Is my video card broken?

H-Bomb. · 12-26-2008, 02:49 PM

Hi, I'd just want to make sure that it is indeed my video card that is defective before I go out and get a new one. Is there a possibility that it could be anything else? This is a fairly old computer (roughly 8 years old) and I just need a video card that is enough to get it running again. I don't need anything fancy for games or anything. Just normal document writing, web surfing, watching tv etc. I've attached some screen shots of how it looks like when I turn on my computer. I am sure it is not my monitor as I've plugged that to another computer and it works just fine. This is the specs of my computer to the best of my ability.

AMD Athlon 1 GHZ processor
256 MB RAM
40 GB Hard Drive
Ge Force 2 MX 200 32 MB
Windows XP Professional Edition

I also found this video card that is fairly cheap. Will it be compatible replacement video card for my computer if the video card is indeed the problem?

http://www.canadacomputers.com/index...31&cid=999.821

**emosun** · 12-26-2008, 06:21 PM

Welcome to tsf.

Yea that videocard looks just about done since it's artifacting in the bios before the drivers even load. I would however just get the same geforce 2 off ebay for a few bucks.

http://cgi.ebay.ca/NVidia-GeForce-2-...3286.m20.l1116

H-Bomb. · 12-26-2008, 11:41 PM

Thanks Emosun. That's something to consider. It's just that the shipping and handling charges are quite pricey for that one since I'm shipping to Canada and it is used to. But will the one that I found also be compatible with my computer? I'm just trying to decide whether its worth it to get something used that is only slightly cheaper after shipping and handling compared to the new video card I found in my first post. (durability factor is my concern for used) If it's not compatible, then I can go with the one you suggested.

**emosun** · 12-27-2008, 12:08 AM

I have an old geforce 2 in one of my rigs thats still going strong , it's not common for them to go bad unless they have overheated or been powered unproperly. You could go for the 5200 in your initial post and it should work ok , but replaceing the geforce 2 with the same card is another option aswell.

**koala** · 12-31-2008, 06:38 AM

When you replace the card, check all your case fans are free of dust and spinning quietly. Dust leads to heat which leads to the damaged VRAM seen in your photos.

Are you still using the original PSU from your 8 year old computer? If so, I would replace it to prevent damaging your new card and other components.

12-26-2008, 06:21 PM	#2 (permalink)
emosun Moderator Hardware Team Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: usa Posts: 7,064 OS: xp pro sp2 My System	Re: Is my video card broken? Welcome to tsf. Yea that videocard looks just about done since it's artifacting in the bios before the drivers even load. I would however just get the same geforce 2 off ebay for a few bucks. http://cgi.ebay.ca/NVidia-GeForce-2-...3286.m20.l1116 __________________ Gpu Benchmarks Cpu-Z Power supply information and selection Gpu-Z Video card quick list

12-26-2008, 11:41 PM	#3 (permalink)
H-Bomb. Registered User Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Canada Posts: 6 OS: Windows XP	Re: Is my video card broken? Thanks Emosun. That's something to consider. It's just that the shipping and handling charges are quite pricey for that one since I'm shipping to Canada and it is used to. But will the one that I found also be compatible with my computer? I'm just trying to decide whether its worth it to get something used that is only slightly cheaper after shipping and handling compared to the new video card I found in my first post. (durability factor is my concern for used) If it's not compatible, then I can go with the one you suggested.

12-27-2008, 12:08 AM	#4 (permalink)
emosun Moderator Hardware Team Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: usa Posts: 7,064 OS: xp pro sp2 My System	Re: Is my video card broken? I have an old geforce 2 in one of my rigs thats still going strong , it's not common for them to go bad unless they have overheated or been powered unproperly. You could go for the 5200 in your initial post and it should work ok , but replaceing the geforce 2 with the same card is another option aswell. __________________ Gpu Benchmarks Cpu-Z Power supply information and selection Gpu-Z Video card quick list

12-31-2008, 06:38 AM	#5 (permalink)
koala Moderator Hardware Team Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: UK Posts: 12,443 OS: XP/7/Ubuntu My System	Re: Is my video card broken? When you replace the card, check all your case fans are free of dust and spinning quietly. Dust leads to heat which leads to the damaged VRAM seen in your photos. Are you still using the original PSU from your 8 year old computer? If so, I would replace it to prevent damaging your new card and other components. __________________ New members: Subscribe to your thread (Thread Tools) to receive an instant email notification when you get a reply. TSF Folding@Home Team 85015 - details here