Author Topic: pls help with video card issue  (Read 950 times)

Offline -error

  • Zinc Member
  • *
  • Posts: 94
pls help with video card issue
« on: January 01, 2014, 02:18:14 AM »
Hello guys. Happy new year everyone.

I would like to have an advice on video card issue. Couple of times I encoutered issues while playing AH when screen became checkered, like chessboard, then it went completely blank and after couple of seconds AH screen went back textures loading like I switched to desktop and back.
It was day or two before failure.
After that windows crashed to BSOD when I started AH. I restarted the PC and saw that even in text mode when video card's bios starts image is garbled. In graphics mode I have short white lines all over the screen. In device manager I see a message "Windows has stopped this device because it has reported problems. (Code 43)" in a dialog window on doubleclicking videocard.

All and all now I see dashed image on my screen, no 3D, no full resolution.
Did the video card bite the dust? It was Inno3D gtx 580 reference design card.

AH: impulse9

Offline Bizman

  • Plutonium Member
  • *******
  • Posts: 9532
Re: pls help with video card issue
« Reply #1 on: January 01, 2014, 04:18:16 AM »
The picture clearly indicates a video card hardware problem. For what I have learned the symptoms indicate a problem in the videocard memory. You can try a couple of tricks before dumping the card though.
  • Take the card out, clean any dust and reseat carefully. Test.
  • If you can, test with another power supply. Memory problems can be an indication of power issues.
  • An inverse way to test the above: Test with another video card. Unfortunately you'd have to install new drivers for testing in Windows, but not for the screen you posted.
  • Test your card in another computer. Again, drivers won't be needed in the start options but will in Windows.
I suppose the memory blocks of the video card are of the modern type without visible "legs" soldered to the circuit board. Instead there's a gazillion of tiny solder joints beneath each of the square stone-like blocks. So when you're sure the card has bite the dust, you might want to try this Gyro Gearloose hack: Strip every plastic component off, then put the card in the oven @ 300 centigrade for about fifteen minutes. You can also use a heat gun for trying to resolder the memory blocks. A laser point thermometer would help in that procedure. The official tool would be an infrared soldering station, so if you can access one, use it rather than those household methods.


Quote from: BaldEagl, applies to myself, too
I've got an older system by today's standards that still runs the game well by my standards.

Kotisivuni

Offline -error

  • Zinc Member
  • *
  • Posts: 94
Re: pls help with video card issue
« Reply #2 on: January 02, 2014, 05:33:37 AM »
Thanks. But I do not have another PC in my vicinity to test the card.
So shiny new gtx 780 made by MSI is on the way. Made myself a little New Year present.  :-)
As for 580 - after hollydays I'll take it for GPU reballing for $50. We'll see if it is repairable at all. I think that it is GPU soldering problem because neither MSI Afterburner nor GPU-Z are able to read GPU freqs/voltages.
AH: impulse9