computer crashes a lot, video card problem??

[alnite]

I don't really know where to ask this question because there is no Troubleshooting forum, but since I am about 70% sure it's the video card, I ask here. I apologize if this is the wrong forum.

Since summer started, my computer always crashes for no apparent reasons. It gets worse if I play video games, so I suspect it's gotta be the video card. My MB and CPU temperature (right after the crash) were about ~38 Celcius and ~59 Celcius (sometimes lower than that), but I have no idea how hot my video card is, but if I touch the heatsink, even when the computer is on, it's very hot.

I don't really know the problem here, is it my MB not stable, or my video card too hot. And since my budget is limited, I can only replace either the MB, or the video card. Which one is it?

MB: Asus A7A266
Video Card: nVidia GeForce4 MX440

 

[Nights_L]

do you OC your system?
does ur mx440 have a fan on it or it has simply a heatsink?
what cpu u got?
etc etc...

 

[Crashman]

How do you mean, crashes? If it does a memory dump or simply reboots, it could be your CPU or even your RAM.

<font color=blue>Watts mean squat if you don't have quality!</font color=blue>

 

[TheGreatGrapeApe]

59 degrees C AFTER reboot IS Hot! That means it has had a small amount of time to come down in temp, which means it likley was running closer to 65C when it 'crashed'.
I wouldn't be surprised if it is a heat issue. I run a stock cooler on this AMD XP 2000+ and it never gets above 57C even when benchmarking with things overclcocked (had it running around 1750mhz in my initial attempts to dethrone GW (OCing CPU HURT scores) however never breached that temp (mine's set to warn me if it goes above 60C. Right now it's about 25+C in my room <A HREF="http://weatheroffice.ec.gc.ca/forecast/city_e.html?yyc" target="_new">(32C outside)</A> and 41C in my case and 52C on the CPU. So I'd say you likely have a cooling issue if you're running THAT hot AFTER the crash.

By at least one more case fan, AND tell us more specifically what is it usually doing when it reboots. Could even be a PSU issue or a know problem with the MOBO.

EDit: GW, yeah just remember that that's STOCK cooling on the gaming rig, not the Volcano 9s on the video-editing rig.
And I've had no problems so far (although I'm almost tempted to get a new A/C cause any amount of time on the comp. with the outside temp like that just bakes the room. Not like earlier when I was benchmarking in the colder weather, then the temps never rose above 50C.

- You need a licence to buy a gun, but they'll sell anyone a stamp <i>(or internet account)</i> ! <A HREF="http://www.redgreen.com" target="_new"><font color=green>RED</font color=green> <font color=red>GREEN</font color=red></A> GA to SK <P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by TheGreatGrapeApe on 07/12/03 06:51 PM.</EM></FONT></P>

 

[GeneticWeapon]

My XP2100+ sits idle @38C and hits 43C while benching or gaming.
He could be having memory instability also. Maybe playing with the latency would help. Just a thought.

 

[alnite]

no, I don't OC my system. And my MX440 has only a heatsink. CPU is AMD Duron 950Mhz.

When it crashes, it simply reboots. In the worst case, the monitor goes blank (it doesn't receive any signal) but the MB's still on (the IDE and power light, fan, etc all are on) and the reset button doesn't work, so I have to turn it off either by pushing the power button for 5 secs or by turning off the power switch (the one at the back of the case).

After reboot, it goes just as usual, nothing weird happens, and that's when I check temperatures.

The annoying thing is, now it happens anytime, even when I surf the net.

Memory is unbranded DDR2100 256 MB.
HardDrive: Western Digital 60GB.
1 CD-ROM and 1 CD-RW.
PCI cards: Network card, modem, and sound card.
CPU Fan is Thermaltake Volcano 6 Cu, and running at about 5200RPM.

 

[TheGreatGrapeApe]

If it happens even during surfing then I think it's definitely a heat issue. PSU would likely only be an issue under heavy draw, however heat builds up until CRASH, even running low-level apps like a web browser (although HOT porn sites make it worse).

Just my two frames yet again.


- You need a licence to buy a gun, but they'll sell anyone a stamp <i>(or internet account)</i> ! <A HREF="http://www.redgreen.com" target="_new"><font color=green>RED</font color=green> <font color=red>GREEN</font color=red></A> GA to SK