have the CPU heatsink/fan mounted correctly? That's probably one of the most common mistakes around here.

[ghostsama]

yeah i've gotten the six pin connected but i did notice i overlooked a little wire with a 2 pin mobo connector that came with the v-card. i dont recall seeing it in the manual for some reason and ive memorized most of my part manuals at this point. :/

as far as the zalman cpu fan...i ..think...i did that right lol..honestly with as awesome a part as that company makes i think they could do somuch better on this part manual. i actually ended up using the mobo manual and cpu fan manual that came with the stock fan from my intel chip instead for reference. i know as far as the bottom mounting i got it right the the direction of the fan is good because it blows in the direction of the wind tunnel top fan on the antec case. the bit i wasnt sure of was the top mounting. the vague sheet from zalman was seriously obtuse on this part and as a result the fan sits in place but can be 'mushed' around to a minute degree if pushed on in its mounting latch. i did use arctic silver thermal grease instead of the stock gunk.
will the tightness on the top latch cause too much of an issue? i havent noticed it moving without applied force..

thanks for ur time c:

[minsonngo]

You do have both the 24-pin and 4/8-pin power supply connectors hooked up to the motherboard as well?


And you do have standoffs between the motherboard and the case?



Can you link us to your exact motherboard AND the processor that you have as well?

[ghostsama]

ill have to set up the links tommorrow..im writing this on a smart phone but once i get back to the office ill put them up.

ok so i took it all out of the case and did the screwdriver test. well first off one of the sticks of ram wont boot so i ruled that one out. the other one booted the fans on but i still didnt get anything on my monitor.
i got a reall fast series of beeps//like 8 i think// when it came on..
also the green ok lights came o the v-card so it shows to be in right...possibly the cpu then?
anything wrong with the cpu is my worst nightmare..i bought it thru my job for 1600 lol..darn

[not important]

AM Bios: 8 beeps - Display Memory Read/Write Failure
I got this Googling: This is usually caused by a problem with the video card, or the memory on the video card. It can also be a motherboard issue.

[ghostsama]

thx for looking that up. c:

well i can live with a bad mobo or card i guess.
i have an old geforce3 series i can try...not sure if its burned out or not tho..
i also have a 680i evga board ive never opened..

do you guys think itd be better at this point to just take it to a certified tech to check the parts or keep trucking with this? i really hate to remoe the cpu an since this thing was such a pain to get placed correctly in the first place.....hmmm

[ghostsama]

ok so just to say i did it i hooked up my 680i that was still in its box..everything else were the same parts and i left it all on a non conductive surface......

so that was pretty much inconclusive because i think the board is bad fresh out of the box...

would power up but would only stay powered for 30 secs...gah!

[not important]

Did the video work for the 30 seconds?

[ghostsama]

nopers..no video there either...go figure..i buy tons of cheapo v-cards and all if well but the ne time i drop several hundred and it dosnt work lol..

oh well im going to take it to a pc repair shop just to verify..thank god for manufacturers warranties