Help Plz.. Graphics Crash Question

S

Sidus

New Member
System: Gateway FX7026
GPU: 8800GT

Here is the run down.
1. About 2 years ago lightening hit outside my house and fried my MBs internal Net Card. I added a PCI/Net card to the motherboard. Fixed.

2. A few weeks ago my PC started shutting down at times and refusing to start. I noticed due to the inside of the GPU being very dirty, it had been over heating quite a bit. I cleaned it up. Seemed problem was solved.

3. A week ago, my graphics started crashing and recovering from black-screen. And the PC would at times shut down while I was out and wouldn't turn back on again. When I set the graphics settings to the bare minimum, and it was cooled off, it would go without a graphics crash for some time. But then would keep crashing and upon restart go to Blue-screen. Deciding to closely give a visual inspection, I seen some chips that had heat damage (melted in the center) on the Motherboard.

4. Figuring my issue was only my Motherboard I ordered a new one and put it in today. Now, the crashes did not happen until I updated my GPU drivers. I reinstalled again, updated everything, no issue..but then updated NVIDIA driver and BAMM! when I started back up it goes right to black-screen at Windows Sign-on.

When I started in Safe-mode and rolled back the GPU driver to just the 'Standard VGA Graphics Adapter' it would again be able to restart and no black-screen.

Note: My 'Windows Experience Index Score' for my Graphics used to be either 5.8 o 5.9. Now it is 1.0. (wo NVIDIA drivers installed) And 1.0 at the rare times I was able to see it (when they were installed) right before it crashed.

**Question: So is this a bad 8800GT GPU? I figured that maybe since the MB had an issue, like a car part that didn't get fixed fast enough, I messed my GPU up. (I am a PC novice).**
 
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Being a OEM computer and from what you have said, its been through alot. I'm surprised the power supply has made it this far. Its just a OEM power supply with probably just 350/400W and nowhere near that on the 12V rail. Plus running a 8800GT. You got or know someone with another power supply you could try out. That would be my first guess.
 
claptonman said:
Did you manually install the new drivers or just click "update drivers" in device manager?
Click to expand...

Manually from the NVIDIA web site many times, and from the windows update in Device Manager once. Both times, same result.
 
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StrangleHold said:
Being a OEM computer and from what you have said, its been through alot. I'm surprised the power supply has made it this far. Its just a OEM power supply with probably just 350/400W and nowhere near that on the 12V rail. Plus running a 8800GT. You got or know someone with another power supply you could try out. That would be my first guess.
Click to expand...

Initially I was going to look into getting a new GPU for it (EVGA GeForce GTX460) but since I found out I need at least 450w PSU for that, now I was just thinking of buying a 'Antec EarthWatts EA-500D Green 500W ATX12V v2.3 / EPS12V 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC Power Supply' first myself.

I know no one near who I can borrow a good PSU from but the more I thought about it the more it made sense that if the power wasn't there to run the GPU when the Updated NVIDIA drivers were present then that could explain the black-screening.

*I'll order the PSU Fri and check back in with results Tues-Wed next week. Thanks all for replying.*

PS; StrangleHold, getting a higher wattage PSU for my PC won't jack anything up being that it is OEM? My current is 400w and as I mentioned, I was lookn at that 500w one. Thank you.
 
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SOLVED! :D
I initiated a HD scan/repair from Device Manager, removed my bad twin HD, restarted, installed Graphics Drivers, and BAMM!! all is now well. :]
 
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