from what i can find online u can change the gfx in it. i have an asus g60-jx that i could upgrade the proc and gfx if i wanted to so i know its possible if you have a chip that can be taken out, not all things are soldered onto motherboards anymore so u very well could. ps it definitely sounds like a graphics issue. i also doubt its a bios issue as u cant even see bios splash screen, which would not use windows settings, just the bare minimum of the card to render the gui.
side note i have seen some people who are good enough to even solder a new chipset on a board so anything is possible lol. hope this helps.