VOGONS


First post, by JonathonWyble

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I have an older computer that I tested out last night. It works fine, but there's one little problem... It doesn't seem to get along with any monitor or any VGA cable. What I mean is, when a monitor is connected to the desktop, and both the PC and monitor are powered on, the monitor does not show any footage from the PC, it just shows a black screen saying "no signal, check video cable". I think one reason for this is because the VGA cable for a CRT monitor I have has one of its screws bent, so I tried using this PC with another monitor I have, which uses a separate VGA cable, but that didn't work either. Very recently, I got a new graphics card for this computer after I screwed its last one up, so I wonder if the reason it doesn't work for any monitor is because the GPU is too new for this PC. Well, the GPU is not brand new, it's from the year this PC was made. So I'm wondering why this computer won't work with any monitors. I'm completely out of ideas. Thanks in advance!

1998 Pentium II build

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Reply 1 of 6, by weldum

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post some pictures and specs of the machine, so we can figure what's going on

DT: R7-5800X3D/R5-3600/R3-1200/P-G5400/FX-6100/i3-3225/P-8400/D-900/K6-2_550
LT: C-N2840/A64-TK57/N2600/N455/N270/C-ULV353/PM-1.7/P4-2.6/P133
TC: Esther-1000/Esther-400/Vortex86-366
Others: Drean C64c/Czerweny Spectrum 48k/Talent MSX DPC200/M512K/MP475

Reply 2 of 6, by JonathonWyble

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There's really nothing to show for this problem. It's just an issue with the VGA interface for the CRT monitor and graphics card for a computer I have. This PC is a custom build from the late 90's, the graphics card is an Intel RHB740, and the monitor is a ViewSonic Optiquest Q71 CRT monitor. So what I'm also wondering is, which is causing this problem, the monitor, the VGA cable, or the graphics card? If the problem is the VGA cable, I might just get a new one, but that's not an option with this monitor, because the cable is connected to the CRT, so I might have to get a new CRT monitor. That can't be.

1998 Pentium II build

1553292341.th.19547.gif

Reply 3 of 6, by retardware

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JonathonWyble wrote:

I have an older computer that I tested out last night. It works fine, but there's one little problem...

Could you please explain what you consider as "works fine" when there is no output on any VGA/monitor?

Reply 4 of 6, by JonathonWyble

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retardware wrote:
JonathonWyble wrote:

I have an older computer that I tested out last night. It works fine, but there's one little problem...

Could you please explain what you consider as "works fine" when there is no output on any VGA/monitor?

What I mean is, the computer works, but the video card is the thing that's causing my problem. The computer turns on and boots, but the screen never comes up. I don't think I've ever done anything to the CRT monitor I have, nor have I done any harm to the PC's motherboard. However, like I said before, the VGA cable which is attached to this CRT monitor has a bent screw.

1998 Pentium II build

1553292341.th.19547.gif

Reply 5 of 6, by retardware

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Often this happens when the DAC is dead.
For this reason, VGA with socketed DAC should be preferred if available.
In this case just butcher another VGA.

Reply 6 of 6, by JonathonWyble

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retardware wrote:

Often this happens when the DAC is dead.
For this reason, VGA with socketed DAC should be preferred if available.
In this case just butcher another VGA.

Hmm... I don't think I've ever heard of a "DAC" before. I could try getting another CRT monitor that has an attached VGA cable with a DAC socket built in.
EDIT: I just found out that a DAC cable is a "digital-to-analog converter", a system that converts digital signal into an analog signal.

1998 Pentium II build

1553292341.th.19547.gif