New graphic card, but no display. Help???

[jawanda56]

My PC is P4 2.4ghz, Mercury845GLMP board with onboard graphics. I use MS win xp pro. 512mb DDR ram. Recently, I purchased new Nvidia fx5200 AGP card to improve my PC's display. Fitted this in the slot provided on the Mobo. Moved the monitor cable to this AGP card. Upon starting the PC, no display appeared. So changed back the monitor to onboard and checked Bios. Found no settings to enable AGP card or to disable onboard graphics. 'Init display first' setting is 'PCI slot'. Uninstalled the onboard graphic from add/remove and upon restarting, the computer again installed the onboard graphic, totally ignoring the AGP card fitted in its slot.
To rule out any problem with the new AGP card, fitted it on my friends PC, it started working fine within no time.
What's going wrong? Help...
jawanda56

[honvetops]

Do you have to install "drivers" from a cd OR- from a manufacturers web- page before installing and using that AGP-Slot  video card?

[jawanda56]

I used the driver from the CD which came with the AGP card. 

jawanda56

[uesquebeathus]

Hi, there should be a setting in the BIOS for enabling and disabling the onboard graphics chip, and enabling an installed graphics card this may be an automatic detection of the devive but usually it is a setting to activate. unfortunately i cannot get into the manufacturers  Kobian Mercury web site to see the manual, they may have went out of business or changed there name.

[uesquebeathus]

i have found this is the current web site for your motherboard

http://www.mercury-pc.com/downloads.php
there may be more up to date information there and new drivers
here
http://www.mercury-pc.com/downloads_list.php?productid=555

[jawanda56]

Thanks Usesquebeathus for the web site for my mobo. checked the specification for the mob at http://www.mercury-pc.com/product-detail.php?link=p-mainboards&subtitle=Mainboard&productid=460# and found that this board does not have a expansion slot for AGP. Perhaps a dummy AGP slot is fitted on the motherboard. Is this type of manufacturing normal? Now I remember, there was label covering this slot with following written on it 'Support Add Card Only'. My AGP card fitted in perfectly in this slot. I presume, my mobo does not support an AGP card. Am I right?

jawanda56

[soybean]

My PC is P4 2.4ghz, Mercury845GLMP board with onboard graphics. I use MS win xp pro. 512mb DDR ram. Recently, I purchased new Nvidia fx5200 AGP card to improve my PC's display. Fitted this in the slot provided on the Mobo. Moved the monitor cable to this AGP card. Upon starting the PC, no display appeared. So changed back the monitor to onboard and checked Bios. Found no settings to enable AGP card or to disable onboard graphics. 'Init display first' setting is 'PCI slot'. Uninstalled the onboard graphic from add/remove and upon restarting, the computer again installed the onboard graphic, totally ignoring the AGP card fitted in its slot.
To rule out any problem with the new AGP card, fitted it on my friends PC, it started working fine within no time.
What's going wrong? Help...
jawanda56

Thanks Usesquebeathus for the web site for my mobo. checked the specification for the mob at http://www.mercury-pc.com/product-detail.php?link=p-mainboards&subtitle=Mainboard&productid=460# and found that this board does not have a expansion slot for AGP. Perhaps a dummy AGP slot is fitted on the motherboard. Is this type of manufacturing normal? Now I remember, there was label covering this slot with following written on it 'Support Add Card Only'. My AGP card fitted in perfectly in this slot. I presume, my mobo does not support an AGP card. Am I right?

"Perhaps a dummy AGP slot is fitted on the motherboard."   Look, you said you installed an APG card.  Now, that obviously means you have an AGP slot.

[honvetops]

what are the chances this "card" was tried in a dimm slot !!!   

[soybean]

The chances of that are practically zero.  The card won't fit in it.  Even if it did, the slot does not have the right location and orientation to position a card so that it will match up to an opening on back of the computer. 

[jawanda56]

Soyabean, I fitted the new AGP card in the slot which appears to me as an AGP slot. It is parallel to the PCI slots and longer in size. The AGP card fitted perfectly in it. Fitting a AGP card in DIMM slot? Out of question .
A view of MoBo is attached herewith.

Jawanda56

[old attachment deleted by admin]

[GX1_Man]

I can think of no reason a manufacturer would fit a dummy AGP slot, even Mercury (a 4th or 5th tier manufacturer).

[soybean]

Thanks Usesquebeathus for the web site for my mobo. checked the specification for the mob at http://www.mercury-pc.com/product-detail.php?link=p-mainboards&subtitle=Mainboard&productid=460# and found that this board does not have a expansion slot for AGP. Perhaps a dummy AGP slot is fitted on the motherboard. Is this type of manufacturing normal?

I did not view that web page yesterday because it was sssoooooo slow. I just now saw it.  The image of the mainboard clearly shows an AGP slot.  Yet, if you click on the link on that page for Specifications, they do not mention AGP in the part about Expansion Slots.  Why the inconsistency?  I don't know. 

The only thing I can suggest is going into the BIOS to see whether you can set AGP as the Init display first and, if so, try that setting, and search again for any setting that seems to be for disabling onboard video. 

Mercury seems a strange brand.  I see Newegg.com does not sell it.  The Mercury website is so slow that navigating through it is annoying and frustrating.  GX1_MAN referred to it as a 4th or 5th tier manufacturer. 

If you definitely want to use that AGP card you bought, you may need to think about replacing that motherboard.

[jawanda56]

Soyabean:
Bios has 'Init Display First' setting two options: PCI or onboard. It is set to PCI. Another setting, 'AGP aperture size' is set at 128mb. Changed this setting to 'disable'. Upon reatarting PC, no display appeared, both from onboard and AGP card's video outputs. I had to shutdown the PC and reset the BIOS by changing 'Clear CMOS' jumper on the mobo. With this the display returned.

Now, it is evident that my mobo does not support AGP card and I need to replace my mainboard in order to use my new AGP card.

Thanks anyway guys...

Jawanda56

[GX1_Man]

I would have to rank Mercury motherboards in the same category as "Bob's AntiVirus" and "Whizbang Graphics Cards". Are the few pennies you save really saved if the product does not work as advertised?