[sassenach]

Hi Everyone,
I have a problem with my computer.
I was browsing the internet and all of a sudden my computer screen turned off.
At first i thought it was a faulty screen, so i checked it with another computer and the screen works fine.
My computer did NOT turn off, but it was still on. I tried to turn it off using the power button the computer, but it wouldnt turn off. So i turned it off from the back of the computer where the power goes in.
I opened the computer, disabled the hard drive, dvd rom, and memory from getting power. i turned on the computer and still a black screen. not even getting to cmos.
i see all the fans working fine. Btw, my power supply is only a month old and a really good one too. not the cheap ones.
I am not sure how to continue with this.
any ideas? thanks

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If you tried another monitor and the same thing happens, then you need to look at your graphics solution. The card may have gone bad, or, if lucky, a power connection came loose.

[Digerati]

If you tried another monitor and the same thing happens, then you need to look at your graphics solution. The card may have gone bad, or, if lucky, a power connection came loose.

[sassenach]

the vga is on-board (on the motherboard itself).
so im not sure how i can test that

[Digerati]

You can't. All you can do is make sure you have good power getting to the board, including any extra power connectors, as many new motherboards require. While wise to select a good quality PSU from a good maker, that is no guarantee the supply has not failed. If the supply is good, and properly connected, and still no graphics, then it would seem your motherboard has failed.

Does the monitor go into sleep mode during this time?

[sassenach]

yup my screen goes in sleep mode. doesnt even turn on.

[jadi929]

does ur monitor turn on and display an orange light? or does it turn on at all? i'm thinking its the video card?

[Digerati]

jadi929 - please note, a card has already been suggested, and the OP replied he has on-board.

yup my screen goes in sleep mode. doesnt even turn on.

Then I would try another power supply just to make sure, but it sounds like the motherboard is bad. Sorry.

[jadi929]

well isnt it still possible that the on board vid. card failed. perhaps he could try another card if he happens to have on lying around

[Digerati]

well isnt it still possible that the on board vid. card failed. perhaps he could try another card if he happens to have on lying around

I suspect it is the on-board. And yes, you are correct. If you, sass, have a spare graphics card, you can give it a try and hope the BIOS will see it, and change to it. This assumes your PSU will support the added demands of the card, and any damage is isolated to only the on-board graphics. It is worth a try - as it is typically much easier to replace a card instead of the whole motherboard.

Good suggestion, jadi!

[sassenach]

my screen button color is yellow orange, not blue/green as it should be.
im going to try a graphic card and see what happens.
i doubt its the PS, because i just installed a brand new one 2 months ago. i didn't buy the generic ones, i bought a good one.

[Digerati]

i doubt its the PS, because i just installed a brand new one 2 months ago. i didn't buy the generic ones, i bought a good one.

As I noted above, that improves your chances but is still is no guarantee it is working perfectly. One of the supplied voltages may be slightly out of tolerance - they should all be withing ±5% of +3.3V, +5V, and +12V. Fans spinning only means there's some +12V power going - it says nothing of the other required voltages.

Make sure you unplug from the wall and discharge yourself before digging in when replacing the card. If it still does not work, I urge you to try another PSU before declaring the motherboard bad.

[jadi929]

i had the same problem and had an on board vid. card too. I just picked up a brand new one from best buy yesterday and plugged it in, and it worked great! thats why i suggested it might be the vid. card