First build no picture showing up, no post beep either

[8thmoon]

I wasn't sure whether to post this in the graphics & display section or the systems sections but I thought this one would be the most correct section.

Motherboard:ASUS Sabertooth X58
Video card: MSI Cyclone Geforce GTX460 (2 of them in SLI)
PSU: Ocz Fatal1ty 750W
Case:Cooler Master Haf 932
Processor:Intel Core I7 950
Ram: Corsair XMS3 DDR3 (3 of these)

This is my first time building a computer and I was sure I did everything right. Everything is powered all the fans work the fans on both the video cards work the heatskin that came with the processor works the lights on the motherboard work. I also put the ram in the light brown slots on the Sabertooth which are where they are supposed to go. But when I plug the HDMI cable into my monitor and the video card I get no picture I have tried switching cables and monitors I have also tried a DVI cable and a VGA cable I still get no picture I have also tried using both video card ports with the HDMI/DVI/VGA Cables.

Does anyone have any idea on what a possible problem could be, I have also tried only using one stick of ram and that did nothing. The only thing I can think of that may have caused this to happen was that I didn't have all the parts fully grounded when I installed them but if that was the case wouldn't said part just not work?

 

[tomhwk]

Check your power cables, is there another plug above the heatsink on the motherboard that you may have missed?
This was an issue when my friend just finished his build too.
On my board, this connector is at the very edge of the motherboard at the top, if your computer is standing upright.

 

[8thmoon]

I have the 24pin power connector plugged in as well as the 8pin power connector so thats not the problem.
This is really starting to tick me off since I just bought all these parts 2 weeks ago and finally got the last part today and it cost me quite a chunk of change so I really hope someone can give me some advice on how to fix this so I didn't waste my money.

But thanks for the reply I really appreciate any help I can get.

 

[jsc]

Work systematically through our standard checklist and troubleshooting thread:
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/261145-31-read-posting-boot-problems
I mean work through, not just read over it. We spent a lot of time on this. It should find most of the problems.

If not, continue.

I have tested the following beep patterns on Gigabyte, eVGA, and ECS motherboards. Other BIOS' may be different, but they all use a single short beep for a successful POST.

Breadboard - that will help isolate any kind of case problem you might have.
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/262730-31-breadboarding

Breadboard with just motherboard, CPU & HSF, case speaker, and PSU.

Make sure you plug the CPU power cable in. The system will not boot without it.

I always breadboard a new build. It takes only a few minutes, and you know you are putting good parts in the case once you are finished.

You can turn on the PC by momentarily shorting the two pins that the case power switch goes to. You should hear a series of long, single beeps indicating memory problems. Silence indicates a problem with (in most likely order) the PSU, motherboard, or CPU. Remember, at this time, you do not have a graphics card installed so the load on your PSU will be reduced.

If no beeps:
Running fans and drives and motherboard LED's do not necessarily indicate a good PSU. In the absence of a single short beep, they also do not indicate that the system is booting.

At this point, you can sort of check the PSU. Try to borrow a known good PSU of around 550 - 600 watts. That will power just about any system with a single GPU. If you cannot do that, use a DMM to measure the voltages. Measure between the colored wires and either chassis ground or the black wires. Yellow wires should be 12 volts. Red wires: +5 volts, orange wires: +3.3 volts, blue wire : -12 volts, violet wire: 5 volts always on. Tolerances are +/- 5% except for the -12 volts which is +/- 10%.

The gray wire is really important. It should go from 0 to +5 volts when you turn the PSU on with the case switch. CPU needs this signal to boot.

You can turn on the PSU by completely disconnecting the PSU and using a paperclip or jumper wire to short the green wire to one of the neighboring black wires.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5FWXgQSokF4&feature=youtube_gdata

A way that might be easier is to use the main power plug. Working from the back of the plug where the wires come out, use a bare paperclip to short between the green wire and one of the neighboring black wires. That will do the same thing with an installed PSU. It is also an easy way to bypass a questionable case power switch.

This checks the PSU under no load conditions, so it is not completely reliable. But if it can not pass this, it is dead. Then repeat the checks with the PSU plugged into the computer to put a load on the PSU.

If the system beeps:
If it looks like the PSU is good, install a memory stick. Boot. Beep pattern should change to one long and several short beeps indicating a missing graphics card.

Silence, long single beeps, or series of short beeps indicate a problem with the memory. If you get short beeps verify that the memory is in the appropriate motherboard slots.

Insert the video card and connect any necessary PCIe power connectors. Boot. At this point, the system should POST successfully (a single short beep). Notice that you do not need keyboard, mouse, monitor, or drives to successfully POST.
At this point, if the system doesn't work, it's either the video card or an inadequate PSU. Or rarely - the motherboard's PCIe interface.

Now start connecting the rest of the devices starting with the monitor, then keyboard and mouse, then the rest of the devices, testing after each step. It's possible that you can pass the POST with a defective video card. The POST routines can only check the video interface. It cannot check the internal parts of the video card.

 

[8thmoon]

Thank you for the reply I will try out your troubleshooting thread but I highly doubt that my PSU is the problem as it is brand new and the LED lights and fan built into the PSU are working perfectly but seeing as this is my first build and I am relatively new to this sort of thing I will try to test volts