Is this a Video Card issue?

Meeffas · 07-21-2007, 12:01 AM

Three years ago after being stationed in Japan I got the bright idea to save a few bucks and build my own rig. I had very few problems with the building proccess (a wire here and there but ultimately worked through) and installing most of the software was a breeze. I built the machine to be a gaming system with some pretty decent gear for the time.

The trouble started about 3-6 months after I got it going all of a sudden I started to get some MAJOR graphics anomolies. While gaming after just a few minutes I will have buildings, NPCs, PCs, sometimes the floor all vanish on me and I may also get some very nasty Poly problems as if a single point is causing hundreds of beams of color to scatter off it. The poly issues would stop if I turned away from that point, but return if I looked back. The only game to date that has been able to fix this issue was Vanguard: SoH with the /flush command. This fix would clear your gpu and your memory (the game has horendous memory leak).

System:

Windows XP Home
AMD Athlon 64 3500+
2.20 GHz 2.00 GB RAM
NVidia GeForce 6800 GT
WINFAST 755FXK8AA mobo

I have switched monitors durning all of this and that wasn't the issue. I have switched video cards and that didn't seem to fix it (though being a graphics issue I still came here). I don't have a spare CPU or Motherboard and never tried RAM since my experience with bad ram is 0 activity not graphics errors.

Thank you for any suggestions on this issue.

**Deleted090308** · 07-21-2007, 12:14 AM

Hi and welcome to TSF

The first thing to try is another video driver.
Uninstall the one you've got now.
Download the 84.21 driver version from nVidia.
Restart the computer to VGA mode (tap F8 while booting).
Disable antivirus and install the downloaded driver.
Restart to normal mode.

Also - remove any dust inside the computer to prevent overheating.

Duckster · 07-21-2007, 12:40 AM

Actually, my sister's fiance had those problems with his WoW. The "Poly problems as if a single point is causing hundreds of beams of color to scatter off it."

His problem was 2 things,

1. One which was already mentioned, the drivers.

and

2. The case had horrible air flow and the card was over heating like mad, I know this because taking the side of the case off and blowing a fan at it fixed it.

You might want to get a good heat clock for your PC and watch your temps.

Meeffas · 07-21-2007, 01:02 AM

I just talked with my wife about the problems and she said they seemed to start when we moved the computers into the spare room, when we did this we shoved mine up against the wall only leaving an inch or two of clearance. I have decided to give this another try by moving the tower and seeing how it goes.

As far as the drivers go, I had 84.21 installed already (I always hoped it would be a driver issue and kept on top of them), but I did still uninstall reinstall just in case.

Thanks for the fast responses, I hope to never have to talk to you about this again

Meeffas · 07-21-2007, 01:04 AM

Quote:

You might want to get a good heat clock for your PC and watch your temps.

is this software or hardware?

**Deleted090308** · 07-21-2007, 01:08 AM

You can use Speedfan.

Meeffas · 07-21-2007, 02:07 AM

This didn't work.

I tried to get a picture but it is hard to really tell what the image is of. The red line circles where the lack of fx are. I hope this will shed some light on things.

Also for the speed fan. What is a good temp range?

**Deleted090308** · 07-21-2007, 02:20 AM

Could you please post a screenshot of Speedfan.
Is it only in this game you have graphic problems? What if you watch a movie?

Meeffas · 07-21-2007, 02:29 AM

I added the Toolbar icon as well, though I think that is just my temp.

This happens in EVERY game I play, new/old it doesn't really matter. At times like in First Person Shooters it is nice because I see through terrain at my opponents, but most of the time it is just annoying.

**Deleted090308** · 07-21-2007, 02:33 AM

The temps and voltages look fine. Is that screenshot taken during gaming?

Meeffas · 07-21-2007, 02:35 AM

no, at rest

**Deleted090308** · 07-21-2007, 02:37 AM

Try another during, or immediately after, gaming.

Meeffas · 07-21-2007, 02:40 AM

This doesn't look as promising

**Deleted090308** · 07-21-2007, 02:45 AM

We have to be sure what the "Remote" and "Core" temps represent.
Try SensorsView.
Play a game for about 10-15 minutes - please post back with a screenshot of SensorsView.

Meeffas · 07-21-2007, 02:53 AM

**Deleted090308** · 07-21-2007, 03:02 AM

I guess the temps will get higher after some gaming. It's probably dust causing the heat problem. You have to open the case and remove all dust - make sure the fans and heatsinks are clean. Are all fans spinning?

Meeffas · 07-21-2007, 03:20 AM

I use air spray to clean out as best as possible, but that doesn't seem to be sufficient. All loose dust I would say is all out of the case. I have 3 case fans, my PS fan, my heatsink (Zalman's turned all the way up) and my Vid Card fan all running, and they are spinning currently.

Meanwhile we just had a nice hard rain storm here and all the temps have gone down 1-2 C at least.

**Deleted090308** · 07-21-2007, 03:36 AM

The temps aren't that high.
Uninstall the nVidia drivers again.
Download and install Driver Cleaner. Don't use the program yet.
Restart and run Driver cleaner to remove any remaining nVidia driver files.
Restart again to VGA mode. Install the 84.21 driver with antivirus disabled.
Update DirectX (if you haven't done that already).

Meeffas · 07-21-2007, 04:27 AM

still the same glitches, still the same temp

**Deleted090308** · 07-21-2007, 07:36 AM

It could be bad video RAM on the card, but I'm not sure. I'll ask the other members of the hardware team to take a look. BTW, what power supply do you have?

07-21-2007, 12:01 AM	#1 (permalink)
Meeffas Registered User Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 40 OS: XP	Is this a Video Card issue? Three years ago after being stationed in Japan I got the bright idea to save a few bucks and build my own rig. I had very few problems with the building proccess (a wire here and there but ultimately worked through) and installing most of the software was a breeze. I built the machine to be a gaming system with some pretty decent gear for the time. The trouble started about 3-6 months after I got it going all of a sudden I started to get some MAJOR graphics anomolies. While gaming after just a few minutes I will have buildings, NPCs, PCs, sometimes the floor all vanish on me and I may also get some very nasty Poly problems as if a single point is causing hundreds of beams of color to scatter off it. The poly issues would stop if I turned away from that point, but return if I looked back. The only game to date that has been able to fix this issue was Vanguard: SoH with the /flush command. This fix would clear your gpu and your memory (the game has horendous memory leak). System: Windows XP Home AMD Athlon 64 3500+ 2.20 GHz 2.00 GB RAM NVidia GeForce 6800 GT WINFAST 755FXK8AA mobo I have switched monitors durning all of this and that wasn't the issue. I have switched video cards and that didn't seem to fix it (though being a graphics issue I still came here). I don't have a spare CPU or Motherboard and never tried RAM since my experience with bad ram is 0 activity not graphics errors. Thank you for any suggestions on this issue.

07-21-2007, 12:14 AM	#2 (permalink)
Deleted090308 Not... Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 22,277 OS: Xp	Re: Is this a Video Card issue? Hi and welcome to TSF The first thing to try is another video driver. Uninstall the one you've got now. Download the 84.21 driver version from nVidia. Restart the computer to VGA mode (tap F8 while booting). Disable antivirus and install the downloaded driver. Restart to normal mode. Also - remove any dust inside the computer to prevent overheating.

07-21-2007, 12:40 AM	#3 (permalink)
Duckster Registered User Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Manitoba, Canada Posts: 257 OS: Windows Vista 32-bit My System	Re: Is this a Video Card issue? Actually, my sister's fiance had those problems with his WoW. The "Poly problems as if a single point is causing hundreds of beams of color to scatter off it." His problem was 2 things, 1. One which was already mentioned, the drivers. and 2. The case had horrible air flow and the card was over heating like mad, I know this because taking the side of the case off and blowing a fan at it fixed it. You might want to get a good heat clock for your PC and watch your temps. __________________ Our scientific power has outrun our spiritual power. We have guided missiles and misguided men. - Martin Luther King Jr.

07-21-2007, 01:02 AM	#4 (permalink)
Meeffas Registered User Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 40 OS: XP	Re: Is this a Video Card issue? I just talked with my wife about the problems and she said they seemed to start when we moved the computers into the spare room, when we did this we shoved mine up against the wall only leaving an inch or two of clearance. I have decided to give this another try by moving the tower and seeing how it goes. As far as the drivers go, I had 84.21 installed already (I always hoped it would be a driver issue and kept on top of them), but I did still uninstall reinstall just in case. Thanks for the fast responses, I hope to never have to talk to you about this again

07-21-2007, 01:08 AM	#6 (permalink)
Deleted090308 Not... Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 22,277 OS: Xp	Re: Is this a Video Card issue? You can use Speedfan.

07-21-2007, 02:07 AM	#7 (permalink)
Meeffas Registered User Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 40 OS: XP	Re: Is this a Video Card issue? This didn't work. I tried to get a picture but it is hard to really tell what the image is of. The red line circles where the lack of fx are. I hope this will shed some light on things. Also for the speed fan. What is a good temp range?

07-21-2007, 02:20 AM	#8 (permalink)
Deleted090308 Not... Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 22,277 OS: Xp	Re: Is this a Video Card issue? Could you please post a screenshot of Speedfan. Is it only in this game you have graphic problems? What if you watch a movie?

07-21-2007, 02:29 AM	#9 (permalink)
Meeffas Registered User Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 40 OS: XP	Re: Is this a Video Card issue? I added the Toolbar icon as well, though I think that is just my temp. This happens in EVERY game I play, new/old it doesn't really matter. At times like in First Person Shooters it is nice because I see through terrain at my opponents, but most of the time it is just annoying.

07-21-2007, 02:33 AM	#10 (permalink)
Deleted090308 Not... Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 22,277 OS: Xp	Re: Is this a Video Card issue? The temps and voltages look fine. Is that screenshot taken during gaming?

07-21-2007, 02:35 AM	#11 (permalink)
Meeffas Registered User Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 40 OS: XP	Re: Is this a Video Card issue? no, at rest

07-21-2007, 02:37 AM	#12 (permalink)
Deleted090308 Not... Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 22,277 OS: Xp	Re: Is this a Video Card issue? Try another during, or immediately after, gaming.

07-21-2007, 02:40 AM	#13 (permalink)
Meeffas Registered User Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 40 OS: XP	Re: Is this a Video Card issue? This doesn't look as promising

07-21-2007, 02:45 AM	#14 (permalink)
Deleted090308 Not... Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 22,277 OS: Xp	Re: Is this a Video Card issue? We have to be sure what the "Remote" and "Core" temps represent. Try SensorsView. Play a game for about 10-15 minutes - please post back with a screenshot of SensorsView.

07-21-2007, 02:53 AM	#15 (permalink)
Meeffas Registered User Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 40 OS: XP	Re: Is this a Video Card issue?

07-21-2007, 03:02 AM	#16 (permalink)
Deleted090308 Not... Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 22,277 OS: Xp	Re: Is this a Video Card issue? I guess the temps will get higher after some gaming. It's probably dust causing the heat problem. You have to open the case and remove all dust - make sure the fans and heatsinks are clean. Are all fans spinning?

07-21-2007, 03:20 AM	#17 (permalink)
Meeffas Registered User Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 40 OS: XP	Re: Is this a Video Card issue? I use air spray to clean out as best as possible, but that doesn't seem to be sufficient. All loose dust I would say is all out of the case. I have 3 case fans, my PS fan, my heatsink (Zalman's turned all the way up) and my Vid Card fan all running, and they are spinning currently. Meanwhile we just had a nice hard rain storm here and all the temps have gone down 1-2 C at least.

07-21-2007, 03:36 AM	#18 (permalink)
Deleted090308 Not... Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 22,277 OS: Xp	Re: Is this a Video Card issue? The temps aren't that high. Uninstall the nVidia drivers again. Download and install Driver Cleaner. Don't use the program yet. Restart and run Driver cleaner to remove any remaining nVidia driver files. Restart again to VGA mode. Install the 84.21 driver with antivirus disabled. Update DirectX (if you haven't done that already).

07-21-2007, 04:27 AM	#19 (permalink)
Meeffas Registered User Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 40 OS: XP	Re: Is this a Video Card issue? still the same glitches, still the same temp

07-21-2007, 07:36 AM	#20 (permalink)
Deleted090308 Not... Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 22,277 OS: Xp	Re: Is this a Video Card issue? It could be bad video RAM on the card, but I'm not sure. I'll ask the other members of the hardware team to take a look. BTW, what power supply do you have?