Dedicated Nvidia graphics card blank screen

[Chuck_A_TN]

I have a Pavilion Desktop 590-p0050 with 310W PS, Windows 11. I am trying to add a dedicated graphics card with Displayport to best use my new monitor. I tried an AMD Firepro W2100 recently with same results. I am now trying an Invidia GeForce K620.

I install the card, then connect the DP cable and monitor. When I power on I get no signal (black screen), and it does not appear the computer is booting (looking at the drive activity).

With the card installed, I try the HDMI cable to the onboard graphics port, same result, no boot, no signal. I cannot get to Bios settings with either connection when the card is installed.

If I remove the card and connect the monitor with HDMI to the onboard port, the computer boots normally.

Am I missing something on the installation process?

Note: I also tried a laptop to check the new monitor and DP cable, it worked fine. I also tried both graphics cards in A Win 10 Lenovo  h50 50 90b7 with the same result. 

Therefore I suspect I am missing a step, but my understanding was that the card should be auto detecting.

I am running the latest Bios on the HP, UEFI, AMI version F51 date 09/06/23

Any thoughts as to what to try would be greatly appreciated!

Chuck

[NonSequitur777 · Accepted solution]

@Chuck_A_TN,

Welcome to our HP Community forum!

You've done a great job of testing -and your instincts are right: both the AMD FirePro W2100 and Nvidia Quadro K620 are low-power GPUs that should work perfectly fine with your Pavilion 590-p0050's 310-watt power supply. Each card typically draws only 30–45 watts, well within your PSU’s capacity.

However, your description (no boot, black screen with card installed) points to a UEFI/legacy BIOS compatibility issue, not a power problem.

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What I Believe Is Happening:

Your Pavilion's BIOS is UEFI-only, whilst older workstation-class cards such as the W2100 and K620 often ship with legacy (non-UEFI) video BIOS firmware. When a system is set to UEFI boot mode only, it can fail to POST if the GPU doesn't support UEFI GOP (Graphics Output Protocol).

What You Can Try:

1. Enter BIOS (with GPU removed)

   • Press Esc → F10 at startup.

   • Go to Advanced → Boot Options (or Storage → Boot Mode).

   • Look for Legacy Support or CSM (Compatibility Support Module).

   • If available, enable Legacy Support.

   • Save changes, shut down, and reinstall the GPU.

   Note: Some Pavilion BIOS versions hide this setting -HP gradually phased out Legacy support in newer BIOS revisions. If that’s the case, the card simply won’t initialize because the firmware expects a UEFI-compliant GPU.

2. Try a newer, fully UEFI-ready GPU
   If the BIOS doesn't offer Legacy mode, choose a newer card that supports UEFI GOP, such as:

   • Nvidia GT 1030 (GDDR5 version)

   • Nvidia GTX 1050 / 1050 Ti

   • AMD Radeon RX 6400

   These will boot without issue in UEFI-only systems.

3. BIOS Reset (optional)

   • With power off, unplug the PC and hold the power button for 15 seconds.

   • Open the case, move the CMOS jumper to the clear position for 10 seconds, or temporarily remove the CMOS battery.

   • Restore and try again -sometimes the BIOS needs to "forget" a failed GPU initialization.

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Summary:

• PSU (310-watt) is sufficient for both GPUs.

• Most likely cause: GPU firmware lacks UEFI GOP support.

• Solution: Enable Legacy Support (if possible) or use a newer, UEFI-compatible graphics card.

Kind Regards,

NonSequitur777

[Chuck_A_TN]

Thank You, This solved it. In order to turn on legacy support, I needed to disable secure boot. Is this a large issue? Should I consider optional cards with UEFI support so that Secure Boot can be on?

Or is the firmware on teh GPU updateable to support UEFI?

Thanks again, I am up and running.

Chuck

[NonSequitur777]

@Chuck_A_TN,

I'm glad you are up and running!

I would leave things as they are right now, until you consider upgrading your power supply and your graphics card.

What can be done?  -Well, please take a look at my most recent HP Pavilion 590-p0030 upgrade project.

Kind Regards,

NonSequitur777