video gets choppy sometimes

SERprise

SERprise

New Member
I have a gigabyte nf4 board, 2 gigs of pqi turbo pc3200 @ 2-3-2-5, A64 3000+, Ultra 500W x-connect, evga 6800GS, 4xHitachi sata drives in raid-0, Creative x-fi fatal1ty sound card

my PC used to run BF2 at 1280x1024 with everything on high and 4xAA, now all the sudden it sometimes gets really choppy.. like during something like an artilary strike and bombing lots of people etc it gets real choppy and even after the graphics demanding part is over it stays choppy.. it wont recover and in order to play again I have to reboot my PC(rebooting just the game doesn't work). I turned off the AA, cleaned all of the heatsinks, and even cranked my cpu fan up all the way(that zalman copper one.. forget the exact part #). My case is an antec lanboy which has 2x120mm fans(1 intake, 1 exhause) so cooling shouldn't be an issue should it?? The thing that has me stuck is that it played BF2 on high settings flawlessly before this, I tried reinstalling the game and that didn't work so I even reformatted my PC(x64 is my OS), still no luck?? If the stock cooler on the video card wasn't up to the task it'd atleast start playing right again once the graphic intense times are over and it cooled down a bit right?? I assume whatever needs replaced is the video card or power supply.. I mean I have been using the 500w x-connect for like a year and a half or more.. it powered my old PC too before I built this one. I really wouldn't mind upgrading the video card cause the 7900's look pretty good and the lower end ones are somewhat reasonable, but if my power supply is the culprit I'd rather replace it first. I definately got my moneys worth with it anyway, I paid $40 shipped AR for it and my old Antec Dragon case so my expectations were low anyway.

I've been looking at this XClio PS:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817189007


before I buy it though, is it possible a powersupply, once it gets overloaded needs to be rebooted before it works right again?? or is it more likely to be the video card, or something else?? Thanks for your replies
 
It sounds like your assumtion is correct, it is most likely the power supply or the video card. I would suggest getting a new PSU mainly because Ultra is not a very high quality company. You should get a Enermax PSU first, make sure you have enough Amps on the 12V rails (around 28-30+).. if that doesnt solve the problem try getting another video card, but none the less get a psu first.
 
Take a look at your background proccesses too, sometimes programs have obnoxious memory robbers that are just useless background applications. (some antivirus softwares like McAfee have a constantly running scanner as well; i have it and unless i disable it while playing games like BF2 or FEAR it runs with short bursts of choppiness too.)
 
Think Enermax is a better choice that XClio?? I read that Channel, who makes Antec actually makes that XClio PS too and it has gotten awesome reviews. I don't really care about brand, I just hate having a computer that doesn't run at its full potential. the fact that I have a relatively power demanding video card, 4 hard drives running, and the x-fi fatal1ty sound card I am looking to get a nice PS.

how is this Enermax PS?? would you get it over the XClio?? basically the same price/specs(both 600W & 18A):

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817194001

both are around $140 shipped, although I would only like to spend around $100.. I will spend a little extra knowing I'm getting quality

I was thinking a 600w would be good to get too because I do plan on still upgrading the video card sometime real near in the future(unless if it is still choppy with the new PS.. then real soon) and I also plan on getting a new processor soon too, 600w should keep me covered with my upgrade plans.

I can get a 7900GT for ~$240 AR here:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814130028

but I dunno if I wanna drop $400 on my computer all at once.. I do need to eat ya know?? ;) figure get the PS now, and the video card late july or so, processor mid August maybe.. unless ofcourse there is some insane 4th of July sale, then I'll end up having to bite the bullet and get something then too.. If I see a sale with a 7900GT for like $200 AR or something on the 4th.. I'll go ahead and get it now.

Any chance somebody knows where I can find one of those power supplies, or something similar for like $100'ish?? I'm always looking for the deals but I can't seem to find any good ones right now.. figures, they are everywhere when I don't "need" them. I've been meaning to upgrade that PS for like a year too but I always passed up the good deals I saw like an idiot telling myself "next time"



btw, I have no antivirus or anything running.. I have literally no programs installed on my gaming PC other than the OS, Ventrilo, Teamspeak, and games

I use my notebook for personal stuff, and anything important is saved on my Linux box... My gaming PC is only used for gaming and forums
 
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nobody has seen any good power supply deals?? guess I'll just pull the trigger and spend more than I was wanting to
 
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