Monitor turns off during games FIXED

[Mezopotam]

Ok, so I've seen many people with this problem. Their monitor turns off during gameplay, and the only advice they get on online forums is that they should buy a new PSU (Power Supply Unit). Since there was actually no online forum that provided an easy solution I thought I should share my way of dealing with this problem.

I will tell you exactly how I fixed this problem but you should also read everything I write in this post so you can narrow your causes for "no video signal" down.

1. So one of the main reasons for hardware turning off is overheating. In this case I'm not talking about your monitor but your graphics card. During high detail video games your graphics card is working at a higher speed and heat. When your computer is idle (no programs running, just your computer turned on) the temperature of your graphics card is usually about 35°C or 95°F (at least mine is), now when you play graphically demanding games your graphics card's temperature rises, and it can become quite hot.
- 70°C (158°F), 80°C (176°F) is absolutely good. 90°C (194°F) and even 100°C (212°F) is not that bad for new graphics card, but not for extended periods of time. Everything over 100°C (212°F) should be considered hotter than what's reccomended.

A good, and totaly free software for monitoring all system temperatures (including CPU (Central Processor Unit), and hard disks) is "CPUID Hardware Monitor. Just install and run it and you'll be able to see what's the temperature of your graphics card.

2. The second reson why your monitor turns off could be your PSU. New computers have a lot of power sucking hardware devices, and if your PSU can provide less then what is required - than your computer fails to operate.
- graphic cards (especially if you have 2 graphics cards in one computer) can suck all the power from your PSU if your PSU is, let's say, a 400W one.
- Many PSU making companies tell you what's the maximum power your PSU can produce, but guess what, your PSU will always work with less power, therefore you need to take that into consideration when buying a new PSU.
- Now, "no video signal" could mean your graphics card needs more power but since it's not getting any - it has to turn off. Therefore your monitor says "no video signal" and possibly you still hear some game sounds from your speakers (at least for some time).

Once again I recommend "CPUID Hardware Monitor" software 'cause it shows you the status of your power supply lines. You have 3 main lines - the +3.3V, +5V, and +12V. If on +3.3V line your software reads anything less that +3.3V than something using that power line is not getting enough power. the same is for +5V and +12V lines. I think your graphics card uses +12V line, so if your "CPUID Hardware Monitor" software reads something less than +12V (like 11.84V) than maybe your graphics card isn't getting enough power.
- NOW, what I'd like to stress out is that the cause of your problem still doesn't have to be your PSU, it could be damaged power lines on your mother board.

3. The third possible cause (and that is ONLY if your monitor is permanently without signal) is your graphics card or monitor is dead. Replace them with your friend's for example (to see if you can diagnose which device is dead) and see if anything changes.

NOW ------ TO THE EASY SOLUTION

This is what worked for me, it might not work for you, but I thought people should know that it can be done through software changes.

I use ATI HD4670. In my "ATI Catalyst Control Center" I clicked on "ATI Overdrive", than i checked the box "Enable ATI Overdrive".

Now this is how I adjusted the settings.

You know how you can overclock some devices from your computer? Well I underclocked my graphics card.

- Under "GPU Clock" i slided the bar down to about 580 MHz (it was at 800 by default).
- I left "Memory Clock" on minimum (in my case 873 MHz)
[By doing this my graphics card needed less power to operate, so I guess the problem of not getting enough power from power supply was fixed, or at least made better] NOTE - this could actually bring your frame rate in games down a bit (this is only my guess).

Then I pressed "Test Custom clocks..." - you have to do this to see if your graphics card will work at all with new settings. If it works, then the next step is checking the box "Enable Manual Fan Control".

My graphics card fan is working at 70% all the time, and my "GPU core" temperature never goes above 70°C. So with this I fixed any possibility of overheating.

For 3 weeks now I play any game I like, without that annoying "no video signal". I guess I fixed my problem with just a little underclocking. I hope it works for you too.

[EINSTEIN_007]

Thats a very well explained guide written. But as per my conclusion, I have seen this "no video signal" problem occuring many a times due to video card not seated properly onto the agp/pcie slot. Another problem occurs due to the dvi port where we connect the monitor cable and the most obvious is after 3-4 years, due to monitor fault, it is compulsory to change monitor that you have written already.