Power Issues

MaverickXX · 09-01-2006, 06:12 PM

I have one EVGA e-GeForce 7800 GTX with a 450-w power supply (http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=13610). I got this computer in February this year. Until yesterday it had run without a single problem. I got home today from my girlfriend's and found that when I tried to boot the computer I got a brief flash of power to the system, then it instantly shut down. No BIOS or anything showed up, just a blank monitor and half a econd of light from the tower. I tried several power cords for the tower and several other outlets and power bars with the same results. The power stich on the back was on, and the voltage settings were correct (110v).

I decided then I'd have to go inside to investigate. I opened it up and ensured all connectors and cables were tight and properly connected. Still no results. I figured it could be a power supply problem. To check, I took out all my peripherals and reinserted each of them one by one. The computer started up with each until I got to the aforementioned card. The computer still booted with just a PCI slow connection, but when I connected it to the power supply (with the PCI-E 6 pin conncetor) it did the problem again. I tried another set of PCI-E connectors with no success. So basically, it LOOKS like there's a problem with the video card, but that's why I'm here.

OK so if you are still reading what I want to know is whether my card is short circuited or dead or what? Or maybe there's something else glaringly obvious I missed. The whole system has been perfect up until now. Any help would be appreciated.

Here's my breakdown:
- Win XP Home
- ASUS P5GD1 ATX LGA775 915P DDR PCI-E16 2PCI-E 3PCI SATA RAID Sound GBLAN Motherboard
- OCZ OCZ45012U-450W Modstream Power Supply PCI-E Ready W/ Ezmod Cable System & Blue LED Fan
- Seagate Barracuda 7200.8 250GB SATA W/ NCQ 7200RPM 8MB 11MS Hard Drive
- Intel Pentium 4 630 3.0GHZ LGA775 800FSB Prescott 2MB Cache 90NM EM64T HT
- Samsung SH-W162C 16X DVD+-RW 5X Dual Layer DVD Writer Black /W SW OEM
- EVGA E-GEFORCE 7800GTX 256MB 256BIT GDDR3 PCI-E Dual DVI-I HDTV VIVO SLI Ready Video Card W/ ACS3
- Kingston ValueRAM PC3200 1GB 2X512MB DDR400 CL3-3-3 184PIN DIMM Dual Channel Memory Kit

Tumbleweed36 · 09-01-2006, 07:47 PM

Hi,

To be quite honest, you have a great brand power supply, although it may not have enough power to run that video card on a steady basis. With that cpu and video card, i would want about 600 or more watts from a major brand power supply.

What I would do, is try your video card in another computer (friends) before you get too far assuming that friend has a powerful power supply. It is possible that your power supply could support and run the computer, but this video card is just too much. Or conversly, you could try a lessor or older, less powerful video card and see if it posts with any video card in there. The video card you have draws a big heap of juice.

MaverickXX · 09-02-2006, 11:23 AM

Thanks for responding. I unfortuantely don't have another computer with PCI-E support, so is there any other way of testing the card to see if it's in working condition? Would a new power supply solve the problem?

Tumbleweed36 · 09-02-2006, 11:43 AM

Hi,

Unfortunately, there is not way to know. If it has been running all this time, unless it is failing, it should pull it.

I guess if it were my money, it might be worth a try although most things point to the video card. It could be that and being caused by not enough power. See, you are between the devil and the deep blue sea, no real answer. But, I don't want to tell you a power supply will solve it and it does not, because we have no way to know about the video card's health at this time.

If you want to try another power supply (and please read the PSU information under my signature before you jump in with a new supply), I would suggest going someplace like Best Buy or Staples, getting one, and if it does not solve the problem and you only usually end up only paying a small restocking charge.

I guess the ideal would be to find another computer to test it in or find a store nearby that would test the video card, or find a friend's video card you could try in the computer. That way, you would know if the video card was the problem.

09-01-2006, 06:12 PM	#1 (permalink)
MaverickXX Registered User Join Date: Sep 2006 Posts: 2 OS: Windows XP Home	Power Issues I have one EVGA e-GeForce 7800 GTX with a 450-w power supply (http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=13610). I got this computer in February this year. Until yesterday it had run without a single problem. I got home today from my girlfriend's and found that when I tried to boot the computer I got a brief flash of power to the system, then it instantly shut down. No BIOS or anything showed up, just a blank monitor and half a econd of light from the tower. I tried several power cords for the tower and several other outlets and power bars with the same results. The power stich on the back was on, and the voltage settings were correct (110v). I decided then I'd have to go inside to investigate. I opened it up and ensured all connectors and cables were tight and properly connected. Still no results. I figured it could be a power supply problem. To check, I took out all my peripherals and reinserted each of them one by one. The computer started up with each until I got to the aforementioned card. The computer still booted with just a PCI slow connection, but when I connected it to the power supply (with the PCI-E 6 pin conncetor) it did the problem again. I tried another set of PCI-E connectors with no success. So basically, it LOOKS like there's a problem with the video card, but that's why I'm here. OK so if you are still reading what I want to know is whether my card is short circuited or dead or what? Or maybe there's something else glaringly obvious I missed. The whole system has been perfect up until now. Any help would be appreciated. Here's my breakdown: - Win XP Home - ASUS P5GD1 ATX LGA775 915P DDR PCI-E16 2PCI-E 3PCI SATA RAID Sound GBLAN Motherboard - OCZ OCZ45012U-450W Modstream Power Supply PCI-E Ready W/ Ezmod Cable System & Blue LED Fan - Seagate Barracuda 7200.8 250GB SATA W/ NCQ 7200RPM 8MB 11MS Hard Drive - Intel Pentium 4 630 3.0GHZ LGA775 800FSB Prescott 2MB Cache 90NM EM64T HT - Samsung SH-W162C 16X DVD+-RW 5X Dual Layer DVD Writer Black /W SW OEM - EVGA E-GEFORCE 7800GTX 256MB 256BIT GDDR3 PCI-E Dual DVI-I HDTV VIVO SLI Ready Video Card W/ ACS3 - Kingston ValueRAM PC3200 1GB 2X512MB DDR400 CL3-3-3 184PIN DIMM Dual Channel Memory Kit

09-01-2006, 07:47 PM	#2 (permalink)
Tumbleweed36 Asst Manager Hardware Join Date: May 2005 Location: USA Posts: 19,697 OS: XP Professional	Hi, To be quite honest, you have a great brand power supply, although it may not have enough power to run that video card on a steady basis. With that cpu and video card, i would want about 600 or more watts from a major brand power supply. What I would do, is try your video card in another computer (friends) before you get too far assuming that friend has a powerful power supply. It is possible that your power supply could support and run the computer, but this video card is just too much. Or conversly, you could try a lessor or older, less powerful video card and see if it posts with any video card in there. The video card you have draws a big heap of juice. __________________ ---------- I don't receive email notifications of replies to subscribed threads. (Internet provider policy) Therefore, if I don't respond to your post within 24 hours, please send me a reminder PM and include the link to your thread.

09-02-2006, 11:43 AM	#4 (permalink)
Tumbleweed36 Asst Manager Hardware Join Date: May 2005 Location: USA Posts: 19,697 OS: XP Professional	Hi, Unfortunately, there is not way to know. If it has been running all this time, unless it is failing, it should pull it. I guess if it were my money, it might be worth a try although most things point to the video card. It could be that and being caused by not enough power. See, you are between the devil and the deep blue sea, no real answer. But, I don't want to tell you a power supply will solve it and it does not, because we have no way to know about the video card's health at this time. If you want to try another power supply (and please read the PSU information under my signature before you jump in with a new supply), I would suggest going someplace like Best Buy or Staples, getting one, and if it does not solve the problem and you only usually end up only paying a small restocking charge. I guess the ideal would be to find another computer to test it in or find a store nearby that would test the video card, or find a friend's video card you could try in the computer. That way, you would know if the video card was the problem. __________________ ---------- I don't receive email notifications of replies to subscribed threads. (Internet provider policy) Therefore, if I don't respond to your post within 24 hours, please send me a reminder PM and include the link to your thread. Last edited by Tumbleweed36; 09-02-2006 at 11:47 AM.

09-02-2006, 11:23 AM	#3 (permalink)
MaverickXX Registered User Join Date: Sep 2006 Posts: 2 OS: Windows XP Home	Thanks for responding. I unfortuantely don't have another computer with PCI-E support, so is there any other way of testing the card to see if it's in working condition? Would a new power supply solve the problem?