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Out for the count.... (Vid card issue, perhaps someone can help)

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  • #1

    Out for the count.... (Vid card issue, perhaps someone can help)

    Well, I'm sure many of you don't really miss me *grins* but I've had issues with my vid card lately which is why I mostly peek in and am gone again even though I'd love to check in more than I actually do.

    I've tried everything I can think of to get my NV 8600GT to NOT overheat as soon as I start ~any~ 3D game (even NWN1) - and so far no success. I'm almost sure it wasn't this bad when I installed it about 5 months ago - right now it shoots up from 120 to 240F in the space of about 30-45 minutes. If I'm quick enough I can shut down the game before the Bluescreen of Death. Of course that's when the temp drops again to more polite readings...

    Here's where you come in, this is what I tried so far. It's Win XP, btw.:

    - checked for dirt and dust - it's all clean inside. All the installed fans are running.
    - installed the latest Nvidia Drivers
    - tweaked Nvidia Settings for performance rather than quality (seems to be some sort of preset/selectable profile) - any attempt to modify the fan speed of the GPU failed.
    - removed the side of the case (marginal improvement)
    - replaced the generic cooling paste with artcic silver brand (marginal improvement)
    - added a fan that's pointed straight at the heat sink which has its own fan as well (marginal improvement, it does seem to circulate the air, but the thing still steams up until it's scorching hot to the touch just after the emergency shutdown )


    So yeah, until my new notebook comes back from repairs *grumble* - All I can do is troll the forums.
    Annaleen Wiltenholm-There's always something to smile about.
    Chani Kalera- Intimidation is the new diplomacy. *looms*
    Eleanor "Bloody Elle" Lark - Why is the rum always gone?
    Yolanda Brown - If life gives you lemons, make lemonade. But unless life also gives you water and sugar, your lemonade is going to suck.
    Astrid Hammerhand - Och!
    Tags: None
  • #2
    Did you use compressed air when cleaning the card? You might have dust in places you can't see that are insulating the card and producing more heat. Other than RMAing the card with the manufacturer or updating the firmware, the only other thing you can really do is try to get a new cooler for the card.

    I wouldn't let it get over 100, even that is bad, don't let it permamently damage the card.
    The very existence of flame-throwers proves that some time, somewhere, someone said to themselves, You know, I want to set those people over there on fire, but I'm just not close enough to get the job done.

    George Carlin

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    • #3
      Thanks for the quick response!

      Not compressed air, no. Don't have that handy. Hmm.... I did have to remove the heat sink unit to re-apply the cooling compound. and I could see no dust/dirt obstruction in the GPU fan or the heat sink. (which seems a tad small to me, really). It all looked very shiny and new. Card's maybe 5 months old.

      I guess a bigger fan/heat sink unit is the next thing to try then.... unless I find that %&@§$ receipt *cough*

      Also, could it be that a 420W Power supply isn't enough to power the card and fans? Nothing much else inside xcept a TV card and the HDD and drives. Everything else is onboard.
      Annaleen Wiltenholm-There's always something to smile about.
      Chani Kalera- Intimidation is the new diplomacy. *looms*
      Eleanor "Bloody Elle" Lark - Why is the rum always gone?
      Yolanda Brown - If life gives you lemons, make lemonade. But unless life also gives you water and sugar, your lemonade is going to suck.
      Astrid Hammerhand - Och!

      Comment

      • #4
        Originally posted by Verrath View Post
        Thanks for the quick response!

        Not compressed air, no. Don't have that handy. Hmm.... I did have to remove the heat sink unit to re-apply the cooling compound. and I could see no dust/dirt obstruction in the GPU fan or the heat sink. (which seems a tad small to me, really). It all looked very shiny and new. Card's maybe 5 months old.

        I guess a bigger fan/heat sink unit is the next thing to try then.... unless I find that %&@§$ receipt *cough*

        Also, could it be that a 420W Power supply isn't enough to power the card and fans? Nothing much else inside xcept a TV card and the HDD and drives. Everything else is onboard.
        420 Watts seems far too little to power most of the newer cards these days. If I'm not mistaken recommended for most 8800s is somewhere between 500-700 depending on MB/RAM/etc.
        "Kaeldorn hates players." -Albert Einstein


        Originally posted by DM Cornuto
        Lollercide coming back to the server, that dude's the Kobe Bryant of meta-gaming.

        Comment

        • #5
          Depends on your CPU but judging by your system 420W is plenty. It sounds like a contact problem or a fan problem, there should be sensors in the drivers or 3rd party tools to get the FAN RPM, you can google the fan RPM for your card and see if it's normal.

          Edit: Lollercide is a little off, I run a card with twice the wattage consumption of yours and I'm only using 450 watts, it depends on the quality of the 12v rails, if it's a cheap PSU then it might not be enough, but the 8600 is a kitten so it's very unlikely to be the problem.
          The very existence of flame-throwers proves that some time, somewhere, someone said to themselves, You know, I want to set those people over there on fire, but I'm just not close enough to get the job done.

          George Carlin

          Comment

          • #6
            No sensors showing any fan speed, unfortunately, other than that of the CPU - and she's just dandy, temp-wise, and unlikely part of the problem. (AMD 3800+ so not that high-end)

            I guess I could double check and make sure I applied enough heat sink paste (didn't want to overdo it) - will do that tomorrow right after I look for the receipt. And then the fan.


            Thanks again for the input, guys - I knew I could count on your collective brain power
            Annaleen Wiltenholm-There's always something to smile about.
            Chani Kalera- Intimidation is the new diplomacy. *looms*
            Eleanor "Bloody Elle" Lark - Why is the rum always gone?
            Yolanda Brown - If life gives you lemons, make lemonade. But unless life also gives you water and sugar, your lemonade is going to suck.
            Astrid Hammerhand - Och!

            Comment

            • #7
              Yeah, I'm running a Rosewill Stallion 450w PS right now, that has 14A and 16A 12v rails, in a system that's probably similar to Verrath's and have never had a power issue. I'd put my money on the cooling fan not working properly, I know that some people won't use stock fans for anything, and change the fans on their GPU's and CPU's as soon as they get them. Personally I've never had a problem with them myself, but I run a fairly cool system. Granted if you've only had the 8600 GT for 5 months, if you think there is a problem it should be covered under a 2 year manufacturer warranty, and they could test/fix it for you. Assuming the warranty wasn't void when you removed the heat sink to add the arctic silver.

              Also, if you purchased the card from an online distributor, like I do with most of my parts, you can always get your receipts and invoices online. I normally end up going through newegg for my stuff, after look around for better prices and not finding anything.
              Akodo
              Rhime - or is he?

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              • #8
                Originally posted by Lollercide View Post
                420 Watts seems far too little to power most of the newer cards these days. If I'm not mistaken recommended for most 8800s is somewhere between 500-700 depending on MB/RAM/etc.
                Recommended? Maybe by the PSU manufacturers ;-) I am running a X2 3800, 4GB RAM, a 9600GT and 2 HDs (and had 2 additional HDs temporarly last week) with a 430W PSU. People are usually overestimating the power consumption. Sure, a XYZ Extreme Overlock Edition CPU with 2 8800 Ultras and a RAID 10 with 4 WD Raptors needs a big PSU. But as Saulus said: as long as the 420W PSU is not the cheapest crap it is more than enough for that system.

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                • #9
                  Indeed.. I'm not as experienced with PSU's so I was not sure how far you can sway from the recommended watts (at least, what ASUS recommends).
                  "Kaeldorn hates players." -Albert Einstein


                  Originally posted by DM Cornuto
                  Lollercide coming back to the server, that dude's the Kobe Bryant of meta-gaming.

                  Comment

                  • #10
                    Originally posted by Verrath View Post
                    I guess I could double check and make sure I applied enough heat sink paste (didn't want to overdo it) - will do that tomorrow right after I look for the receipt. And then the fan.
                    Less is more. The heat sink paste layer should be as thin as possible.

                    But if the system was running more or less fine till now it would rather say that you seem to have a real hardware problem.

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