Tom's Hardware Forums » Homebuilt Systems » General Homebuilt » My monitor powers off and PC unresponsive - tests done, what next?
 

My monitor powers off and PC unresponsive - tests done, what next?




Word :   Username :  
 
Bottom
Author
 Thread : My monitor powers off and PC unresponsive - tests done, what next?
 
Profile: newbie
More Information

Hi all,

My new-built PC has a problem - the monitor powers itself off - generally when the PC is stressed (ie in games - Bioshock and Oblivion both do it, other games are stable) - it won't come back on even if I turn it off and on again, nor will it respond to keypresses/mouse movement. However, the noise of the PC carries on - the lights are still on, it seems it's only the monitor going off / maybe the GPU?

I have done the following tests - I'm trying to find out if it is related to CPU/Memory/GPU etc.
Please can you help me by suggesting what I should do next?

Memory tests:

1 - Memtest86 - Screen went into standby after 15 mins. Would not come back on as above. GPU had been whirring as though 100% (see full specs below).

2 - Memtest86 - Screen went into standby after 40% of the test - about 25 mins I think. GPU had been much quieter this time - I had made NO changes in between, so I don't know why it was suddenly quieter. PC case was cool inside, RAM was cool

Comments - If the memory had failed wouldn't it have come up with a different type of failure rather than the monitor going off? I mean, Memtest really does nothing to test the GPU, so I'm confused at this result...

CPU tests:

1 - Orthos (small FFTs - stress CPU) - Ran for only 1 minute! Then the same thing - monitor powered itself off, would not come back. However, this test was done very soon after the ones above, so I repeated it -
2 - Orthos (small FFTs - stress CPU) - Having given the computer 30 mins to cool down. Stable after 54 minutes - in fact it's running now.

Comments - think this rules out a CPU problem - this is good!

GPU test:

1 - Ati Tool was stable after 1 hr of artifact testing

Comments - this rules out a GPU problem, right? :-S

PSU tests - is there a way to specifically test the PSU? I know very little about PSUs to be honest and could use some help.

Motherboard tests - are there any tests specifically for the mobo?

Specs:
CPU: Dual core 2180
GPU: 8800 GT - Point of View
Motherboard: Gigabyte P35 DSL
Hard disk: 1/2 TB Samsung HD501LJ
Memory: 2x1GB Corsair XM2
All new
Power Supply: Not a good one, will check details when current test finishes!
All are run at STOCK thoughout these tests. No overclocking or anything like that, although I did O/C the CPU for a bit a couple of weeks ago.


Thoughts most welcome.

Gear


---------------
POV 8800 GT, Dual Pentium E2180, Gigabyte P35 DSL, 2GB Corsair XMS2, Antec Sonata case, Altec lansing THX speakers, Speedlink Medusa headset, IIyama Vision Master Pro 454
Related Product

Register or log in to remove.

Profile: newbie
More Information

Added another memory test:

3 - Orthos memory test (large in-place FFTs - stress some RAM) - ran for 50 mins without any errors at all.


---------------
POV 8800 GT, Dual Pentium E2180, Gigabyte P35 DSL, 2GB Corsair XMS2, Antec Sonata case, Altec lansing THX speakers, Speedlink Medusa headset, IIyama Vision Master Pro 454
Profile: newbie
More Information

OK my PSU is a 350W Sumvision piece of rubbish - I am gonna upgrade it. I had thought it was a 450 but it seems from http://extreme.outervision.com/PSUEngine that I need 323W + another 30% for overhead. It could easily be this holding the system back and I need a spare PSU anyhow to make the PC for my sister out of the old stuff!

OK - off to ebuyer for now.


---------------
POV 8800 GT, Dual Pentium E2180, Gigabyte P35 DSL, 2GB Corsair XMS2, Antec Sonata case, Altec lansing THX speakers, Speedlink Medusa headset, IIyama Vision Master Pro 454

Go to:
 

Google Ads
Ad
News

Samsung and LG.Philips LCD producing monitor panels at next-generation plants - sources

Published on November 29, 2006

Industry sources recently indicated that Samsung Electronics and LG.Philips LCD (LPL) both are using their next-generation plants to produce LCD monitor panels, with Samsung producing 17" monitor panels at its seventh-generation (7G) plant and LPL using its 7.5G plant to make 19" monitor panels. Read more

LCD monitor panel prices may stabilize next quarter

Published on March 31, 2006

Although monitor panel prices are expected to keep dropping next month, sources at panel makers indicated that overall monitor panel prices may stabilize later in the second quarter. Read more

BenQ 2ms LCD monitor to hit the market in November

Published on October 27, 2005

BenQ recently debuted its 2ms 19" LCD monitor (FP93G X), which it claims to be the world&'s fastest monitor. Read more

LCD-monitor OEM prices continue to fall in December

Published on December 02, 2004

LCD-monitor OEM prices are expected to drop this month, with 15- and 17" monitor quotes to drop US$3-5 and 19" monitor prices to fall US$5-10, according to Taiwan-based monitor makers. Read more

Latest Reviews & Articles

Atom, Athlon, or Nano? Energy-Savers Compared

Published on October 03, 2008

We compared Intel’s Atom 230 and VIA’s Nano L2100 processors hoping to find the best product for low-power applications. VIA is in the vanguard of performance. Is this enough to beat Atom? Read more

Interview: Bigfoot's Killer NIC, Exposed

Published on October 02, 2008

Since its release, the Killer NIC has garnered a reputation for being an extravagant and largely unnecessary add-on for the do-it-yourselfer. Seeking additional insight, we approached the card's designer. Read more

Seagate's 1.5TB Barracuda: Bigger And Better?

Published on October 02, 2008

Seagate is the first hard drive vendor to offer a 1.5 TB drive in the 3.5” form factor. Meanwhile, WD sent us its RAID Edition 3 (RE3) drive. We tell you which is the best HDD choice today. Read more

Updated CPU Charts 2008: AMD Versus Intel

Published on October 01, 2008

The processor is the heart of your PC, and our updated charts for Q3 2008 show 54 of them competing in terms of performance. Using our updated suite of benchmarks, compare your favorite AMD and Intel CPUs after reading this introduction. Read more