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Update: DisplayPort cables were the problem. See below. Problem description: PC will not shut down properly and will not start properly - will not POST unless the video card is disconnected and reinstalled. It's the weirdest thing. A couple of weeks ago the PC was shutting down from Windows and I noticed the screens went off, but the PSU, CPU, video card and case fans were all still running at a low idle. I switched off via the power supply and let it sit for ~30 seconds before switching the PSU back on and using the power button on the case to power on the machine. Instead of going through POST, the various fans spun up for a second, and then quit. On their own, they spun up again for several seconds more, and quit again, followed by some other quick spurts of attempted powering up which failed. Eventually, it seemed to catch and the fans went into a constant high idle, as if they would when about to POST and load windows. Nothing happens though. At no time does anything get displayed on the primary monitor. I started with the video card when troubleshooting. I physically removed it and used the mobo's onboard video for the next startup attempt. Everything came to life and the PC worked normally, except for shutting down from Windows again. The 'shutting down Windows' display hung and the rest of the PC again went into low idle and never actually shut down. Again I switched off the power supply. I started up the PC normally again in the same configuration and shut down in the same method, with the same issue. I reconnected the video card and attempted another boot. Everything fires up fine... I can use WIndows normally and do all of the normal gaming, streaming, whatever activities I need to do. At shutdown time though, the original issue resurfaces. The PC won't POST on startup and goes through it's spastic power-up attempts that go nowhere until I remove the video card, power-up, shut down, and reinstall the video card. Once I do the reinstall ritual, everything is fine until the next shutdown, when the cycle begins anew. Oddly enough, restarts initiated through Windows are unaffected. Only complete shutdowns. Attempted fixes:
Recent changes: This all started a few days after I installed a new Samsung EVO 250GB SSD, but didn't start immediately after. I also switched 2/3 of my monitor connections over to displayport from DVI around the same time. No issues at that time. I usually keep the PC running at all times. Came home to find it shut down on it's own one night and then identified this problem. I have found it shut down on it's own before where the case power button wouldn't work - a PSU recycle always brought it back to normal. Not this time though. I should also note that I'm running on a close-to-original version of the mobo's BIOS, but I'm scared of bricking the goddamn thing since it's not reliably shutting down at the moment - I assume that will kind of be an important step during a reflash. Operating system: Windows 7 Pro 64 System specs:
Location:  I have Googled and read the FAQ: Googled a lot. Found out about resetting the CMOS jumper as similar problems were described by other users. No luck though. Colour commentary: What the gently caress? Motherboard going bad? What does the removal and reinstall of the video card have to do with it? Thanks in advance, guys and girls. DadWilly fucked around with this message at 17:21 on Feb 22, 2016 |
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Feb 15, 2016 20:30
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| # ? May 16, 2024 20:47 |
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At this point I'd probably take the motherboard out of the case and place it on a nonconductive surface and try doing POST etc. by using a key/paperclip to bridge the power pins on the motherboard. This would eliminate the case as being part of the problem. When troubleshooting did you also disconnect the sound card? Have you tried going back to DVI temporarily?
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Feb 15, 2016 23:45
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Thanks for the reply, Zogo! I'll try the extra steps mentioned to diagnose. I didn't remove the sound card, and I didn't try the 970 in the 2nd PCI-e slot usually made for SLI setups.
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Feb 16, 2016 16:36
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Displayport cables are the problem. I'm shocked. If you want to say "WTF" then google "computer won't boot with displayport GTX 970". I wasn't smart enough to think that a lowly cable could do this, therefore I never thought to google it outright. Apparently it could be a motherboard compatibility issue, or it could be a cable-type issue. A certain type of offending DP cable has a 'pin20' which sends some kind of erroneous power signal to the video card, causing catastrophe of different kinds. Some people have trouble loading into Windows properly. Others, like me, can't boot at all. I have 3 monitors. 1xHDMI and 2xDP. If I need to do a cold boot, I will disconnect the DPs before boot, and then plug them back in once I get to windows. It's what I'm doing right now! Thanks for the advice. FYI, removing the sound card and switching to the 2nd PCI-e slot didn't work. Totally a cable issue. Again, this only affects me when doing a cold boot. Resets from Windows are not a problem. Weird, or what? Mods should change the thread title to caution Displayport users! DadWilly fucked around with this message at 03:48 on Feb 18, 2016 |
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Feb 18, 2016 03:45
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For reference, I bought these cables: http://www.amazon.com/Cable-Rankie%C2%AE-Plated-DisplayPort-Resolution/product-reviews/B00YOP0T7G Look at the top-rated negative review... "1 of 1 people found this helpful 1.0 out of 5 stars Will cause issues with your motherboard! ByWilliam Sumpteron February 6, 2016 I had a vary bad issue with these cables. After installing them in my new computer with a new graphics card they worked great for a couple of days, then I started having an issue where if my computer shut down or even went to sleep, the board would display an error code and fail to post afterwards. Called the evga, where I got my graphics card and they suggested RMAing the card. After waiting for a week and a half for the replacement card it had the same issue. Finally traced it back to the cable. After using a different display port cable it worked perfectly fine. This issue was present in both of the cables that I ordered, but wasn't present in any other cable I have tried thus far. Don't buy this cable. Look for other options."
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Feb 18, 2016 03:59
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I'd recommend purchasing cables from Monoprice.com, or at least from Amazon. That's not a guarantee of quality but it at least gives you a chance vs the garbage Chinese cables sold by importers. To tell whether an item listed on Amazon is legit, check under with the stock level and shipment information: 1. "Ships from and sold by Amazon.com": Real products Amazon ordered from the manufacturer and ships to you from their warehouses. 2. "Sold by (seller) and Fulfilled by Amazon.com": Counterfeit products shipped to the Amazon warehouse by the seller, shipped to you by Amazon. 3. "Ships from and sold by (seller)": Counterfeit products the seller has and might deliver to you if ordered.
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Feb 18, 2016 21:09
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Good advice.
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Feb 18, 2016 23:21
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I should note that people in the GPU Megathread have had problems with Monoprice cables too occasionally, but the way I look at it is that Monoprice will at least try to get good quality stuff from the factory, and they're only going to charge you a few dollars for it.
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Feb 18, 2016 23:53
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Getting good DisplayPort cables is an utter bitch, especially if you're trying to do heavy use that takes all four lanes, like 4k, high framerate 1440p and especially if you're trying to do it with a long cable.
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Feb 19, 2016 19:57
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