PC damaging grpahics card?

[pebeem]

I have a disturbing issue with graphics in my PC. Recently my good, old GeForce 9800 GTX died after two years of service - due to memory damage. It was under a warranty ,so I shipped it to EVGA (manufacturer) for RMA.
They've sent me back 9800 GTX+ as an replacement. I've installed it into the PC and launched "World in Conflict" - what I see? Artifacts everywhere. Another few 3d applications - artifacts again - in every one of them. And artifacts mean that it is a memory issue on graphics card.

Card isn't overclocked,I tried various drivers,nothing helps.
So here is my question - can any other component of my PC cause damage to the graphics' memory?

I'm running on:

Athlon 64x2 5000+
Motherboard - ASUS M2N32 SLI deluxe
6Gbs RAM
GeForce 9800 GTX+
Vista 64bit

 

[shadow187]

Your power supply could be failing. What brand do you have? There's a small possibility of a bad card as well.

 

[sadams04]

Under powered / faulty power supply perhaps... ?

 

[cheesesubs]

I have a disturbing issue with graphics in my PC. Recently my good, old GeForce 9800 GTX died after two years of service - due to memory damage. It was under a warranty ,so I shipped it to EVGA (manufacturer) for RMA.
They've sent me back 9800 GTX+ as an replacement. I've installed it into the PC and launched "World in Conflict" - what I see? Artifacts everywhere. Another few 3d applications - artifacts again - in every one of them. And artifacts mean that it is a memory issue on graphics card.

Card isn't overclocked,I tried various drivers,nothing helps.
So here is my question - can any other component of my PC cause damage to the graphics' memory?

I'm running on:

Athlon 64x2 5000+
Motherboard - ASUS M2N32 SLI deluxe
6Gbs RAM
GeForce 9800 GTX+
Vista 64bit

power supply? 12v rating? also have you doing cross testing on other platform? due to poor detail we can't really provide any solution...

 

[Psychoteddy]

I'm jumping on the bandwagon: PSU?

 

[pebeem]

My PSU is 560 watts Yesico. Unfortunately I can't test the card on any other system right now.

 

[dalta centauri]

It could easily be the psu seeing as you have what, over a 4 year old psu?
I say that because their site hasn't been updated since then, apparently.

Here's the specs for anyone who doesn't want to search em' up:

Spoiler

Fan Type 12 cm Fan
Voltage 115V~230 VAC
Frequency 50~60 Hz
Current 10A
OUTPUT Efficiency up tp 84%
Power Factor (PF) Typical 0.99
DC Current (min. / max.)
+3.3V 0.8A / 28A
+5V 0.5A / 30A
+12V(1) 1A / 14A
+12V(2) 1A / 23A
+12V(3) 1A / 15A
-12V 0.0A / 0.5A
+5Vsb 0.1A /2.5A
+3.3V & +5V 180W
Total Output 560W

 

[g00fysmiley]

as stated most liekly psu issues... btu could be a faulty card. given the age of the psu i'd suggest replacing it anyway if it really is 4 years old... don't want it takign out the rest of your rig when it does go

if new psu or borrowed test psu doesn't fix it then I'd say rma and tell them faulty card was sent to you on origional rm aand try to get them to pay shipping costs for the hassle

 

[christiangordon]

I would replace the PSU, plus if you get a good one it could be used in future builds

 

[iam2thecrowe]

i find it hard to believe that a bad PSU would cause artifacts, never happened in my experience. Bad PSU would more likley cause total bsod, hangs, crashes, shutdowns, reboots etc. try this video card memory test. I havnt used it but it looks like it should work. http://www.technibble.com/repair-tool-of-the-week-video-memory-stress-test/

 

[pebeem]

I've tested the card's memory with VMT and it didn't detect any errors.
Also EVGA OC scanner DO NOT detect any artifacts. Strange.

 

[jedi940]

If the artifacts are individual dots like snow, that is usually pointing to a core clock problem. If the artifacts are small triangles or larger, that us usually a memory issue. This is not always true but can be. One thing you could do is downclock the GPU. This would reduce power consumption and possibly tell you if the gpu just can't handle the default speeds.

 

[pebeem]

If the artifacts are small triangles or larger, that us usually a memory issue. This is not always true but can be. One thing you could do is downclock the GPU. This would reduce power consumption and possibly tell you if the gpu just can't handle the default speeds.

Triangles,lines,etc.
I've downclocked everything - core,memory and shader clocks. No difference.
I think this case is an 'dead end' until I get another PSU or another graphics.

 

[jedi940]

do you have a buddy you could borrow something from/test your gear in his computer?

 

[pebeem]

I've tested an old 8600 in my PC - and it worked perfectly.
Unfortunately right now I can't test mine 9800 anywhere.

 

[cheesesubs]

I've tested an old 8600 in my PC - and it worked perfectly.
Unfortunately right now I can't test mine 9800 anywhere.

you should go to local computer shop and let them test the graphic card. because it may be possible they they gave you a bad one.

 

[eyefinity]

Everybody jumps on the psu-bandwagon so fast. I've never had a psu problem and I don't exactly buy the best.

I'd say it's another bad card. That can happen, I've seen people on here get two bad cards in a row, it's just bad luck.

 

[pebeem]

Update : It seems now that my PC is slowly damaging my old and rusty 8600. It was working fine for one month and now it shows symptoms similiar to it's predecessor - 9800..
Maybe it's really PSU? Anyway - Never before have I heard about PSU damaging graphics.

 

[dalta centauri]

PSU doesn't damage graphics, it limits your graphics though causing errors as the card wouldn't be getting enough power.
Your psu should be fine for an 8600, I found out my psu degraded after a year of use and switched it out for another slightly better psu. I was getting restarts as soon as my 5770 started through CCC, which was odd because it only happened when CCC was active. You have Nvidia cards, so my only suggestion is switch your 8600 for another card and see if it's the cards themselves or get a new psu since yours is over 4 years old.

 

[Psychoteddy]

Everybody jumps on the psu-bandwagon so fast. I've never had a psu problem and I don't exactly buy the best.

I'd say it's another bad card. That can happen, I've seen people on here get two bad cards in a row, it's just bad luck.

Just because you've not had PSU problems does not mean that no one has PSU problems. The likelihood of PSU problems greatly outweighs the likelihood of two "bad" GPUs in a row. It happens, yes, but it would be moronic not to look at the simplest solution first (Occam's Razor, anyone?)

PSU doesn't damage graphics, it limits your graphics though causing errors as the card wouldn't be getting enough power.
Your psu should be fine for an 8600, I found out my psu degraded after a year of use and switched it out for another slightly better psu. I was getting restarts as soon as my 5770 started through CCC, which was odd because it only happened when CCC was active. You have Nvidia cards, so my only suggestion is switch your 8600 for another card and see if it's the cards themselves or get a new psu since yours is over 4 years old.

Wrong. PSUs can and DO fry GPUs, Mobos, HDDs, and any other component that it supplies if voltages/current is off. Remember, underpowering a component is just as dangerous as overpowering it, so an ailing, aging or under-powered PSU will also have the potential to fry components if power drops below a certain point (dependent on hardware config, usage and any modifications).

If you were receiving restart problems when CCC was running then the problem was CCC or your drivers. A PSU replacement would not have fixed this, you're right. But, just because you had a driver problem that was misdiagnosed does not mean that this person does not have a PSU problem.

 

[dalta centauri]

Just because you've not had PSU problems does not mean that no one has PSU problems. The likelihood of PSU problems greatly outweighs the likelihood of two "bad" GPUs in a row. It happens, yes, but it would be moronic not to look at the simplest solution first (Occam's Razor, anyone?)



Wrong. PSUs can and DO fry GPUs, Mobos, HDDs, and any other component that it supplies if voltages/current is off. Remember, underpowering a component is just as dangerous as overpowering it, so an ailing, aging or under-powered PSU will also have the potential to fry components if power drops below a certain point (dependent on hardware config, usage and any modifications).

If you were receiving restart problems when CCC was running then the problem was CCC or your drivers. A PSU replacement would not have fixed this, you're right. But, just because you had a driver problem that was misdiagnosed does not mean that this person does not have a PSU problem.

Wrong? Not enough power towards the GPU wouldn't cause errors like I said? Quote me on when I said that it wasn't the PSU's fault for the problems.

 

[Psychoteddy]

Wrong? Not enough power towards the GPU wouldn't cause errors like I said? Quote me on when I said that it wasn't the PSU's fault for the problems.

No, I think you misunderstood me. You stated that PSUs cannot damage GPUs. They can, and do. I never said that low power cannot cause errors, this only further proves my point.