8800gt No Joy!

So I got my new RAM and vid card in. XFX 8800gt 512.
Installed RAM...no problems.

Installed vid card...no video, not even during post/boot strap. I know the pc is booting, I can hear it boot into windows, but no signal from the vid card. My previous card was a XFX 7900gs.
So I tried damn near everything and got nothing. I tried the card in a different pc and it works fine. So now I am thinking it has to do with my MB or the bios settings.
The only other thing I would think it is would be my MB has PCI-e 1.0 version bus, and the card is 2.0, but everything I have read about that claims that it's backward compatible.

Anyone have any suggestions on what I should look for or try?

Thanks.

Roca wrote:The only other thing I would think it is would be my MB has PCI-e 1.0 version bus, and the card is 2.0, but everything I have read about that claims that it's backward compatible.

I have actually heard that there are problems with this "compatibility". If you've tried the card in another machine, then you know it works. A few suggestions:

1. You do have enough power, right? Dumb question but you'd be surprised how many people try to run new cards with 400w power supplies.

2. Do you have a dedicated power cable for the card? Some newer cards (even my old 6800 Ultra had this problem) don't like sharing power with anything else on the line.

3. Check your mobo website to see if there's a bios patch that might solve this.

I thought that Windows could boot with a "default" video setting by using the computer itself? Seems like I remember every time I had a new computer my first boot was into 680x480 at 4 colors, and I always assumed that was running right off the CPU or something, because my mobos didn't have onboard video.

Yeah I think I have enough power. It's a 500W Raidmax..and the 12v rail is pushing 24amps (so the specs say). The 6pin is for the pci-e so it's dedicated.

I'm just at a loss at what it could be. I really want that card.

is the card properly seated in the slot, i have an EVGA 8800 GT and mine wasnt seated properly so i got no video, it sounds like you put the power cable in the back of the card ok. I personally have a 600W PSU but 600 should be ok.

The other thing it could be (and please don't laugh) is where your RAM is slotted. I had that problem and actually shouldn't have but my motherboard didn't recognize my video card until the RAM was inserted correctly. A good way to tell is if the four slots are two different colors and alternate (at least my motherboard is setup like that). Again, that was the problem I had (board was fickle, wouldn't allow certain color slots to work with the new 2GB of RAM). Hopefully you figure it out soon.

Thanks for all of the suggestions and ideas. Over the weekend I discovered that the PCI-E 2.0 is backward compatible EXCEPT for bus version 1.0a...and my current MB has that version...fantastic. So I just ordered a new MB. I hope this takes care of my problem as I really want to be ready by Saturday.

Thats a bummer, but at least you figured it out.

Good luck and i hope you get it set for the big day.

Well..what a mess...just for trying to upgrade my video card. ack!

I could never get a video signal with my new 8800 gt and my 570 SLI mobo, so I went and bought a new mobo. I got a EVGA 650i ultra, changed it out on my box, plugged my card in and was successful with video during post and in windows....on my monitor at work. Got home, plugged my two lcd monitors in, and SONOFABITCH! No post video, but got video in windows, sort of. The video blinked off and on. SO I swapped dvi ports between my two monitors, and wouldn't ya know...everything works. Why in the hell won't the dvi port closest to the bus NOT provide a signal to my primary monitor? I am lost.
Everything works the way I have the monitors swapped on the two dvi ports, but when I boot, the post shows up on my secondary monitor (the one plugged in to the "primary" dvi port).

I guess I am going to leave it alone..since everything is working...but it is perplexing.

i have a similar issue from time to time with a similar set up and for me it doesnt matter where the monitors are plugged in its just that sometimes if the monitors are "on" before the pc is "on" then i will get no signal, happens about half the time.

where i got lucky was I started out with only one monitor and added a 2nd one the day after i built so i knew everything was working ok because i had both running when i made the switch from 1 to 2.

but yeah, thats a mess, sorry