Desktop Pc problem - looking for help

Computer Forum General Hardware
1

Let me start by stating that I am typing from my lady’s netbook so typing is a bit difficult so i apologize for text block/typing and grammar. With that said..

I have a 5 year old pc. I have upgraded it a little. The specs of my pc are :

am2 socket amd athlon x2 @ 5600+
Asus m2n-sli deluxe
Nvidia 8800gts
4gb ram
16x lighton dvd rom
Western digital 160gb harddrive
Seagate Barracuda 7200rpm 320gb Hard drive
120mm Apevia fan
3x 80mm fans (generic)
Tiger pro 450w psu

This rig gave me no problems until now.. I do photo editing, music editing, and play games on this pc. I have played games along the lines of oblivion, doom3, Cod: MW(2), Halo(1,2,3), and many others(point being my system could handle it.)

I have been playing heavy Starcraft 2 since the release and the mmo EVE. After a night of gaming my pc would not boot back up. After some trouble shooting I came the conclusion that it was my CPU because the heat sink gel was all dried up, almost crispy but not burnt. So after the install of my new cpu nothing changes. I would boot with NO initial BEEP sound every pc makes when booted. Everything turns on(lights, fans, dvd drive,etc) but I have a red light on the front beside the green ‘working’ light.

After taking everything out piece by piece I came to the conclusion that it is my video card. When I removed it and turned pc on I heard a few beeps. I dug out an old ati 7000 32mb video card and stuck it in. PRESTO! I was in business. Since I have windows 7 I could not install the old graphics drivers for the ati. Now after 2 days of internet browsing (only thing I could do) my screen goes crazy. I figure I am stressing the old card, reboot. Back to square one… No beep everything is on and I have a red light. I stuck the card back into the old pc and now it doesn’t work.

Now My main questions (after all of that TY for baring with me!!) Is this acceptable that such an old graphics card ‘burnt’ up in a new rig because it (the card) is so old? OR Is my problem elsewhere say, the psu or mobo? I have a new video card on the way but I am now afraid to put it in after the ati doesn’t work. I do not want to stick a brand new card in and have it fried.

I have come to a brick wall in my diy, yourself. lol. Any input/help anyone can give will be GREATLY appreciated!! Any questions I can answer I will, to the best of my knowledge. Thank you all who have read this for your time and I hope I can get this rig back up and running!(Rather NOT buy a new one.. ><)

2

Something I just remembered is that I updated my bios a few months ago and my system went nuts so I reset cmos and reloaded the old bios. Could I have some settings wrong in there that would result in this?

another thing I just recalled (sorry long night :D) The place I bought my pc from put the video card in the black pci e which is for sli. The blue slot is primary (where it should have been). Could this be my issue? If I am correct the sli slot doesn’t run at the same speeds.

P.S. If this is in the wrong section please, sorry and please move it!

3

Did both video cards burn up in the primary PCI-express slot? I would be hesitant to put a brand new video card back into that slot at this point if 2 cards were destroyed in it. Did you connect the powersupply to the pci-express secondary power connector for this slot? At this point, it sounds like it would be either the system board or the power supply to me causing the problem. I looked at the instruction manual and it says the blue slot runs at 16x but the black slot is only able to run at 8x speeds. They recommend using the blue one but if you havent tried it, you can see if a video card will run in the black slot. I dont think default BIOS settings could wreck a card, usually they are set conservatively so as not to hurt installed hardware, but if there is a problem with the board itself then I guess its possible.

4

The ati 7000 was so old it only fit in the regular slots. Is it possible the system was just to much for such an old card?

I am pretty new to fixxing it myself and as I said this system was preconfigured. After the video card died I reread manual and realized the place I bought the system from put the card in the black slot and not the blue slot.. Would the two wires I discovered that go behind my motherboard be that connection to the power supply you mention? Am I going to have to take my mobo out to see if it is connected to the main pcie or the secondary? Could this be the issue (before I order a psu.)

Again, thank you for your time and help!

5

Hi,

Usually the extra power for the pci-express cards slots is either right near the pci-e slot or it is on the video card itself. If there is one on your system board, it should show in your manual on one of the diagrams. The wires running behind the system board might be power, or they could be something else entirely. Some people run cables behind the board just to keep cable management tidy. Usually if a card needs the extra power and it is not connected, it just will not work. When you receive the new video card, it should show you in the installation manual if it needs extra power or not and where to plug it in. System boards generally will not damage cards that you install, so an older card should be ok to plug in with no problems. I guess it could be just bad luck that the old video card decided to die. If you look at the power supply, you should be able to follow the cables coming out of it to the different areas of your motherboard and to the drives themselves. Something else too is make sure all of the fans inside the case are working. Heat can damage components as well. You can also try running the computer with the side of the computer off of the case for better ventilation.

6

I understand now. I do have power hook up that plugs right into the video card. IF it is not plugged in, as you said, it will not turn on so this is not my problem. The two wires that goto the back of my mobo though feel like they are plugged or soldered in because they are tight. Could these be temperature sensors? I think you might be right with just the bad luck on the second card. I got my new card today it is a evga geforce gts 450 but I am still hesitant to plug it in. The minium PSU requirement for the new video card is 400 watts. Should I just upgrade my psu(450) while I am at it? It is the only thing I am semi afraid to do because I have to re-plug all the wires because my PSU does not have disconnect able wires coming out of the back of it.

Should I just give the video card a shot in the pci-e slot it is supposed to be in and hope it doesn’t fry? … I’m out of ideas and I miss my pc D: hehe.

7

Hi,

If you have another computer with a powersupply, you could try swapping it out with that to see. I’m not really sure of a way to tell 100% at this point without swapping out parts to see if there is a problem with your powersupply, system board, or if it was all just bad luck with the 2 cards dying already. Plugging in a new powersupply is really not so bad. Usually in your motherboard manual it will show you what needs to be plugged in where for the board setup. Its usually the main power, which is the big adapter coming out of the power unit and also a 4 pit adapter that plugs in near the cpu to give power for the cpu fan. The rest of the power plugs usually plug right into the drives. Buying a new powersupply couldnt hurt, but its possible your current one is totally fine. I am just not sure how else to test it without something like a multimeter or just another one to swap it out with.