bad GPU or something else?

[The Guy in the Chair]

Hey guys... so I've been having a lot of problems with my computer crashing in some games(GRID, Mass Effect, DIRT for example).... Most games work perfectly but some just give an application error and crash back to windows. I assumed this was most likely caused by a video driver error so I installed a bunch of different drivers off Nvidias website, when that didn't work I reinstalled windows.... when that didn't work I put XP on and was still getting the same problems. So I decided to take out my gtx 295 and put one of my 8800s back in and wouldn't you know it... shits working fine now.

So what do you guys think? You think it's a problem with the hardware or what? I mean if it doesn't make sense to me that the games would just crash like that if it were a hardware problem especially when stuff like Crysis runs perfectly.....


the only other thing I can think of is it being an SLI related problem on the motherboard since the GTX 295 is a dual GPU vs the 8800 being a single GPU

[Dogger1]

****** http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8">****** name="ProgId" content="Word.Document">****** name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 12">****** name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 12"> What are your full system specs?

[KaptCrunch]

yes whats the hardware an under what OS

[The Guy in the Chair]

Originally Posted by Dogger1

What are your full system specs?

Core i7 920(stock speeds)
Aeneon 6x1gb DDR3-1600
Asus P6T
WD 1tb Black
Corsair TX750W
LG GGC-H20L
LG GBW-H20L
MSI N295GTX

[Mr. Gruntsworthy]

My first choice was going to be the PSU, but he's got a nice Corsair in there that shouldn't be causing a ruckus.

I'm sorry for asking such a simple question, but you did connect the PCI-E power connectors to the card, right? Sorry, I had to ask :P

If so, it's gotta be the card. Do you have another rig you could test it in?

[The Guy in the Chair]

Originally Posted by Mr. Gruntsworthy

My first choice was going to be the PSU, but he's got a nice Corsair in there that shouldn't be causing a ruckus.

I'm sorry for asking such a simple question, but you did connect the PCI-E power connectors to the card, right? Sorry, I had to ask :P

If so, it's gotta be the card. Do you have another rig you could test it in?

tbh connections was one of the first things I thought of as well and when I realized it's entirely probable I missed something like that I double and triple checked it but all was good. I do have another computer that I'm in the process of hooking up right now to test. I'm also thinking it could possibly be a ram problem(ran memory diagnostic in vista and it passed) so I'm gonna try running on just 1 stick of ram and see if it yields the same results but outside of that I have no ideas

[Mr. Gruntsworthy]

well, update this thread once you test the card in the other machine.

[rjbarker]

If so, it's gotta be the card. Do you have another rig you could test it in?

Not necessarily!! -
Before you start disassembling and drawing conclusions go through some fundementals first:
1. Have you OC'd your I7 920? - Paste in a BIOS Template here, use my Template below to edit and change your settings to what you are running.
2. With everything set at Stock test stability - run Prime 94 Blended for 4 hrs and LinX Max Memory for 20 passes and report back. - BSOD and CTD are generally a sign of "instability".
3. Is your 295 running at Stock or OC'd?
4. What are your Max Temps of your GPU while gaming? - If Teps are getting hot you should be "bumpng-up" your GPU Fan Speed when gaming using a Program like "Evga Precision", don't leave your Fan speed on "Auto".
When installing new GPU Drivers are you following these steps. or just installing over old Drivers:
A. Remove GPU Drivers "Program uninstall"
B Reboot into Safe Mode (F8) and run Driver Sweeper several times untill no more nVidia Display files appear when opening Driver Sweeper and selecting nVidia Display for removal.
C. Reboot into "normal mode" and install new Display Drivers.
D Reboot and select SLI and PhysX in nVidia Control Panel.
E. Reboot one more time and you should be good to go - Report back if problem continues.
5. Run CCleaner and "Clean-up" everything, including Registry.
6. Run a Antivirus, Malware and Spyware removal Program.
7. Delete Paging File
8. Defrag HDD
9. Create new Paging File
10. If after all this you still have CTD then check the Card in another Rig!

I7 920 Template: Change numbers in Brackets to reflect what settings are currently in use according to your BIOS
Drivers ( Latest )
Bios ( SZ21 )
CPU ( 920 batch 3838A430)
CPU Cooler (TRUE 120 )
Memory ( Dominator 3X2GB 1600 Mhz )
PSU ( Corsair HX 1kW )
GPU ( GTX 280 SSC x2 SLI 702 / 1458 / 2500 )
Drivers ( 181.22 )
CPU Clock Ratio ( 20X (21X Turbo On) )
CPU Host Frequency ( 182 Mhz )
CPU Uncore Frequency (Mhz) ( x16 ) (QPI Link 3172 Mhz in E-Leet)
Spread Spectrum ( Disabled )
PCIE Frequency (Mhz) ( 100 )

Memory Feature
Memory Control Setting ( Enabled )
Memory Frequency ( 2:8 )
Channel Interleave Setting ( 6 Way )
Rank Interleave Setting ( 4 Way )
Parameters
tCL Setting ( 8)
tRCD Setting ( 8 )
tRP Setting ( 8 )
tRAS Setting ( 24 )
tRFC Setting ( 74 )
Command Rate ( 1T )
Voltage Control
EVGA VDroop Control ( Without VDroop )
CPU VCore ( 1.2375v BIOS ) - shows 1.28v Under Full Prime 95 Load
CPU VTT Voltage ( +200mv ) - shows 1.35v Under Full Prime 95 Load
CPU PLL VCore ( Auto ) 1.8v
DIMM Voltage (1.6v BIOS ) - show 1.62v Under load in E-Leet
DIMM DQ Vref ( +0 )
QPI PLL VCore ( Auto ) 1.1v
IOH VCore ( Auto ) 1.1v
IOH/ICH I/O Voltage ( 1.5v )
ICH VCore ( Auto ) 1.05v
PWM Frequency ( 800 )

CPU Feature
Intel SpeedStep ( Disabled )
Turbo Mode Function ( Enabled )
CxE Function ( Disabled )
Execute Disable Bit ( disabled )
Virtualization Technology ( disabled )
Logical Processor Setting
Intel HT Technology ( Enabled )
Active Processor Cores ( All )
QPI Settings
QPI Control Settings ( Enabled )
QPI Link Fast Mode ( Enabled )
QPI Frequency Selection ( 4.8 GT/s )

[Shadowmeph]

one thing , if you are using a cracked game then this is most likely your problem, other wise I agree with what most others have said

[DarKStar]

If all the above advice fails you probably do have a bad card, since we can rule out the power supply, motherboard, system RAM, etc, since your 8800 works. My first guess was your PSU not providing even juice, but you ruled it out......RAM is ruled out too, however, although rare, you could have bad memory on your card - Aside from games I recommend you run stability tests ony our 295 and monitor temperatures alongside - Try GPUCAPS / Furmark or any GPU intensive app and let it do its thing - Watch for any corruption / artifacting and watch the heat carefully ! You want to be able to quickly stop the test if things get too hot.
Always make sure your BIOS is up to date and your NVIDIA drivers are up to date as well.