Question about whether to upgrade the RTX 2080 when replacing a 7-year-old RTX 2080 graphics card.
Question about whether to upgrade the RTX 2080 when replacing a 7-year-old RTX 2080 graphics card.
Hello everyone,
I'm working on fixing a problem with my secondary old PC, which is mainly used for gaming. It only runs for gaming and is mostly used by my wife. Recently, it began crashing whenever the GPU is under heavy load. There’s no BSOD—just a sudden power loss followed by a reboot (it goes black and turns off). This issue started suddenly yesterday in Ori and the Will of the Wisp. Before that, there were no hard crashes, but after the crash it happens again in AC Valhalla about five minutes later. This is the game my wife is playing, and she hasn’t had any crashes in the past couple of months.
The system has run very stably for about seven years. Playing Ori caused it to crash three times in 15 minutes for the first time. It seems the game might be exposing some degrading hardware.
Here’s what I have:
- MSI RTX 2080 Duke OC (around 7 years old, never had repairs)
- 8700k CPU
- Current PSU: Corsair RM650x (also about 7 years old)
- Planned replacement PSU: Corsair RM850x (newer, better quality, fully modular), already owned, will be replaced with a new one (RM1200x)
- Memory diagnostic is clean
My plan is to try swapping in the RM850x first to check if power delivery issues are the cause, since the RM650x is aging and might fail under load.
Also, I’m wondering whether I should replace the thermal pads (and paste) on the RTX 2080 while I’m still inside the system, or wait to see if the PSU swap alone resolves the problem. Any advice from people who have dealt with aging 20-series cards would be really helpful.
Based on what you've mentioned, it seems the PSU could struggle under increased demand. The RM850x models are decent, but purchasing used comes with risks and may not suit future upgrades since they would be even outdated. Have you checked if the GPU is overheating? It might be better to wait before making any changes. Look up typical GPU temperatures for similar systems online. If the GPU stays cool enough when idle and under load, consider keeping the thermal paste or pads for now.
What chances are there that my 7-year-old RM650x is wearing out and causing those sudden hard crashes (black screen with immediate reboot) I noticed recently while playing Ori and the Wil of the Wisp? The first crash happened around 30 minutes in. Two more followed when reaching the title screen in the same game. I tried another game (AC Valhalla), it crashed after just 5 minutes. In Valhalla, I lowered the resolution from 1440p to 1080p. No crashes during a two-hour test. The memory check came back clean. My initial thought is that the PSU may not have been strong enough to manage some brief spikes that the aging MSI RTX 2080 Duke OC could have experienced during Ori gameplay. Hardware details: 8700k, MSI 2080 Duke OC, RM650x PSU, 32gig RAM, several m.2 SSDs. The system has been stable for seven years.
You shouldn't purchase a used PSU, even if it offers a good price or value.
No, it's my old PC which my wife is using for gaming. I haven't checked anything recently. She hasn't had any crashes over the past year, so I didn't worry about it. But yesterday I played Ori for the first time with my son and we experienced three hard crashes in quick succession in that game.
Could you clarify if you want to know about a specific person or context? I need more details to provide an accurate answer.
I assumed you intended to purchase a 3-year-old PSU. If you've always had it functioning properly, it's fine to proceed.
I'd replace the 650 with the RM850x and check for any crashes.
Also, I'd keep an eye on temperatures during idle and under load (like gaming) to confirm the GPU isn't overheating and throttling, which could mean thermal paste or pads need changing. If it's not overheating, I wouldn't replace the graphics card unless there are other signs.