Need some help! What do you need assistance with?
Need some help! What do you need assistance with?
My girlfriend's PC is experiencing some odd problems. The screen flickers during tasks, but it seems to happen more often in certain activities. I tried swapping the PSU, GPU, and motherboard, yet the issue persists. Even after reinstalling Windows multiple times using Linux, stability remains an issue. The Windows console logs show no errors. I reinstalled the graphics driver with DDU, but the problem continues. The BIOS is up to date. There seems to be no clear explanation for the instability. I also considered a possible short circuit from a motherboard standoff, though everything appears correctly positioned. I’m starting to question my technical abilities since I can’t seem to identify the cause.
Switch the HDMI or display port cable to another output on the graphics card. It might be a faulty connector—possibly due to loose soldering, heat changes, or a pin disconnection. The cable could also be damaged or pick up interference unexpectedly, leading to sudden disconnections.
I understand the problem isn't the display or the connection, as I tested using a different cable and the issue persisted.
Both screens are losing brightness and showing no signal. The problem appears unexpectedly, sometimes after reinstalling everything without issues for a week. It happens very quickly—while playing games or watching YouTube. I rebooted Windows once and it worked fine for a while, but then the displays flickered black and stopped responding. I noticed audio still played when I adjusted settings, though the visuals were unstable. Recently I used Doom 2016 to test it. The sound kept working even though the display was set. It’s hard to pinpoint the cause; possibly different voltage regulators in the PSU, GPU, or motherboard. But it doesn’t seem to be any of those. I suspect a faulty GPU since it's a Vega model, but I can't confirm with a GTX 970. I think the power supply might be the issue because the power connector had two pins that seemed to melt. Overall, the system feels unstable right now.
So far you've attempted various changes: cable swaps, monitor replacement, GPU and PSU swaps, motherboard updates, OS changes, driver reinstalls, using DDU, and even testing RAM. Despite these efforts, the problem continues. When you changed the power supply, did you reuse the same cables? I'm wondering if the same pins on the power connector got damaged. Since you've tried a different motherboard and the issue remains, it seems there could be a fault somewhere—possibly a short circuit. If you isolate the components in a test setup, does the problem persist? If it's RAM-related, consider swapping it out to see if that resolves the issue. Bad RAM can affect GPU drivers while audio still functions normally. Keep the BIOS settings at their defaults and avoid enabling XMP/EXPO.
Have you considered placing the machine flat, or positioning the graphics card at the end of a riser cable? The heavy card might be bending under its own weight, especially with heat involved, which could loosen connections temporarily and then reestablish once things cool. Try laying it flat so the card stays perpendicular to the PCIe slot—this prevents bending from weight. If you use a riser, you can put the card on a flat surface like cardboard, letting the heatsink press against the board instead of pulling away. The Vega model is quite power-hungry, drawing 200–250 watts, so it’s easy for connections to heat up slightly if pins aren’t snug. This might raise resistance and generate more warmth, but it shouldn’t lead to permanent damage. I think thermal issues are more likely—some part of the board may warm up and show signs later. You could test adding extra fans directly on the back or top edge of the card to improve airflow, though it’s tricky to target hot spots without affecting cooling too much.
Yeah you a right except cpu and ram I did everything. By the way I forgot but I also did not mention I did multiple mem test on the memory. Also no I didn't use the same power cable because the previous one was a thermaltake smart and I don't want to test if you can short or blow components by having the wrong pinout . We even changed the main power lead cable between outlet and psu yesterday. Also didn't try xmp on the new motherboard yet so no worries on the old motherboard ds3h the profile wasn't working like in Windows the speed was wrong. Activating the xmp profile seem to make the ram slower