nvidia geforce 7950 gt possible issue

I just built this comp and everything is new in it. It's only a week old. I haven't had this issue with other games like warcraft 3 but dungeons and dragons online crashes my comp. The screen distorts with multiple colors and then either makes a buzzing noise on my speakers or causes my comp to reboot. I am thinking it may be a heat problem but I can't check the temp when it does this since everything just all of a sudden doesn't work. Here is what I have.

amd athalon dual core processor 64x 6000+
2g ddr2
nvidia geforce 9750 gt
abit an52 motherboard
maxtor 300g harddrive

I think it's a heat problem but I'm unsure. Is there a program that can log what happens as I start the game so I can see whats wrong? Any help is appreciated, I know you guys get busy so thanks ahead of time.

 

what power supply are you running? what are the specs on it? with a rig like that id run no less than a quality 550-600W

Im guessing an underpowered PSU because WC3 doesnt require much work from a 7950GT, while on the other hand, D&D does which would cause it to crash

 

I have an earth watts 500 power supply in it. So you think a 600 would be better? And what would be optimum temp for the gpu during gameplay?

 

what are the specs on that PSU? specifically, how many amps (combined) on the 12v+ rail(s)? If its a quality 500W it should be fine.

Also, Ive read that 7950GTs run pretty hot, idling in the 70C range though im sure a quick google search could clear that up for sure

 

From what i have seen it is 17a on the output. I don't know if that is what you were looking for or not. Would I be able to run the game with lower quality until i get a better power supply? or will the card still need it?

 

is there only 1 12v+? If its only 17A on a single rail then yes, you will need a new PSU. Minimum for that card is 22A on the 12v+ rail(s)

this one is a steal at this price after rebate: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341002

Definitely dont skimp on the PSU, it is the backbone of your whole system. If you run it this way (to the point of crashing it) for an extended period of time it could cause it to fail which more often than not, takes other components with it. Not trying to scare u or anything lol, just some information

 

it has a 12v 1 and 12v 2 I just seen that it has 3 pci-e connectors that are different. 380 430 and 500w. Does that mean the one I have hooked up to my card could be wrong? Thats what I'm getting from what i am reading. I am probably wrong though. But, it would be great if I could just put a different cable on it lol. If not i guess I will just buy another psu and eat the loss.

 

well I dont see any labeling on them so I am betting that I interpreted that wrong. I will buy a new powersupply tomorrow sinceI am too impatient to wait for one in the mail and we'll see what happens. anyone wanna buy a 500w psu lol I cant buy the one you found since I need an 8 pin for my mobo.

 

OH well is it 17A on each 12v? what is the combined rating of both of them?

 

The highest thing i see on there is with 3.3v it says 24a under it. I dont see a combined for the other 2. those are for the cpu and board though right? I thought the pci ones were for the gpu?

 

ok so there is a 12v1 and a 12v2. One of them says 17A? do they each say 17A? Just add the 2 values together to get the combined value. I wouldnt go out and buy a new PSU just yet, lets see if we can figure this out.

Also, are you using downloaded drivers or the ones that came on the disc?

 

they both say 17a on them. I am using downloaded drivers from the nvidia site. that was the first thing i did hehe.

 

ok well if they both say 17A then it's probably a combined rating of 34A which is good. Id try the drivers that came on the CD (since they are known to be compatible) and see if that helps

 

I had them at first but when they stopped working I used the ones from the site. So I don't know what now.

 

i downloaded a monitor and watched my temp go up to 80 on the gpu. This didn't do anything. I think thats a little hot but from what I have seen these cards run hot. I will buy a few more fans and take care of all that. The game didn't crash at all while I wasn't in fullscreen mode. as soon as I went full screen, crash. No pixel distortions or anything just black and no response from the computer at all. Have to restart. So, is that sounding like it's the power supply?

 

try running something else that's video intensive like 3dmark or another new game (Oblivion if youve got it or something pretty intensive) Maybe its just the game but who knows

 

I just got a 630w psu and it is still doing this. I even got more fans. It seems to work when the game isnt in fullscreen mode. but as soon as I try to go fullscreen it craps out again. It just did it witout being in fullscreen as well. Just took longer. This=poo. I'm also dowloading 3d mark but it is taking forever.

 

I ran the 3d mark nothing bad happened. Any other ideas?

 

have you tried reinstalling the game? it its gonna crash under stress, it would be in 3dmark.

 

yeah. nothing seems to be working. I even installed warhammer 40k and it was perfectly fine on very high settings. I think it is something about ddo.

 

So, anyone have an idea at all? I am at my wits end. I think I am gonna return my video card and try a new one. I dont want to but I just cant think of anything else. The help so far has been fantastic. I tried to get someone from ddo to help but their tech. assistance replied to me once in over a week. Why do I pay for such things?...So thanks for helping when no one else would. If theres no other choices I guess it's off to the store.

 

I dont think its a hardware problem if DDO is the only game its crashing with.
go to Start->Run and type in dxdiag

go to the More Help tab and run "Troubleshoot" Maybe it can walk you through some possible problem areas. Other than that, im outta ideas, sorry (

 

Yeah I did that already. I just returned the card and got a new one. It wasn't the problem. I feel like a jackass. Is there a program that can monitor whats happening when my comp crashes?

 

does it crash to black/blank screen or do u get a blue screen o' death? (even if it just flashes blue for a second)

i cant think of anything that could track this problem

 

nope no blue. it goes black the comp stays on and then it wont respond to anything at all, but it stays on the whole time. this time after i got the new card it just froze the screen and didnt go black.

 

Hello.
The black out and crash happens to me also on certain games.

I run WoW and all sorts of other games on my PC and no problem, yet when my friend tried to run a game called "Ragnarok Online", my PC just blacked out, came back after a few seconds but the whole PC just went real slow. If I tried to move a window, it was like watching a slideshow.
I reinstalled the game and didn't use Fullscreen Mode and it worked fine.
For some reason, there seems to be a problem with the game going in Fullscreen...yet none of my other games did this.
After I reinstalled the game, I tried to run it in Fullscreen. Sometimes it will run, but if I try to Alt+Tab, it'll just black out.
I think it's really just the game and not your hardware. Try only running your game in a smaller resolution that's not Fullscreen, i'm sure that'll fix the problem.

 

make sure to look for patches for these games to see if that corrects them. I run a 7950 gt idles at 47c get to about 73c under load well within specs for the card.

 

well its an MMO so im assuming it autopatches itself for the most part

dang, i never knew 7950GTs had so many problems lol

 

Yeah, I am thinking it is the game as well. I am also pondering taking it to the computer store and getting it checked out.