PC boots up but screen stays black

[miyamamo]

Okay, after a recent thunder storm, my computer died on me. I can turn it on, fans hum to life and will stay on, but the screen stays black. I removed all the components in the case, and assembled just the fundamentals with one stick of RAM and onboard graphics (specs below), shorted the pins to power it up but it stays black. My question is two part: what should I do to fix my pc, and what should I do to prevent this from happening in the future? I have surge protectors, but apparently they're not good enough. Is there some kind of high grade computer surge protector I can buy? Would a battery back-up help this problem do you think? Any advice would be appreciated.

Specs:

Gigabyte GA-G31M-S2L Motherboard Rev: 1.1
Corsair TX 650W Power Supply
Intel Celeron Dual-Core E1200 Processor
Kingston KVR800D2N6/1G 1GB 800MHz DDR2 Non-ECC CL6 DIMM RAM

[shadowpr]

If you have it to the bare minimum, and still get nothing but black, it's time to change parts.

First thing, do you have a second monitor to try? If the power went out, the monitor could have been damaged.

Next thing I would replace would be the power supply, and then the mother board after that.

As for the surge protector, I believe they are only good for a certain amount of years.

[glc]

A line-interactive or AVR type UPS will help.

[miyamamo]

The power supply I have is brand new (though it was installed when the shock occurred) so I'm hoping not to have to purchase another this soon; the motherboard is older and has had this problem before, so I suspect it to be the culprit.

I tried the computer on another monitor and it was a no go. Keeping in mind that I've had problems before and have, since then, replaced the power supply, should I replace the motherboard at this point? If so, what should I get? I have a full sized case, despite the small board, and am looking for something with 4 DDR2 ports, and I'd like to have the option for SLI/Crossfire (though from what I understand there aren't enormous benefits from that). Also, if I'm replacing the motherboard should I get something that'll take the celeron or should I just not worry about that and get a new processor, too? I'm pretty sure that the Celeron E1200 has the same connection as the Intel Core 2 Duo. Would that be a reasonable upgrade, or is there something better than that out, now?

[glc]

If you want a 4 slot board with onboard video:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131222

Twice the price of a replacement G31 board with 2 slots...........

[miyamamo]

I was looking at:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131393

I compared them and am wondering what the advantage is on yours.

[flanzig1]

The motherboard you selected requires a video card, the one GLC picked has on-board video. You could get a low end video card for about $25.

[miyamamo]

Ah, ok, sorry, forgot to mention, I have a bunch of RAM and an Nvidia GeForce 8500 GT, so I don't _need_ on board video.

[glc]

Will your case accept a standard 7 slot ATX board?

[rwest]

Okay silly question, but did you tell the old board you switched to onbord video. I realize your looking at rebuilding, but in the op you made no comment about it.

And what about cmos? Did you try clearing it. While it's a good chance you have may have a bad part, you're not going to get video thru the onboard if the bios is set for a card.

[miyamamo]

I did clear the cmos, and have tried it with both the card and the onboard. I didn't mention the card initially because I have tested the card on another computer and know that it's not the problem; I was hoping to troubleshoot the remainder of the pieces or come to the conclusion that I need to rebuild.

I recently purchased the Raidmax Smilodon case:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811156063

which is a full sized case and will fit a full atx motherboard. I had bought the mini-atx motherboard earlier in a budget build that I did with no guidance other than "check out newegg".

[miyamamo]

So, like my title says, my computer died, and the problem seems to be the motherboard. Frying the motherboard seems like as good a time as any to rebuild, right? Anyway. Parts that I have left over (which could theoretically be damaged but I think they're all alright):

Processor: Celeron e1200 (want to replace)
RAM: 4 x OCZ OCZ2RPR8004GK 2GB Reaper Series DDR2 800MHz RAM
Graphics Card: Nvidia GeForce 8500GT
PSU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817139005
Case: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811156063

The DVD drive I had is shot, and I'll need a new one of those, too.

The motherboard I was looking at is:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131393

Also, I was advised that a UPS would help with my problem of power outages and heavy surges. Any recommendations on those?

Looking to spend less than $1000 (preferably considerably less).

[pam123]

Do you want to keep that DDR2 800 ram ?
If so then this cpu is your best bet : http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819116092

If you're willing to dump the ram then look at this processor : http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819115041

DVD-RW drive : http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16827106280

This is a solid unit if power problems are major out at your place : http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16842101140

[glc]

Threads merged in the interest of continuity.

[miyamamo]

I'm not too keen on buying new RAM, but if I were to upgrade to the 1333 MHz FSB and compatible RAM, how much of a performance upgrade could I expect to see? Also: do I need a quad core processor? It's my understanding that most games I'd run aren't configured to take advantage of a quad-core yet. Would I actually be getting a significant increase in performance compared to say, a Core 2 Duo (e8400 / e8500)?

Also, how important is the L2 cache? I notice that the Celeron line has a much much smaller cache size than the Core 2s (Duo or Quad).

As for the UPS; will it matter that my PSU is 650 W and that UPS is 540 W? I suppose it really depends on the draw from components... with 4 case fans, the cpu, 2 hard drives, 1 disk drive, and the GPU am I likely to break 540?

[pam123]

You'd see the improvement in real use terms if you're a gamer, if not then get the Celeron and keep the ram.

The UPS blocks surges and brownouts and give you a shut down window.
The one I chose gives you a 15 minute grace period.

Take your bet one way or another depending on what's happening at your place.

[glc]

Your 800 MHz ram is fine with a 1333 FSB processor. However, you SHOULD install it in matched pairs to take advantage of dual channel operation. A E8400 is all you need for gaming. The FSB and cache are both important.

[miyamamo]

Are there any advantages yet to the quad core? The only major thing I see is an L2 cache of twice the size, but is that cache going to be used fully by any games on the market? Also; is it worth it to get the slight increase in clock speed on the e8500 or am I better off with saving a few dollars to get the e8400?

[glc]

For gaming at the present time, you get the best performance for the buck with a fast dual core processor. Quad cores shine for heavy multitasking and with apps that are quad core aware/optimized.

[miyamamo]

Alright, so right now I guess I'm looking at:

UPS: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16842101140
CPU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819115036
Drive: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16827106280
MoBo: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131393