How to diagnose PC with black screen?

In article <f1f8c384.0407270143.25ea7e49.TakeThisOut@posting.google.com>,
nospamaccepted.TakeThisOut@yahoo.com says...
 > PC #1
 > Computer switches on, but screen remains black, no
 > messages, no beeps. Tried the hard disk on another
 > machine and it worked. Tried the network card on
 > another machine and it worked. Tried 32MB DIMM
 > memory module on another machine and it appears
 > to be dead. Has AMD 500 MHz CPU and GigaByte main
 > board.
 >
 > Is it possible for a RAM memory module to be erased
 > or is it likely destroyed due to an electrical
 > problem?
 >
 > Did not try the flash BIOS chip or PCI graphics card
 > on another machine, so I don't know if they have been
 > erased or destroyed. Any ideas?
 >
 >
 > PC #2
 > Very similar symptoms to PC #1. Computer worked fine
 > last time I used it. Now, when I switch it on, it
 > switches itself off (some sort of short?). When I
 > switch it on again, it stays on, but the screen
 > remains black, no messages, no beeps. Has on-board
 > ATI graphics chip, ASUS main board and Pentium 2
 > 166 MHz CPU. Any ideas?
 >


some sort of hardware failure.

could be chip, power supply, motherboard, memory, graphics card.

happy hunting.<!-- ~MESSAGE_AFTER~ -->
 >> Stay informed about: How to diagnose PC with black screen? 

Procedure is quite simple, straight forward, involves tools
that are inexpensive and commonly sold in major stores, AND is
not about hunting.

Start by confirming the power supply system this is PSU,
motherboard controller, and power switch. Does not matter if
machine turns on, then off. Reason for that failure is also
found in this simple procedure: "Computer doesnt start at all"
in alt.comp.hardware on 10 Jan 2004 at
<a style='text-decoration: underline;' href="http://tinyurl.com/2t69q" target="_blank">http://tinyurl.com/2t69q</a> or

"I think my power supply is dead" in alt.comp.hardware on 5
Feb 2004 at <a style='text-decoration: underline;' href="http://tinyurl.com/yvbw9" target="_blank">http://tinyurl.com/yvbw9</a>

Until you have verified this part, then all other testing
and speculation is simply time wasting.


Little Ghost wrote:
 > PC #1
 > Computer switches on, but screen remains black, no
 > messages, no beeps. Tried the hard disk on another
 > machine and it worked. Tried the network card on
 > another machine and it worked. Tried 32MB DIMM
 > memory module on another machine and it appears
 > to be dead. Has AMD 500 MHz CPU and GigaByte main
 > board.
 >
 > Is it possible for a RAM memory module to be erased
 > or is it likely destroyed due to an electrical
 > problem?
 >
 > Did not try the flash BIOS chip or PCI graphics card
 > on another machine, so I don't know if they have been
 > erased or destroyed. Any ideas?
 >
 > PC #2
 > Very similar symptoms to PC #1. Computer worked fine
 > last time I used it. Now, when I switch it on, it
 > switches itself off (some sort of short?). When I
 > switch it on again, it stays on, but the screen
 > remains black, no messages, no beeps. Has on-board
 > ATI graphics chip, ASUS main board and Pentium 2
 > 166 MHz CPU. Any ideas?<!-- ~MESSAGE_AFTER~ -->
 >> Stay informed about: How to diagnose PC with black screen? 

Try re-installing the chip it may not be seated correcly


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 >> Stay informed about: How to diagnose PC with black screen? 

w_tom wrote:
 >
 > Little Ghost wrote:
  > >
  > > Computer switches on, but screen remains black, no
  > > messages, no beeps. Tried the hard disk on another
  > > machine and it worked. Tried the network card on
  > > another machine and it worked. Tried 32MB DIMM
  > > memory module on another machine and it appears
  > > to be dead. Has AMD 500 MHz CPU and GigaByte main
  > > board.

 > Procedure is quite simple, straight forward, involves tools
 > that are inexpensive and commonly sold in major stores, AND is
 > not about hunting.
 >
<snipped>

Thanks for all responses!
Ok, I didn't know about using a multimeter. I agree that it
makes sense to test with one. I also did not know about
removing the plug from the wall.

The situation so far is this (before latest information):

The computer boots from diskette and keyboard responds,
but screen is black. No beeps, no messages. If monitor
is disconnected, message appears on screen advising to
check connection. When I connect the monitor I can hear
that there is a connection being made. I tried two
different PCI graphics cards, but screen remained black.

Removing RAM memory causes beeps.
I reset the motherboard via jumper as per instructions
in GigaByte manual. I also removed the battery and put
it back. I will get a multimeter ASAP;in the meantime,
are these symptoms recognizable to anyone?<!-- ~MESSAGE_AFTER~ -->
 >> Stay informed about: How to diagnose PC with black screen? 

 >The situation so far is this (before latest information):

 >The computer boots from diskette and keyboard responds,
 >but screen is black. No beeps, no messages. If monitor
 >is disconnected, message appears on screen advising to
 >check connection. When I connect the monitor I can hear
 >that there is a connection being made. I tried two
 >different PCI graphics cards, but screen remained black.

The board doesn't have AGP or onboard video ? (I have not seen a board that
doesn't offer one of the two since socket7)
If the board has AGP and you are using PCI, it's very likely it's defaulting
to AGP as primary display, hence you get nothing.

I had the exact problem you describe on an old PII board.. PCI card and no
video.. turned out there was onboard video, just no header (plug) attached
to the board for it.. pulled the cmos battery, left it a while and
replaced.. finally it decided to use the PCI card as the default.. (though
once I got a POST, I had to enter bios and change primary display to PCI, or
else loading default settings brought the problem back).

One other machine I also has this problem with.. this one didn't have AGP or
onboard as it was an old Pentium 1 (socket7) board.. I pulled the battery
and put it back after a while.. nothing.. tried clearing with the jumper..
nothing.. out of interest I removed the clear cmos jumper entirely.. (so it
was neither on reset nor normal) and to my surprise it worked.. however
when I replaced the jumper the problem returned... in the end I put a new
cmos battery in it, put the jumper to the normal position again.. and it's
worked fine ever since ! (if anyone can explain this, please do!!)

Regards,
Chris<!-- ~MESSAGE_AFTER~ -->
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