Solved Issue with new PC monitor

[PK33]

I'm not hardware savvy so I'll try to explain this as best as I can.

I have an old monitor that I use with my desktop PC. I was using a VGA cable, with a DVI adapter, to plug the monitor into my onboard graphics card (the horizontal DVI slot). Today I bought a new monitor. It has both a VGA and HDMI slot. When I try to connect the new monitor in the same way (VGA with DVI adapter) I get the "Check Signal Cable" (analog) message bouncing all over my screen. I can hear the PC starting, but all I see is this message. I tried with the HDMI cable too, but got the same result. On the flipside, when I plug the VGA cable into the vertical VGA slot the monitor works fine, as in I can watch videos and browse the net without issues, but I cannot get any video games to work.

I figured it may be an issue with the monitor itself so I plugged my old monitor again just to test things out, and now even that won't work. The VGA with DVI adapter method gets me the same "Check Signal Cable" message.

The monitor came with a CD so I installed a driver for it off of that. I've checked to see if my drivers are up to date and they seem to be. However, I've also realized that my NVIDIA drivers are no longer recognized and when I try to open NVIDIA control panel I get a message that an NVIDIA graphics card was not detected in my system. All I have right now is the Intel HD Graphics driver.

I hope I explained this well. Does anyone have any ideas how to fix this?

OS Version: Microsoft Windows 7 Ultimate, Service Pack 1, 64 bit, Build 7601
Processor: Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-2400 CPU @ 3.10GHz, Intel64 Family 6 Model 42 Stepping 7, CPU Count: 4
Total Physical RAM: 8 GB
Graphics Card: Intel(R) HD Graphics
Motherboard: Dell Inc. 06D7TR, ver A00
System: Dell Inc., ver DELL - 6222004

 

[cwwozniak]

Hi, PK33, and welcome to TSG.

From what I can find on-line, a Dell 06D7TR motherboard is used in a Dell Optiplex 990 desktop PC that has onboard VGA and DisplayPort connectors. As far as I know, that particular Optiplex model does not have a DVI output.

That, combined with you mentioning two VGA output connectors (don't know what you mean by horizontal and vertical slots) on the computer, makes me suspect that you may have a video controller card plugged into the motherboard. Most older motherboards do not support the simultaneous operation of both an onboard video controller and a plugged in video controller expansion card. Usually, a motherboard will automatically detect a plugged in video controller expansion card and disable the built-in video controller.

Can you please provide ...

1) The Dell service tag number of your computer.

2) Clear photos of all the output connectors on the back of your computer.

 

[PK33]

Hi, cwwozniak. Thank you for the response.

The Dell service tag is 2Z7135J.

Here's the photo you requested:


I used to connect my old monitor to "1" via a VGA cable with a DVI adapter. Now this doesn't work neither with my new monitor, nor with the old one so the only way I can get the monitor to work right now is by plugging it in "2" via the VGA cable, but then I cannot get any games to run. When I try to run a game I get a message that there is no DirectX 11 support and/or that the GPU does not meet the minimum requirements. It was all working fine until I got the new monitor. And my NVIDIA control panel, which used to load up automatically on start-up, now no longer does and when I try to open it manually I get the message that an NVIDIA graphics card is not detected.

Someone elsewhere suggested that I just try with a different set of cable and adapter. Just did that. When I plug the monitor via "1" I no longer get the "Check Signal Cable" (analog) message, but the screen stays black, even though the OS itself is running. So then I tried via "2" and the game problem is there, but also there's a certain flickering on the screen too, which isn't there when I'm using my old VGA cable.

 

[cwwozniak]

I was using a VGA cable, with a DVI adapter, to plug the monitor into my onboard graphics card (the horizontal DVI slot).

The DVI connector is not part of the onboard video controller. The motherboard's onboard video outputs are what you have marked as #2 and the DisplayPort connector above it. The DVI connector is part of a video controller expansion card plugged into the motherboard.

Between the motherboard's VGA connector being active and getting the NVIDIA card not detected error message, I would say that your motherboard is not detecting that the video controller card plugged into the motherboard. Most older motherboard do not support the simultaneous operation of built-in and plugin video controllers. They disable the on-board video when a video expansion card is detected. If you made no hardware changes before attempting to use the new monitor, I would suggest making sure the computer is off and then double-checking that the card is fully seated in the motherboard's expansion slot. You might even try removing it and reseating it. Also make sure any auxilary power cords are fully plugged into it.

I came across a YouTube video of someone adding a video card to a Dell Optilex 990 and they mentioned caution when selecting a video card if using the original PSU. It is rated at 265 watts total power and a high-end video card could be too much for it to handle.

 

[PK33]

I opened my PC box, but I can't quite figure out what I should try to reseat. I'm a bit of a novice when it comes to these sorts of things. Could you please explain a little bit further? Do you mean the one right next to the big red cable in the middle?



Also, for what's worth, in trying to figure out this issue I've been trying different things. Since I've recently had a few occasions where the Windows clock reset back to 2011 I just changed the motherboard battery because I read the resetting clock may be a sign of that. This didn't fix my monitor issue, but now I'm with a fresh new battery, at least.

Related to this, I've had this pop up upon starting up on a couple of occasions since this monitor issue began. I had it just now too after I had put in the new CMOS battery.

 

[cwwozniak]

You need to check and reseat the video card with the white housing that has ASUS printed on it. The video in my previous link shows how to add a video card. It should give you enough information on how to remove the card and re-insert it. While you have it out, note the exact ASUS model number and let us know what it is.

I see two disconcerting things about your video card.

1) It seems to be wedged in tightly against the drives holder to its right in the photo. This could be causing it to not properly fit the expansion slot in the motherboard.

2) There are two auxilary power cables coming from the video card. This makes me suspect that your video card may need a lot more power than what the original power supply in the computer can provide. Knowing the model number of the ASUS card should let us determine its power requirements.

Either of the two issues above could cause the motherboard to not recognize video card.

Did you do anything hardware related inside the computer between the time you had the original monitor working from the DVI connector and when you connected the second monitor to the same connector? Did the computer get dropped or bumped during that time?

As for the Invalid configuration error message. After replacing the battery, you need to go into the motherboard's BIOS settings and set the date and time.

 

[PK33]

Thank you, cwwozniak! Reseating the video card did indeed fix the issue. It's all back to working properly again.

As for your other question, the ASUS model number is TURBO-GTX960-OC-2GD5.

 

[cwwozniak]

You're welcome. Glad to hear reseating the card fixed the problem. The ASUS card is listed as using 150 watts of power. I am a bit surprised the 265 Watt PSU had enough reserve power to run the card.

Were you able to adjust the date and time to make the warning go away?

You can use the button by your first post to mark this thread solved.

 

[PK33]

I've been using this graphics card/motherboard combo for almost four years now and it's been working quite well.

Yes, I managed to fix the date and time issue as well.

Again, thank you!