what is broken?

[zip22]

i have been having problems while switching motherboards. if you want some more detailed info on my problem and my troubleshooting, i have a post in the emergency section.

alright... im not sure what to do now. can you tell me if the problem is my cpu or my video card?

heres a chain of events:

-got new asus p4s800d-e deluxe. put everything in it, it said i failed cpu test. troubleshoot to no avail

-put everything back into gigabyte. everything worked fine.

-sent back asus board

-took everthing out of gigabyte to remount d-tek whitewater. something popped on motherboard and i thought i broke it. when i turned it on, there where errors all over the screen during the boot up. i could get to windows and the resolution was way low and there were still streaks and errors with text. (note: the video card was removed and then reistalled during this step)

-got new asus. installed everything, got same cpu error. reset cmos a few times, and then it booted!!! but with the same streaks and errors in the text.

so did i break my cpu? or is my crappy video card (gainward geforce4 mx440) shot?

[zip22]

could i have fried my cpu by possibly breaking something near the cpu socket? i would not have shorted it, just broke it since the dtek mounting plate was covered with electrical tape. i really need help soon cause i need to get my computer working. i don't have another video card or cpu to test with. thanks for any help

[DayUSeX]

well if the gainward works in yourt old MOBO just fine, then you know your GFX is fine, and if your PCU works in the old mobo just fine then you know your CPU is fine, It could be that that you just dont know how to mount a waterblock and keep breaking something, or that there is a leak that shorts the mobo somehow.

[zip22]

but right now, nothing works in either motherboard. in both motherboards i get the streaks and errors. everything did work fine in the gigabyte before i tried to reinstall the whitewater. after, i get streaks and errors. with the streaks and errors, i could get into windows and talk on aim. i took a screenshot to see if i could capture the streaks and text errors, but the screen shot was clean. the only 2 possibilities are that when i was reinstalling the whitewater, something broke the video card or i broke something on the motherboard and it killed the cpu.

with the new asus board, i did not try to install the waterblock. i get the streaks and errors with the stock intel cooling.

[don256us]

Streaks on screen but not on screen capture. That has to be either the video card or the monitor. If the monitor works on another machine, then it has to be the video card.

You also say that the CPU doesn't work in either board? Sounds like an ex-CPU.

I'm not sure what happened over there but it sounds like it cost a bunch. I hope that I'm wrong on that.

[zip22]

no, i wasn't sure if the cpu was broken or if the video card was broken. those are the only 2 components i couldn't test. the asus board said "system failed cpu test" but i am pretty sure that my broken video card was really the culprit. thanks for explaining the screen capture thing. i just ordered a new video card. hope that solves the problem

[mbentley]

asus boards will come up with an error like that if the computer is powered down during POST. it thinks that there was an error. i have had that problem when overclocking where i overclocked too far and the system had to be reset thru clearing the cmos. check up on the asus board with the manual if you would like more information on that error. they have little troubleshooting guides in their manuals that should tell you the causes of the error you received.

when you swap motherboards, you will at least need to do a repair install of windows, especially if the motherboards have different chipsets. if they are based on the same chipset, then you might be able to get away with not doing a repair install...

[zip22]

yeah i know. thanks for the info. i can't wait until i can get to the point where i have to do the repair install. i have been having so many problems just getting it to post. the only thing in the manual about the "system failed cpu test" is:

"Check the CPU if properly installed."
"Call Asus technical support for assisance..."

i really hope this new video card solves my problem. i should get it friday.