Trouble installing graphic card.

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TrevorR

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Jun 13, 2006
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i have an x800 pro agp.. and i have an compaq s6500nx with an amd athlon 3000 xp and 1.5gb ram and when i install it.. and i turn on the pc it brings up these rapid beeping noises... what am i doing wrong?
 
Look in your Motherboard manual.
Look for BIOS beep codes.
On my old mobo long beeps in a endless loop meant "No DRAM detected".
One short beep follwed by 3 shrt beeps meant that "Video card not found or video memory bad".
But my old PC wasn't a Compaq and beep codes can be different...look it up.

Terra - Hope this helps...
 
there is 1 never ending beep
but my ram is fine when i remove the graphic card and bootup its fine
 
Tried booting up with just 1 or 2 RAM sticks in?

Terra - I presume that you are using 3x512MB right?

PS. It dosn't have onboard graphics does it?
 
i have onboard graphics yes... no i have 1gb +512mb should i take the 512mb out?
 
I vote insufficient power.

The PSU in that off the shelf PC is probably not enough to power all your components.
Have you added any other hardware to the PC?
ATI says you need a 300 Watt PSU for the X800 series and I bet your Compaq has only a 200 or 250 Watt.
 
If your power supply IS good enough maybe this will help.

And I quoteth this site!

"Step 6: Installing software and drivers

1.
Connect all cables and turn on the PC.
2.
If your PC was using on-board video (no video card), then disable on-board video in the BIOS to prevent possible setup problems:
1.
Press the F1 key repeatedly when the first screen appears.
A BIOS setup screen displays (BIOS setup screens vary depending on model of PC).
2.
Use the directions on the BIOS screen to find and disable on-board video. The on-board video setting is usually on the Advanced page.
NOTE: In some cases, the BIOS does not have the option to disable the onboard video. In this case, select AGP or PCI as the primary output. The BIOS and the operating system should then detect the new video card instead of the onboard video.
3.
Press F10 to save the settings and exit."
 
it has 250 watts.... only have 1 hard drive running and 1 dvd rw writer running..
plus how can i switch modes on my power supply it says 115?
 
TorryHolt81 said:
it has 250 watts.... only have 1 hard drive running and 1 dvd rw writer running..
plus how can i switch modes on my power supply it says 115?
Click to expand...

NO!!!
Do not touch that switch ever!

If you tried disabling the on board video as per the instructions I posted and it still does not work,
it means that your PSU is not powerful enough or that your video card is bad.
You can't just make your current PSU better by flipping a switch, but you can replace it with better one.
Best Buy and other such stores sell them. I recommend a 430 Watt or higher so that you can use it for a while.

For more info check out my faq here.
 
yea my bios doesnt have the option to disable onboard graphics justs 8mb 32mb and 64mb
 
TorryHolt81 said:
i have onboard graphics yes... no i have 1gb +512mb should i take the 512mb out?
Click to expand...

First try and do the stuff #mentok1982 mentioned.
You need to DIABLE your onboard graphic otheerwise it will cause a conflikt with you AGP card.
And just like #mentok1982 said, don't EVER touch that button!
That bottn is for setting wether you are using 115V(the US) or 230V(Europe) form the wall plug...don't fidle with that unless you HAVE to ;)

I think it's is your onboard graphics conflicting with you AGP card.

Tera - But you could try and pull the 512MB stick...perhaps it does something..Compaq's are weird...
 
why is the switch there in the first place... cant i just unplug the pc and switch it and turn it on? because the other side says 230 im guessing that runs at 230 watts..if i cant means i have to upgrade my psu?
 
TorryHolt81 said:
why is the switch there in the first place... cant i just unplug the pc and switch it and turn it on? because the other side says 230 im guessing that runs at 230 watts..if i cant means i have to upgrade my psu?
Click to expand...

It's not 115 and 230 watts.
It's 115 and 230 VOLTS!
and in the US it 115 VOLTS...don't touch..you have been warned now :)

Terra - BIG difference!
 
i switched it and turned it on... and it didnt start up... but then i switched it back and it was fine... was i lucky?!?
 
TorryHolt81 said:
yea my bios doesnt have the option to disable onboard graphics justs 8mb 32mb and 64mb
Click to expand...

Okay then.

If this sentence acurately describes your situation:

"In some cases, the BIOS does not have the option to disable the onboard video. In this case, select
AGP or PCI as the primary output. The BIOS and the operating system should then detect the new video card instead of the onboard video"

Then you might just need a better PSU.
Check out the faq I linked in my last post and make sure that the normal PSU will fit in your Compaq case.
Normal size is aboout W150 x H86 x D140 in mm.
Heck if you are gonna go to the store, take the old PSU with you and make sure it is the same
size and had the crew holes in the same place as the old one.
 
Terra said:
It's not 115 and 230 watts.
It's 115 and 230 VOLTS!
and in the US it 115 VOLTS...don't touch..you have been warned now :)

Terra - BIG difference!
Click to expand...

I warned him in less than a minute, but it was not fast enough. :( :(
 
one one like it shows
agp/onboard next line it shows
pci
if i pick agp it enables onboard...
 
TorryHolt81 said:
thats probably how my hard drive burned up.....
Click to expand...

Hopefully your video card is ok.
Was it plugged in when you switched the voltage to 230 Volts?

Terra. What is Torry's next step here?
Should he get a new PSU and hope that his motherboard and video card were not damaged by the voltage switch?
That is my opinion.
I don't think it would be a good idea for him to stick any of his components in another rig for testing, do you?
 
Alright then.
Unless Terra or other knowledgable persons suggest otherwise I say go shopping for a power supply.
 
mentok1982 said:
Alright then.
Unless Terra or other knowledgable persons suggest otherwise I say go shopping for a power supply.
Click to expand...

I would get a new PSU, and then test all the other components in the PC in another rig if possible.
It's NEVER a good idea to play around with "buttons" you don't know what do.

Terra - But I also know that Compaq can be a bitch to get to "behave"...
 
TorryHolt81 said:
one one like it shows
agp/onboard next line it shows
pci
if i pick agp it enables onboard...
Click to expand...

Is there a jumper setting then?

Terra - I am glad your PC survived :)
 
I would not worry about that little switch. It switches between 120 and 240 volts. The 120 is for standard outlets, and the 240 is for industrial 240v outlets. If you switch it to the 240 and turn your PC on then it will use a different transformer and the result would be half the voltage going to your components, wich should be harmless.

I would suggest removing your 1GB stick and any un necisary hardware (sound, modems, stuff like that.)

if the bios setting is PCI by default, then switch to agp, vice versa. also, the same for windows oporating system. switch it to non-windows. I bilieve there is a jumper on most compaq's to disable built in video. But I wouldnt switch any jumpers until I knew what they were.
 
TorryHolt81 said:
whats a jumper? i ebayed a 450 watt psu would that be enough?
Click to expand...

What brand is it?
Brands are often MORE important than the advertised wattage.
Did you read the faq I linked earlier?
All the info you need is there...I hope. If it is not, I suck. :eek:

A jumper is a little plastic piece with metal inside that connects 2 (usually) pins on a device together.
They are either labeled in tiny letters on your motherboard or they are described in your manual.
 
I'm not going to suggest messing with jumpers unless you know EXACTLY what they do.

450 watts should be plenty.

the other thing is. what brand is your video card? I checked the specs, and that motherboard is AGP 2.0 1.5v (1-4x) and not all agp 3.0 (8x) cards are compatible with agp 2.0 and some agp 2.0 motherboards are not compatible with agp3 cards...

you might need a BIOS update...
 
well on the screen it said power cable not properly connected to video card please refer to motherboard manual? i plugged in a hard drive connector into the card but theres another thing that needs to conenct to it and i dont have that.. what else do i need to connect to the card?
 
does this card require molex power connector plugged into it? If so, make sure you plugged that in as well.

It could be your power supply, but I am sure your ps has enough power to at least make it post and boot up, under load it may not be enough but to post I would have to guess its sufficient. Sounds more and more like a dead video card.. or the power plug not plugged in if its needs it.
 
The card does need a molex connector, but most cards will do everything except for go into 3D mode without being plugged in.
His PSU is probably fried because he switched the Voltage on it earlier. He killed a hard drive because of that as well.
 
Find out what brand of motherboard you have (i did not see it if you listed it). Then call that manufacturer. It may not be able to handle that card. I had the same problem with a dell dimension and a 6800gt. Did not work even after a PSU upgrade. I dont know anything about Compaq but your rig sounds a bit dated.
 
Terra said:
It's not 115 and 230 watts.
It's 115 and 230 VOLTS!
and in the US it 115 VOLTS...don't touch..you have been warned now :)

Terra - BIG difference!
Click to expand...
TorryHolt81 said:
i switched it and turned it on... and it didnt start up... but then i switched it back and it was fine... was i lucky?!?
Click to expand...
rofl!!!!!
 
mentok1982 said:
The card does need a molex connector, but most cards will do everything except for go into 3D mode without being plugged in.
His PSU is probably fried because he switched the Voltage on it earlier. He killed a hard drive because of that as well.
Click to expand...

my 9800xt will do not post if I do not have it plugged in, just beeps at me.
 
Try pluging the four prong connector into your video card. :D I forgot to once, and it made one long beep Just like you described....
 
mentok1982 said:
NO!!!
Do not touch that switch ever!
Click to expand...


AHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAAAAA

thats about as plain english as one can get :D
 
TorryHolt81 said:
i switched it and turned it on... and it didnt start up... but then i switched it back and it was fine... was i lucky?!?
Click to expand...

sorry, but you have killed your shit, if you are in the US, and you switched it from 115 to 230 and turned it on, you have killed your shit, if you switched it on then moved the switch from 115 to 230 then you would hear BOOM, and you would of also killed your shit...

even tho it may look as tho it works, trust me when i say, most or your stuff is damaged...

you should of listened to the dude who said, DO NOT TOUCH THIS SWITCH EVER.....
 
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