Graphx card and PSU problem

[abu_has_the_power]

I have a Thermaltake Xaser III 480W psu and a Sapphire ATI Radeon 9800 pro. i've been using this psu for almost a year now. my system is oced. my 9800 pro is oced just a bit. my cpu is oced from 2.4ghz to 3.0 right now.

just recently, i occasionally get massive artifacts on my screen, sometimes in games, and sometimes just on the desktop! i reinstalled drivers, updated drivers, even downgraded them to catalyst 5.8 and 5.9. tried omega and regular ati drivers. nothing worked.

today, i opened my case, and thought, maybe this is a psu problem. i unplugged the 12V molex for my 9800, and plugged it into 1 of my case fans. i took the molex for the case fan and put it in my 9800 pro. now, when i run games, no artifacts and tears! no problems on the desktop either!


wtf? i thought thermaltake Xaser PSU's are nice psu's. certainly 480W should be able to handle a 9800 pro. it's handled it fine for almost a year. this sucks. do i need to replace my psu?

what kind of psu would be able to handle my setup? :wacko: :wacko:

[Virtualbody1234]

It could have been just a loose connection.

[abu_has_the_power]

hmmmm..... u might be right. but how can it be loose? i haven't moved my computer around at all for a long time. hmmm......

[Seedler]

DON'T BUY THERMALTAKE PSUs!!!!!

Wattage means absolutely nothing. I've seen a 520w thermaltake fail on a 6800 GT. most Thermaltake PSUs have a 17A rating on a 12V rail, and that is TERRIBLE. Read more about PSUs here:
http://www.computerforum.com/showthread.php?t=10764

Bottom line: Avoid Thermaltake PSUs or you'll regret it!

[abu_has_the_power]

DON'T BUY THERMALTAKE PSUs!!!!!

Wattage means absolutely nothing. I've seen a 520w thermaltake fail on a 6800 GT. most Thermaltake PSUs have a 17A rating on a 12V rail, and that is TERRIBLE. Read more about PSUs here:
http://www.computerforum.com/showthread.php?t=10764

Bottom line: Avoid Thermaltake PSUs or you'll regret it!

:cry: :cry:

i'll stick with this for now. next year i'm building a small form factor for college. i'll get involved with all this hardware crap next year

[clocker]

i'll get involved with all this hardware crap next year
Seems like you're "involved" right now.

[abu_has_the_power]

well, i've been out of the game for over a year. haven't opened my case in 8 months. lol

and since i'm building a new pc, i'll have to know about all these new cpu sockets and mobo's and stuff. a lot of new stuff to get familiarized with

[Virtualbody1234]

... a lot of new stuff to get familiarized with
Exactly why you should start studying now!

[abu_has_the_power]

so wat should i do bout my psu? it seems to be working now. but this morning, i was going to catch a quick game of css b4 school, and the screen got screwy again. but that was only for css. everything else works. sigh

[abu_has_the_power]

would would u guys recommend? here's my setup:
Asus P4P800 Deluxe mobo
P4 2.4c oced to 3.0
Thermalright SP94 with a 92" Tornado
Temp display thingy
Liteon 48x CDRW
Digital Max 16x DL DVDRW
Fan controller (controls my tornado)
2 x 512mb PC3200 + 2 x 256mb PC3200
2 x 200gb Seagate 7200rpm
Sapphire Radeon 9800 Pro Oced to 411/351

help?

[abu_has_the_power]

ok, i think i figured out my problem. for those OCer's out there, it's essential to lock the agp ratio thingy to 66.6.66/33.3.33. i just looked in my bios. my voltages are all fine. well within working range. i look in my oc settings, and my agp ratio is set to auto! and my ram voltage is set to auto too. no wonder my computer crashes. :doh:

[clocker]

Don't believe the voltage readings from BIOS (or any other software program for that matter).
If you want to really know, use a multimeter and take readings while the PC is under stress-in your case, whilst playing a game.

[tesco]

hmmmm..... u might be right. but how can it be loose? i haven't moved my computer around at all for a long time. hmmm......
The video card has a fan on it, so the video card's been vibrating for the last year, so the molex could have been wiggling it's way out.

[abu_has_the_power]

i checked my gpu fan a few days ago. it's spinning. it's a crappy fan, but it's spinning

i can't wait for next summer. building me a small form factor pimpmachine

[tesco]

i checked my gpu fan a few days ago. it's spinning. it's a crappy fan, but it's spinning

i can't wait for next summer. building me a small form factor pimpmachine
No i didn't say your fan isn't working, I said that could be a reason for a loose connection.:lol:

[abu_has_the_power]

oh, right. well, i took out the 12v molex and plugged it back in. then i tried another molex.

so far, it seems to be working. for some reason my screen still gets screwy occasionally when i play games. sigh

[abu_has_the_power]

http://img175.imageshack.us/img175/5929/hl2exe00846338ro.th.jpg (http://img175.imageshack.us/my.php?image=hl2exe00846338ro.jpg)

this is how fucked up my computer is right now

sigh

is this a power supply problem? or a video card problem?

[silent h3ro]

Was your CS like this before the update? Also it looks like this happens just when u respawn...does it?

[abu_has_the_power]

no, this whole thing was going on the 2nd half of our game with u and maebach.

this was well before the update. it started when i got The Movies, and i ran it @ max resolution of my lcd (1280 x something) with everything on high. it ran fine for a few days, but then i set my desktop to max res too for photoshop and maya, and in a few days, i started getting the early forms of what i get now. artifacts all over the desktop, in games, and shit. now it's gotten much worse. wtf?

[abu_has_the_power]

this was well before the update. it started when i got The Movies, and i ran it @ max resolution of my lcd (1280 x something) with everything on high. it ran fine for a few days, but then i set my desktop to max res too for photoshop and maya, and in a few days, i started getting the early forms of what i get now. artifacts all over the desktop, in games, and shit. now it's gotten much worse. wtf?

help?

[abu_has_the_power]

ok, i just experimented a bit. i've narrowed it down. this is definitely a psu problem. my 12v is now 11 volts.

can u guys recommend me a psu?
here's my specs:
Asus P4P800 Deluxe mobo
P4 2.4c oced to 3.0
Thermalright SP94 with a 92" Tornado
Temp display thingy
Liteon 48x CDRW
Digital Max 16x DL DVD-RW
Fan controller (controls my 92" tornado)
2 x 512mb PC3200 + 2 x 256mb PC3200
2 x 200gb Seagate 7200rpm
Sapphire Radeon 9800 Pro Oced to 411/351

[Virtualbody1234]

Does the problem continue if you set everything back to stock speeds?

[abu_has_the_power]

i should try that

but i'm almost certain it's the psu's problem.

i'll give that a shot later tonite

[lynx]

I've spotted your problem.
Thermalright SP94 with a 92" TornadoYou shouldn't try to run an 8-foot wind tunnel from your psu. :P

edit: No doubt someone will be along shortly to whisper the work Antec, but before they do you could consider a Hiper or a Seasonic. Around 500w from one of those should be sufficient.

[abu_has_the_power]

lol
do u mean my psu will overheat? or it's crazily loud? that's kinda why i have a fan rheobus hooked up. lol

[lynx]

It explains how you used to keep that hdd so cool. The wind-chill factor must be impressive. :rolleyes:

[abu_has_the_power]

oh for god sakes :rolleyes:

[clocker]

We have awfully good memories don't we?

[abu_has_the_power]

We have awfully good memories don't we?
lol. funny how that's all you remember

;) :rolleyes: :happy:

now seriously someone recommend me a good psu for my setup

[abu_has_the_power]

I've spotted your problem.
Thermalright SP94 with a 92" TornadoYou shouldn't try to run an 8-foot wind tunnel from your psu. :P

edit: No doubt someone will be along shortly to whisper the work Antec, but before they do you could consider a Hiper or a Seasonic. Around 500w from one of those should be sufficient.
yea, i've heard great things bout antec too. got a particular one? i don't want to spend too much $$$. i need me $$$ for college next year :pinch:

[abu_has_the_power]

ok, i just experimented some more. reverted back to default clock settings. still the same problem.
now i am 100% sure it's the psu's problem

i parallelled my main hdd and my graphx card on the same cord/circuit thingy, and my computer would not even boot! so then i paralleled my case fan with my radeon, with nothing else, and i parallelled both my hdd's (the 2nd one is hardly ever used), and now it boots! i'll have to see if i get the same problem later on with the screen going weird.

but so far, this is definitely a psu problem

[abu_has_the_power]

check this out
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.asp?submit=PROPERTY&SubCategory=58&propertycodevalue=1313:9959&bop=and&Order=Reviews
my psu (thermaltake silentpower 480W) is the 3rd most popular psu. lol

[silent h3ro]

My PSU is the Aspire right under urs. :01:

[abu_has_the_power]

i'm probably gonna get this one:
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=1273332&Tab=0&NoMapp=0
decent rails. 28A on the 12v. not bad

anyone have experience with ultra psu's?

i looked at antec and seasonic. the cheapest 450w psu is at least $70-90. don't wanna spend that much money.

i've found a really good deal on a 500W ultra x-connect (modular cables). are those good?

and if not, i might go with this http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817148008
2nd most popular and highest rated psu newegg sells
tigerdirect has it for $59 too. i can drive over there and pick it up. no s/h

[clocker]

Basing a decision like this on Newegg customer reviews is suicidal.
Who are the people and what qualifications do they have?

"I just bought "X-brand" PSU and it RAWKS!" hardly provides the data necessary for you to make an informed decision.

If you don't want to spend the 70-90 bucks necessary to buy a passable PSU, please don't bother asking opinions on cheap crap cause what can we really say?

[abu_has_the_power]

normally, i wouldn't mind spending $90 on a durable psu. i'm getting one to keep my computer running till summer of 2006. then i'm selling this piece of junk and building a small-form-factor

yes, most of those reviews are stupid, but there are many fellow ocers like myself, and they list their specs in the review, and many of them have had this for well over a year. the aspire psu is the highest rated psu. that must mean something right?

[clocker]

My understanding is that Aspire has quite variable quality control.
A crapshoot, basically.

[abu_has_the_power]

i just installed the ultra v series 500W psu that i picked up @ microcenter (i was gonna return it as soon as i figure out if the psu is the problem)

i just ran 3dmark03 on loop. my screen just went screwy again! wtf~!! same exact problem as before. i just tried a few games, all screwy. looks like that css shot i posted above. FUCK!

so i guess it's not the psu's problem. SHIT!

[Virtualbody1234]

Does the problem continue if you set everything back to stock speeds?

i should try that

but i'm almost certain it's the psu's problem.

i'll give that a shot later tonite
Did you try that yet?

[abu_has_the_power]

yea i did
didn't make a difference

[Virtualbody1234]

Btw. To return a part because it doesn't solve your problem just isn't right.

[Virtualbody1234]

Another thing I noticed is that you say: "haven't opened my case in 8 months. lol".

Not keeping a close eye on things and not keeping things very clean after overclocking is very bad.

[abu_has_the_power]

i just played around. took out my old 19" crt and ran 3dmark on that. screen still gets screwy. so i went on omege drivers, got the latest 1, and 3dmark works fine. ran it 4 1 hour looping.
so then i switched back to my lcd, it didn't work! reinstalled drivers, and it still is messed up. but now, instead of artifacts, the computer crashes!
could this b a problem with the dvi connection on me card? cuz me crt uses vga, and it works

[abu_has_the_power]

ok. it's working fine now. apparently it's not a problem with my psu at all. here's what i did:
-installed the lastest omega radeo driver
-set my lcd's refresh rate to 60. and it seems to work

i also upgarded my cpu. my uncle got me a p4 3.2 with 1 mb L2 cache. it's pimpin. things are working fine now. still can't figure out exactly what went wrong. probably something with my graphx card. so i took off the hs on the 9800 and added some arctic silver on it.

[abu_has_the_power]

update:
something is definitely broken. either the graphx card or the psu. i'm thinking both. here's why:
the screen is screwing up again. almost every day. i'm afraid of running any games now. sometimes the screen goes back to normal after a restart, and when it doesn't, i reinstall the driver. sometimes that doesn't work, so i rollback and install an older driver (ati and omega). this didn't help much. only temp.

i just need to hold on for 6 more months, then i sell this piece of junk (everything piece by piece) and build a new small form factor with at least a 7800 gtx, if not better.

what should i do?

i don't think i can handle 6 months w/o any games

[abu_has_the_power]

i was wondering. how does my 9800 pro's performance match with the 6600gt?

as of now, i can spare $200 to fix this computer. then sell everything to get part of this $200 back when i build my new computer.

i can get a 6600gt for around $120-$130, or i can spend $180 and get a 6800. i need agp cuz my mobo doesn't have pci-e. hmmmmmmm

i might also need some $ to get a new psu. hmmmm

[abu_has_the_power]

is this card better than what i have now?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814121206

if i'm gonna replace the video card i have now, and this is better, and it happens to cost about the same....

[zapjb]

This thread is insane. Has any problem been narrowed down? Or is the shotgun approach still raging?

[abu_has_the_power]

sort of. it's either the psu or the video card or both.

[abu_has_the_power]

ok. just went over to microcenter.
they are having amazing fucking deals
i got
-Ultra 500W X-Connect (the power molexes come off!!) for $19 after rebate!!
-Ati X850 XT AGP 256mb GDR3 for $189 after $50 rebate!!!!

now my computer runs perfectly. who knew microcenter has good deals! wow


just ran 3dmark03. 11887 running stock speeds

[silent h3ro]

ok. just went over to microcenter.
they are having amazing fucking deals
i got
-Ultra 500W X-Connect (the power molexes come off!!) for $19 after rebate!!
-Ati X850 XT AGP 256mb GDR3 for $189 after $50 rebate!!!!

now my computer runs perfectly. who knew microcenter has good deals! wowDood I posted about all of Microcenter's sales a few days back.. thought u saw my post. I still definitely have to buy the x850xt. Only problem is that idk if the pci version is nearly as cheap. :frusty:

[abu_has_the_power]

where did u post? i get the microcenter ad in the mail

[abu_has_the_power]

holy shit this card is amazing. i'm playing FEAR with everything on Max and 2x aa 2x af @ 59fps!!!

[silent h3ro]

holy fucking shit i want that fucking card fuuck fuck fuck