Identifying GPU Problems – Rare Scenarios Resolving GPU Issues – Unusual Cases
Identifying GPU Problems – Rare Scenarios Resolving GPU Issues – Unusual Cases
I recently turned on my PC and faced some problems with the GPU. It would blast the fans at full speed, VGA was not working, and RGB lights disappeared. I followed the usual steps—shut it down, let it drain, then restart. Nothing resolved it... After replacing and reinstalling the GPU, everything functioned properly. The issue repeated when I powered it up again. I’m treating my PC components carefully, so this doesn’t seem like a typical N64 cartridge problem. My GPU is an MSI Black RTX 2080 TI, connected via USB-C, which supports 100W power. It’s possible the port or power delivery is affecting it. I suspect Nvidia might have handled this, and firmware could be rejecting power during startup. Have you tried any diagnostic tools? It’s been a struggle, but I’m managing.
In reality, my initial thought is a failing GPU, though that power supply might be wearing out. Not posting could signal trouble early on. It might be useful to rebuild the vBIOS using NVFlash, which could simply have minor corruption.
Both are good points. Failing PSU did cross my mind as part of pulling out the GPU and re-installing, I reseeded the power cables. I will update the bios with NVFlash as you suggested, and update the results here... May take a couple of days for symptoms to reappear if not fixed. Im optimistic though, this is a refurbished GPU, for all I know it was a mining card that had been tampered with.
I work in a repair shop, I've seen this issue a few times. Every time it's been a failing GPU. The fans kicking up to 100% and no display with a vga led is something that a few 9 and 10 series cards did that came in and they were all bad. Exact same temporary fix worked for them too. Two of them lasted a couple months limping along with the fix but eventually they all just died. One was a GTX 970, the other two were 1080tis that were used for mining. The 970 was an oven card that had been resoldered a few times using the oven method after the client started getting the issue and watched Linus' video years ago on it. Afaik there is no real fix for it as it is a hardware problem, if you continue to get the issue after what you've tried already I'd say you're just going to want to look into getting a new card.
The top choice would be swapping it out. 30 series cards are currently fetching fair prices on Ebay. If you flip the card, the right thing is to acknowledge it's been behaving oddly, but we won't intervene in online activities.
It seems unlikely, but any 20-series or newer card should offer ample display ports for connecting all three monitors directly. If you need two computers linked via a KVM switch, there are many options available that work well without relying on USB-C.
You can still use laptops with KVM switches. What I was trying to emphasize is that if your setup required it, a basic KVM switch should let you connect both your laptop and desktop to the three monitors simultaneously. If you don’t mind keeping your current USB-C gear, it’s likely fine. It’s not a major concern since you mentioned this earlier and are concerned about compatibility if you switch to a different card. Just trying to assist.