Video card or software issue?

[jharrison2543]

Hard to describe what's going on with my desktop, but it has had a rough week. First, an AVG update prevented my OS from starting up. I found the fix for that, AVG had a boot cd that corrected the issue. A day later, my screen starts looking like this. I am torn between whether it is a software issue or if my graphics card is going out.

It looks like I am watching scrambled porn. It will load into safe mode, but not consistently into normal mode. It says that the driver crashed and recovered, then goes to a blue screen. I have tried updating the driver, system restore, and not sure what else to try at this point.

Here are some stats:
Windows Vista Ultimate (64 bit)
Intel Core 2 Duo CPU E7300 @ 2.66GHz
NVIDIA GeForce 8600GT
Corsair 750W PSU
2 x 2GB ram

Here is a pic for you:

 

[Emperus]

Yes it does sound like a video card issue.. Revert back to any older driver and try..

 

[jharrison2543]

There is no rollback driver available....

Will check the NVIDIA site and see. I have already tried uninstalling and reinstalling using the recommended update suggestion from window, but maybe this route will work.

 

[jharrison2543]

I installed the previous 2 recommended drivers from the NVIDIA site. No dice. Still the same scrambled screen and inability to load outside of Safe mode.

Say a guy was looking at a new 460 GTX video card.... would this be an easy fix for the problem instead of trying to find the right drivers?

 

[jharrison2543]

Got this upon restart if anyone can decipher it for me....

Problem signature:
Problem Event Name: BlueScreen
OS Version: 6.0.6002.2.2.0.256.1
Locale ID: 1033

Additional information about the problem:
BCCode: 101
BCP1: 0000000000000061
BCP2: 0000000000000000
BCP3: FFFFFA60005EC180
BCP4: 0000000000000001
OS Version: 6_0_6002
Service Pack: 2_0
Product: 256_1

 

[Emperus]

An upgrade to a GTX 460 will surely be worth it as your problems will go away mostly and you'll receive a healthy amount of increased gaming performance.. However, i'll first check around all possible workarounds for your current problem.. If it is not an indication of a dying video card, it could be caused due to driver conflicting with some other software too.. If you've not done it already, do check after removing any antivirus suite you've installed on your system..

 

[jharrison2543]

I did that. I uninstalled AVG due to frustration after their update crashed my system. that was a real bitch to get rid of! I replaced it with Avast, but saw no improvement while I was between programs.

I also physically removed the card and ram. Cleaned with compressed air and reinstalled, if that helps troubleshooting.

 

[Emperus]

A little research on google suggests that the Bccode 101 refers to a processor deadlock.. If that's the case then your problem may be due to the processor getting overheated.. Is your system well ventilated.. Also, did you perform a new OS install or upgraded from any older version.?

 

[jharrison2543]

No new OS or upgrades. This system has run as is for 2 years without major problems. Only thing I can think of is that I accidentally let my computer run in an automatic restart loop the other day when the AVG update had it failing to load windows. I would think that if something was overheating, it would run fine at first and gradually get worse. It is constantly the same.

Here is my case
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119152&Tpk=COOLER%20MASTER%20Centurion%20590%20RC-590-KKN1-GP%20Black%20S[/url]

That error core may be a side error to the visual problem. I believe I got that error after windows would not load in normal mode. It was frozen at a blank screen for a while, then restarted itself, which I directed into safe mode where I received that error report.