Uh Ohh, I need some help.

[AKMac]

Uh Ohh, I need some help :Update:

Hey guys.

I just recently upgraded my system. Everything has been working perfectly, until yesterday. The system runs fine when cruising on the internet, or running software, but when I start a 3D application things get pretty ugly. For instance, some polygons are different colors, and the game will pause for about 5 seconds, run smooth for a few more seconds, then pause again.

At first I thought it was a software problem. I did the re-installed Winxp thing (You know, it re-installs the OS, but doesn't delete your files)...same problems. Then I got another hard-drive, formatted and installed Winxp, installed the latest video drivers, ran a game...same problem.

For what it's worth I ran the 3DMark 2001, and while the polygon errors were still present, the choppyness didn't start until the nature scene in the demo. However, that still doesn't explain why it has this problem on a fresh system.

Right now I'm thinking my new video card might be toast. Anyone have any ideas?

Here are my system specs:
Asus P4PE Motherboard
Intel 2.4ghz
Chaintech GeForce 4 Ti4600
512mb PC2700 ram
Soundblaster live sound card

 

[Justin]

Have you tried older drivers? Try a different driverset and tell us if it does the same thing.

 

[AKMac]

Yup, I've tried the 43.45, the 43.51, and just got done trying 40.71. They all have the same results. I also tried upgrading DirectX 8.1 to DirectX 9, but that didn't help either.

 

[olefarte]

Try dropping your hardware acceleration down one notch. It might help the pause.

 

[Tarkus]

I seem to say this a lot and I still don't know if it helps anybody, but, here goes...Try moving your sound card to another slot.

<rant>
I haven't used Intel since my P3, 2 1/2 years ago and I won't ever use a SB soundcard again, since I found out that my AWE64 was just an awe32 with 32 more voices in software. When it died I took my SB AWE32 and put it in and there was absolutely no difference. It even supported the extra 32 voices. What did I pay that extra money for???? I could have just DL'd the drivers for an AWE64 and kept my AWE32 and saved the $200 I spent!!! F#%#@*g Creative Labs, they're a ripoff!
</rant>

 

[AKMac]

olefarte - that didn't help, but thanks anyways.

Tarkus - That actually helped a bit. I still get the crazy polygons, and the stuttering, although the stuttering isn't as frequent.

 

[Arris]

What are your system and cpu temperatures...
If you have no case fans and therefore no airflow through your case the graphical corruptions could be related to the memory or core of the graphics card overheating. That or the memory could simply be bad. There have been recent reports of there being bad memory on quite a few gainward cards. If the Geforce card is new I would consider RMAing it. If you can, try it in another system to see if it is the card, or some display driver issue on your system.

Remember that when dealing with changing detonator drivers the Nvidia install doesn't always remove all the .dll and other driver files. Its best to use a application such as the detonator destroyer found at www.guru3d.com to make sure the driver has been completely removed.

 

[AKMac]

Arris - I'm not sure what my temps are. The CPU heatsink and Ram is usually cool enough to touch, but the video card is super hot, even when idle. I have 80mm 3 case fans, one of which is pointing at the video card.

Today I was reinstalling windows again just to make sure it's not the problem, and I noticed something odd. In the bios, and dos, I was getting random graphics glitches. It looked like random letters of the text was being under scored for a split second. I'm still leaning towards the idea that this is a bad card. Unfortunatly I can't test it in another computer. Any thoughts?

Thank you all for your input.

 

[novicegamer]

Can you maybe borrow a video card from someone and try to install that,Just be sure its an nvidea card and not ati.If that option is not available you can allways buy one try it out and return card after you fix problem.Just use a larger chain store.PS i havent tried that but it might work

 

[AKMac]

Today when I got home I thought I had better unseat, and reseat the video card one last time before I send it back. So I started my computer, ran a game, and everything was running perfectly. I was like, damn, that must have been it. Then about 10 minutes later, things started to go bad. Polygons were flashing different colors, and random stuttering was occurring once again. I got pissed and immediately shut the computer down, and ripped out the card. When I did this I noticed that the ram sinks were hot, but the fan/heatsink was extremely hot... even for a computer. So I pondered this thought, and decided to put my video card into the freezer for a few minutes to cool it back down to ambient temp. Once this was done, I re-installed the card, ran a game, and everything worked perfectly for about 15 minutes...then it started getting bad. I took out the video card, and tried moving the fan...it was stiff, almost froze. After some PCI card rearranging, I observed then fan during this process. It didn't budge at all, even during high loads.

So there you have it folks, it was the video card fan all along. Take my advise, and check this first if your having similar problems. It will save you a lot of grief. I would have never thought a 30 day old fan would have given out so quickly, but I have the proof.

Thank you everyone for your help. I really appreciate it. :grinthumb