Please assist me. VGA light on new build
Please assist me. VGA light on new build
Last week my computer wouldn't display anything. The fans would spin, the lights would come on, but no image would show up. I initially suspected the GPU because it had already been fixed. I purchased a 4070 chipset, but it didn't work. Then I thought about the motherboard—since I planned an upgrade soon, I upgraded it with a new PSU, CPU, and motherboard.
I powered it on for the first time without the GPU; the VGA light came on. I tested my wife's RAM modules, which also failed (they're functioning on her machine).
Current setup:
- CPU: i5-13400
- Motherboard: MSI mag b760 tomahawk WiFi
- RAM: 32GB Vengeance RAM by Corsair (two 16GB modules)
- Power Supply: rm750x shift by Corsair
- Motherboard info: no need to update BIOS for 13th gen CPUs
Previous build:
- CPU: i7 10700K
- Motherboard: MSI Z490 Gaming WiFi Edge
- PSU: EVGA 750W
- RAM: Corsair Vengeance 32GB
The box on my motherboard indicated no BIOS update needed for 13th gen CPUs. My last build was an i7 10700K, an MSI Z490 gaming WiFi edge board, and a 750W PSU.
I'm trying to finish a project over the weekend and was already stressed about the deadline. The parts arrived, but I'm unsure what to do next.
Fixed:
After many attempts, the issue turned out to be the SSD with Windows installed on it. Don't ask me why or how—I've been building and assisting friends with their PCs for nearly a decade. My wife approached me at work and asked if I'd tried disconnecting the SSD. I explained that the VGA light wouldn't turn on due to that, but I decided to try anyway since I'd already tested everything else. The BIOS loaded immediately.
I brought the faulty SSD to a repair shop, though it was recognized by their system, Windows still wouldn't boot from it.
If you've tried everything from checking for bent pins to reseating every cable, RAM, and even the CPU, but still see the VGA light, then it might be one of your SSDs.
Hope this helps someone later.
Initial problems likely stemmed from the graphics card, hard to confirm without an iGPU.
Current situation is a fresh build; was your old Evga PSU modular? Were any of those cables reused? For example, pcie supplementary power cable or Corsair instead? If you reused Evga cables, that would be a big issue.
Your CPU includes an iGPU—have you tried using it?
Does the motherboard case indicate compatibility with the 13th generation?
It was designed in a modular way, but because this PSU is the new type—Type 5—I couldn't reuse the cables even if I had wanted to. However, I only used the Corsair cables.
I've been testing with igpu since it stopped posting.
The box mentions it's compatible with the 13th generation.
I don't see a clear explanation for why igpu won't work. It might be due to the vga light being on, which could be misleading. Make sure the memory is properly seated—they sometimes think they're fully installed but aren't. Inspect all power cables coming in and out of the PSU since it's modular; it supports 12v CPU and ATX systems. Also verify that the video cable isn't obstructed by any component, as the shroud can be large with certain cables.
It's worth noting that my motherboard has two locations for the CPU cable. I attempted to find out how to check for this. Is it clear? I was very careful installing it, and I've assembled around nine computers over the past five years (my own and others).
I accidentally stopped my answer mid-sentence. I mentioned using both cables but only one for the CPU.