Building a Computer Help

Soooo, I've put everything in (motherboard, processor, fans, video, audio, power, cd drive, hard drive, memory modules) and connected it all, it turns on, the fans go whir, the lights light up, and I plugged it into the monitor, and the screen is black, on standby mode. its running through a switch so this comp and the one next to me can run simotanously. this one works through the switch but the other has yet to display anything, even directly connected.

Things I have tried

The drive is not partitioned, so I tried booting off the cd, which is fruitless since i cant get any kind of signal from the monitor.
it is plugged in
the monitor is on
the monitor is plugged in
the keyboard and mouse are plugged in
the hd, the motherboard, and the cd rw are all connected to the power supply
the memory modules are seated properly
the video card is seated properly
as is the audio
the processor is seated properly
the parts are all guaranteed compatable ( I got most of this computer from a friend who upgraded and gave me what he didn't canabalize, and I went out and got the same parts he had from before.)


sooooooo any ideas? This computer is about to learn the sensation of falling two stories to the ground.

You could try resetting the BIOS. Also, if the motherboard has onboard video try removing the video card and plugging your monitor into the onboard video, just to rule out possible video card issues.

? Are there jumpers on the board for manually setting FSB, CPU Multiplier, etc. ?

Better yet, can you list the make/model of the components? Just so everyone's on the same page, so to speak.

Have you tried using one stick of ram - or putting known good ram in ?

This is a pretty tough problem to track without actually seeing the set-up... Also difficult to pin down because you're going blind...

John_boy and 12m8keall2c gave the replies that came first to my mind as well... Most often the problem is that your computer hardware has not been installed correctly, your motherboard's jumpers are set incorrectly, your BIOS settings are not correct, or your computer or peripherals have been shorted out and/or have some other mechanical problem.
First (and you've probably tried this already) is check that the monitor is actually working. Test the screen on another PC to check that it's working, and you can even test another screen on the PC you want to get working.

Important information you might be over-looking is the BIOS startup test/POST (Power On Self Test)... When you start the PC, what is the beep sound during the first few seconds from the internal speaker? Is it a long beep, a single short beep, several beeps, etc? This is important because the PC might be telling you what's wrong.
HERE is a list of the beep codes and the problem they're indicating...

If that doesn't help you I would suggest that you carefully go through everything inside the PC, part by part...

1. Check and make sure all cables are firmly attached to the back of the computer and to all external devices. Retry.

2. Remove the case cover from the computer. Make sure all cables (hard drive, power cables, other disk cables) inside the computer are firmly attached.
Press down on all ISA and PCI cards and make sure they are firmly seated. Make sure your DRAM memory cards are firmly seated. Feel the top of the CPU and make sure it is not hot (warm is OK). Retry.

3. (This step is usually for newly built computers that have not successfully booted.) Get out your motherboard manual, or download one from the manufacturer's site, and go over all your motherboard jumper settings.
Set the jumpers in the most conservative position. Review all your accessory wire connections (keyboard lock, hard drive access light, etc.) and make sure the connectors to the motherboard are facing the same direction. Retry.

4. Turn the computer back on with the case off. Verify that your CPU and power supply fan are running. If either one is not running you have a problem. If the power supply fan is not running replace the power supply (make sure the power connectors are correctly attached to the motherboard). Make sure the CPU fan is connected to power on the motherboard. If it is correctly connected and still doesn't run, replace it. Retry.

5. Unplug your computer. Remove all PCI and ISA cards. Reinstall the video card and disconnect the hard drive cable. Plug in the keyboard, video cable, and power cable. Restart your computer. If this worked, go to Step 6. If your DOS screen doesn't come up at this point try the following ideas.

a. Closely examine your motherboard and make sure it is not making contact with the computer case, which will short it.
b. Your video card, video cable, or monitor may be malfunctioning. Borrow a video card, cable and monitor, retry.
c. Remove and reinstall your DRAM. If your computer can not find system memory it will not POST.
d. Remove the CPU and reinstall it.
e. Follow your motherboard manual's instructions for resetting your BIOS to its default configuration.

6. If you now have a DOS screen on your monitor, attach your hard drive cable and reboot. Make sure the hard drive is correctly set up in the BIOS. Press the Delete key during the POST memory check to enter the BIOS. If your hard drive doesn't work, you have incorrectly attached the drive ribbon cable or power cable. See our article Installing a Second Hard Drive for the correct procedures for installing the hard drive ribbon cable.

7. Add your other PCI and ISA cards back into the computer one at a time. Reboot after each card is installed to make sure the new card isn't causing a problem.

Quite a mission.... Good luck!

[Edit: Sp]

[edit on 13-2-2006 by Gemwolf]

Originally posted by john_boy
Have you tried using one stick of ram - or putting known good ram in ?

This is it, I bet your RAM is the issue. I had the same issue once, try just a single stick. Your ram the same speeds?