VGA box, new PC, and "signal out of range"

greyfeld

Honorable
Aug 10, 2012
39
0
10,530
On my last computer, I had a VGA box set up so that I could connect my PS3 to my PC and play it on my computer monitor. Recently, I upgraded my computer. I kept the same monitor, but now when I try to connect my box, my monitor gives me an error message that says, "input signal out of range."

VGA Box - http://hyperkin.com/media/catalog/product/cache/1/image/475x/9df78eab33525d08d6e5fb8d27136e95/M/0/M04986.jpg

PC:
ASRock H77 Pro4/MVP motherboard
i5 3550 Ivy Bridge 3.3 GHz CPU
MSI Geforce gfx 560 1GB GPU
HP W1907 19-inch Widescreen Flat Panel LCD Monitor

What could be the problem, and how do I fix it?
 

jcoultas98

Distinguished
Feb 19, 2009
634
0
19,060
Your video card is trying to push a higher resolution than the monitor supports. Start your computer in safe mode (Smash f8 just after the computer logo shows up). You will want to force your monitor into the native resolution of your monitor.
 

greyfeld

Honorable
Aug 10, 2012
39
0
10,530
I tried booting up in safe mode, and I tried just manually changing the resolution, but neither solution actually fixed the problem.

However, I did manage to fix it.

When I was moving cords around, I got the same "input signal out of range" message when I reconnected the monitor straight to my graphics card. Since this had never happened before, I was rightfully confused and frustrated. I decided to just do a straight reboot of the computer and see if it would fix the problem, which it thankfully did.

Which gave me another idea.

I shut the computer down and connected the VGA box before turning the computer back on (instead of just trying to wire the connections while the PC was running). When I flipped it on, it worked! My VGA box is now properly connected to my monitor, and everything works swimmingly :)

So, a word to other computer amateurs like myself: If all else fails, make sure you're making your connections while the PC is off! Sometimes, having the hardware present during the boot is important.