GPU Failure? Need advice!

[daveee]

Hey guys, I'm having a problem with my GPU by the looks of it and i'm wondering if it's completely bust or if there is anything I can do. Basically, I was playing Diablo 3 and my computer suddenly froze, with green pixels all over the screen. I could still see Diablo 3 in the back ground, but there were thousands of green pixels all over the screen. I couldn't Ctrl+Alt+Delete or Alt+Tab out of the game, so I turned my PC off using the power button.

When starting it up again, the resolution had changed to 640x480 and my graphics card could not be detected. Tried starting multiple games, and all reporting errors such as "Could not load direct3d". I've had my GPU for quite a while now, it's a nVidia GeForce 8800GT 512mb.

Any advice would be appreciated, thanks.

 

[neomec]

It's probably overheated and burned mate. (Worst scenario) (Or still in burn protection phase)
Check gpu cooling fan is working and clean? And Try to reinstall drivers.

 

[daveee]

I will have a look now, it's definitely clean as I only cleaned my PC properly about a week ago... but i'll check the fan now. Also, when I go into the device manager, there's an error saying "Windows has stopped this device because it has reported problems. (Code 43)".

A few of my friends are saying this could mean it's bust?

 

[jsrudd]

I'd say the card is dead. You could try removing the card and reseating it, but I wouldn't get my hopes up.

 

[daveee]

Yeah, I tried that but to no avail. Ahwell, it's an old card, it was bound to happen haha. Thanks guys, time to buy a new graphics card ;D

I've had my eye on the NVIDIA GeForce 560ti. Any other suggestions or do you think that's the safest/best bet?

 

[4745454b]

Older card, probably just burned up. They don't last forever. On the bright side you can now buy a new card that will support DX11, use less power then your 8800GT, and you won't have to worry about it dying. GTX550TI would be a good choice if you want to stay with Nvidia, or grab a 7770 or 6850 if you want to switch to AMD.

Edit: GTX560TI is a fine card. Nvidia's newest 6xx cards haven't come down to the performance level of the 560ti so if you were looking at that end of the market then the 560ti is your card. You might want to look at the 7850/7870 as they perform a bit better, but will cost you a bit more.

 

[daveee]

Thank you, I appreciate your time. I will look into those cards shortly.

 

[djscribbles]

Treat yourself to an upgrade, the latest generation is quite nice. The old card doesn't owe the world anything anymore

What kind of budget do you want to put into a new card, and what do you want it to do?

 

[daveee]

My budget would be around the 150/160 mark I reckon. And to be fair, just to be able to play up-to-date games for the next few years.

 

[4745454b]

7850 is out then. 7770 might work but the 6850 is very similar in performance. As I said the 6xx cards haven't come down to this price point so the 560TI might be the best Nvidia card you can get. The 560TI is faster then 7770/6850/6870.