Jackdanie1

I'm having problems installing a BFG 8800 GT. When I power up, there's a long wait till the post beep...sometimes having to reset the power several times to get it to load. Once Windows loads, all basic functions work, but when I go into any game, the computer freezes after a while. Shutdown also can take a long time with the screen going black first. A few times I've heard one long beep followed by three short ones. The onboard video works fine...I only have problems when I put the 8800 in. I'm not sure if it's the power supply, mobo or the card itself. Thanks for any help....my spec is as follows:

Vista 64bit Home Premium
ASUS P5KPL-VM
Intel G31 & ICH7 chipset
2GB RAM
Intel Core 2 Quad CPU Q6600 @ 2.4 GHz
Okia-500ATX 500W PSU (doesn't have a 6-pin to power the card, so I used an adaptor that converted 2 4-pin molex to a 6-pin)

Houndog777

Hi,
I think you've answered this yourself, my friend.
The Power Supply.
Have a read at our guide to power supplies....
Power Supply Information and Selection

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Jackdanie1

Thanks for the help. After some research, I realize this power supply is crap. But after I use the calculator in your link, it says I only need 340W. A friend has a 750W power supply from a Dell XPS 710 that I can have. It doesn't have a 4 pin 12v plug for the motherboard, but I see that there are adaptors to convert a standard molex into one. This should work, right? I had emailed tech support at BFG and just got the response....instead of answering the psu question, they just gave me a phone number to get it replaced. Easy out, or could the card be bad?

Houndog777

Hi, you could try the Video card in a friends pc if possible, as it may well be the card.
However with a Quad CPU and an 8800GT, i'd guess at it being a power issue


As for power, it's not all about Wattage, it's how the power is distributed. The +12v rail is very important as it feeds your processor. If not enough amps are coming through that rail, the processor will overheat and cause all your other components to struggle.
If your board has an Extra ATX 4-pin socket for the processor, it's because it needs it's own power and getting this through a molex adapter is not ideal. May work, though you'd need to keep a close eye on temps and voltages.
You're probably wanting around 500W and 30A on the +12v rail.

The sticker on the side of your current power supply will tell you how many amps are coming through the +12v Rail.

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dai

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wrench97

If it's out of an XPS 710 it should have an 8 pin cpu plug look at it carefully
it may split in two halves 4x4 both halves are the same.

Jackdanie1

There's not an 8 pin connector. :( Here's what it has:

Maximum Power 750 watts
Input Voltage 100 - 240v 13A
Input Frequency 50-60 Hz
Output +5V 16A, +3.3V 30A, +12VA 18A, +12VB 18A, +12VC 18A, +12VD 16A, -12V 0.2A, +5VFP 3A. (+5V & +3.3V Shall Not Exceed 700W, +12VA, +12VB, 12VC and +12VD Shall Not Exceed 700W)
Safty CCC S&E, N, CUL, R32098, TUV, CE
Connectors 24-pin ATX Connector
Package Bulk pack
Cooling 1

Connectors:

ATX 20pin (x1)
ATX 2.0 24pin (x1)
PCIe (x2)
Dell Add-on (x1)
Peripheral (x2)
SATA (x6)
Floppy (x1)

wrench97

I wonder if that was from the MB they were replacing on a semi recall a while back.

dai

what brand is the psu

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Jackdanie1

This one I got from a friend is a Dell, out of an XPS 710