What is wrong with my XFX 8800 GTX XXX?

[Core]

I`m setting up a new computer from scratch. I connect all the needed power to the motherboard, drives, etc. I turn on the power supply and a green light on the motherboard turns on indicating that there is power. I push the power button on the front of the chassie and all the fans kick on but I don`t get the high pitch beep noise that I`m suppose to get when the motherboard does its power test. Then I unplug the power that goes to the XFX video card, start it up again, and I get the high pitched beep.

Here are my system specs:
Processor / CPU Intel Quad Core 2.0GHz

Mainboard Asus P5N32-E SLI Plus

Power Supply Unit / PSU RocketFish 700W

Memory 3G DDR2

Operating System none installed yet

Where is my problem? What else can I try? Thanks

[Scott]

The high pitch whine from the card is no power to card warning. I do no think the problem is the video card. If you want to test to see if it is. Take the video card all the way out of the machine and try to power on.

If nothing still happens it is not the card. If you get a series of beeps it may be the card but I would reset the RAM first or just try one stick of RAM at a time.

[xfxsupport]

Does the system still boot without the motherboard beep? I agree with Scott and try testing the RAM one at a time.

[kiwiplayer]

you say you have 3gb of DDR2 ram, is that 3 separate sticks of 1Gb ram or one stick of 1GB and one stick of 2Gb?
you may find your mother board wont allow dual channel and such a mix of ram. you may also want to find out if your mother board will accept only one stick of ram, though i'm certian it should be able to.
check your motherboard manual and see what it says, it may state that the ram should be in certian slots. also check the ASUS website for ram compatability.
check all pins on the motherboard, especially the CMOS pin, make sure it is in the correct position and see if their are any special accessories that came with the mobo. do you have the mobo that has a CMOS reset switch on a PCI slot bracket? does this need to be connected?
just a few thoughts.

Good luck

[Core]

They are 3 sticks of 1G and I checked the compatibility chart before I bought them. I can currently get it to run 10+ mins with just the CPU and 1 stick of memory as well as the CPU, all 3 sticks, and the video card but no video. I will try reseting the CMOS and see if that helps. Let ya know....

[kiwiplayer]

They are 3 sticks of 1G and I checked the compatibility chart before I bought them. I can currently get it to run 10+ mins with just the CPU and 1 stick of memory as well as the CPU, all 3 sticks, and the video card but no video. I will try reseting the CMOS and see if that helps. Let ya know.... Does it run with CPU, one stick of ram and the 8800GTX? if it has no issues doing this, then it may be a ram issue.

As a general rule, always use ether 2 or 4 sticks of ram. all sticks of ram should be exactly the same. by using 3 sticks, you wont be utilising Dual channel. you would find better performance from using either 2 (either both white or both blue slots) or 4 sticks of ram. your manual doesnt explain much at all :D
so, try two sticks of ram, make sure they are installed so dual channel will work.
you could also try installing one stick of ram, run MEMtest for 8 hours then try another card of ram. you may have a fualty card of ram, but in my opinion, your motherboard may not like having the 3 sticks of ram configuration.

Edit: the ASUS QVL (http://www.asus.com/999/download/products/1567/1567_10.pdf)for your board seems to list qualified ram for 1,2 or four cards of ram, not 3. see the note at the bottom of the list.
If your going to use XP as the operating system, 2Gb of ram should be enough ram. for Vista (especially ultimate version), 4Gb of ram is good. so if i'm right, then either return or sell one card of ram or buy another 1Gb card of ram (depends on the operating system you are going to use), just make sure they are all exactly the same.
hope this helps.

[Core]

Yes it runs with CPU and 1 stick but no POST. CPU, 1 stick, and video card but no POST and no video. The only time I get any beeping is if I don't have power to the video card and its a long beep. I will keep in mind the 2 or 4 idea once I get it running...thanks

[kiwiplayer]

i've edited my last post, i forgot to also mention, if you are using 4 sticks of ram, make sure it's listed in column C as being okay.

if 1 stick of ram doesnt help at all but removing power from the 8800GTX helps, it could be a faulty PSU. as far as im aware, you should always have all the power plugs plugged into the 8800GTX, you could damage your hardware otherwise. XFX support should be able to say if i'm right about this.
can you borrow another PSU from a friend? could you try the video card in a friends computer?
is there a configuration where you can get video and into the bios setup? if so, check in the hardware monitor and see what your voltages are and your temps.

my last suggestion is not a nice one, are you sure the CPU heatsink is mounted properly? i have known a few people that have incorctly mounted the heatsink and killed the CPU, this would cause no video, no post and probably an error beep. you can get lucky and just have the CPU throttle before it overheats, this would allow you to get into the bios setup screen.
the problem is with the intel clips. the clips have a directional arrow which points which way to turn the clip so as to REMOVE the heatsink. so to properly install the heatsink you have to push the clips down and twist then the opposite way from the arrows.
even with the clips incorrectly installed, the heatsink can still appear to be correctly fitted and may still hang on to the board.

sorry if you already know about this, thought it worth mentioning

[Core]

You are correct I do need 4 sticks...my bad. I know the PSU is good cause I got it checked out this morning by a repair place. The used another video card which didn't work. In the beginning the heatsink wasn't mounted correctly but now it is mounted correctly. Before I was only getting it to run for 3 mins but now it will run for 10+ mins. Just can't get anything.

[kiwiplayer]

You are correct I do need 4 sticks...my bad. I know the PSU is good cause I got it checked out this morning by a repair place. The used another video card which didn't work. In the beginning the heatsink wasn't mounted correctly but now it is mounted correctly. Before I was only getting it to run for 3 mins but now it will run for 10+ mins. Just can't get anything.if youve had the PSU tested and tried another video card and the problem is still there, it's not the 8800GTX.

when you say "now it will run for 10+ mins. Just can't get anything", what do you mean by anything? no video?
if this is correct, then why was the computer only running for 3 minutes? would it just turn off after three minutes? was this becuase the CPU heatsink wasnt mounted properly?
are you recieving absolutly no picture? not even a post screen?
i would ask if the monitor actually works but as you've said, you have tried a different VGA card but still no video.

you may have fried the CPU, just a thought.

Edit: have i misunderstood and you tried the video card in a different computer no a differnt video card in the same computer?

[Core]

I don't get video or POST. The computer was only running for 3 mins because the heat sink wasn't mounted correctly. Yes the monitor works...there is a test screen on the monitor and its an older one that was used with my last computer before I started to build this new one. I sure hope I didn't fry the CPU. I guess I will add that to one of my suspisions, bad motherboard and fried CPU.

I tried a different video card in the same computer.

[Miker]

3 Minutes with out the heatsink on right... if you do something like that no wonder your PC won't work.

[kiwiplayer]

3 Minutes with out the heatsink on right... if you do something like that no wonder your PC won't work.
no, not 3 minutes without a heatsink, that would be stupid.
it was 3 minutes before shutdown due to the heatsink not being installed properly. as i said before, it's a common problem to those not use to installing the intel 775 heatsinks. The arrow on the clips point in the direction of removing the clips, not installing.

I'd seriously point fingers at the CPU. if you can, see if a friend is happy to install it in their system.
It definitly doesnt look like a VGA problem, we seem to have figured out the ram problem.
I dont suggest borrowing someone elses CPU since you could end up oweing them a new CPU if things go bad.

if it helps, the people i know that have cooked their CPU due to the heatsink being incorrectly installed the the following signs.
computer fans start but no post beep, computer would sit there humming along but nothing would happen. on most of these computers, they were using the computers for a few months (with the computer crashing in games) then it would finally just die.
with yours, 3 minutes is a long time, considering a fraction of a second and no heatsink can pop the CPU.

best idea might be to RMA or replace both the motherboard and the CPU. your not getting any post error codes, the single loud beep when you disconnect the 8800GTX power is probably coming from the video card itself. does the mobo have its own on board speaker?
have you tried installing another speaker for the mobo?

heres a link for you to read (http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/244117-30-asus-mobo-light-solid-computer-wont-post)
and Abit award bios beep codes (http://www.bleedinedge.com/forum/showthread.php?t=25622). different manufacturer but the same bios so it may be the same.

try mobo only, no CPU, VGA or RAM, any beep codes? should be one long beep then shut down.
then try RAM only, should get the same code.
if your getting codes then try CPU only, anything? you should still get a code.
then add RAM, any code?

seems you will be having some fun for the next few days :D