Question GTX 780 items, yet no actual harm occurred!
Question GTX 780 items, yet no actual harm occurred!
I was experimenting with an older GPU a while back. After playing some games and then putting it on standby, I decided to test my two remaining GPUs (R9 290X and this one) for LS. Almost completed the configuration setup, except I hadn’t installed the 290X yet. I woke up and booted up the PC with just 780 MHz...
Artifacts in the BIOS and OS. What?
After about 20 seconds the screen went black and... I had to hard reset.
I re-seated the GPU, cleaned it, checked the HDMI ports, verified cables, PSU, motherboard, CPU, RAM. Still experiencing artifacts with this GPU. Inspected the R9 290X – everything was fine, no issues.
Then I installed Windows XP and... everything seemed normal since there were no GPU drivers, though artifacts remained in the bootloader. In BIOS I saw strange lines and colors, but nothing else. I tried connecting it through the PCIe slot via PCH (chipset), and the same problem persisted. Checked the GPU itself – no visible damage to the VRAM or die, no scratches on the PCB at all. Even the VRMs looked intact.
I examined the PCIe slot, confirmed there was no damage, checked HDMI ports and cables – everything was fine!
It seems the PSU might be the culprit. When I unscrewed the GPU, I felt a shock, possibly because the case was grounded and this GPU was mounted on a metal plate. So it could be damaged internally.
Or maybe something unusual is happening?
By the way, here are the specifications:
i7 3930K
ASUS P9X79 PRO
64 GB RAM (all channels, Crucial) at 1666MHz
HDD/SDD: WD Blue HDD, Sandisk SSD
GPU: Asus DirectCu 2 GTX 780 (OC version)
Second GPU: R9 290X, Asus (a reference model – I really dislike how it sounds like an airplane...)
Case: Zalman Z11, not sure
PSU: Cooler Master Silent Pro (850W)
The CPU/GPU/RAM were not overclocked. The maximum CPU power draw and temperatures I recorded were 41°C and 70W. The GPU was drawing around 130W, 65°C, and the RAM was at a respectable 28W. That’s impressive! Otherwise, nothing unusual happened before this incident.
To note, when I set the MMIOH size below 64GB, the artifacts decreased but didn’t disappear entirely.
Welcome to the forums, newcomer!
I suspect PSU because when i was unscrewing the GPU, i could feel how it was shocking me, (Case was probally grounded, and this GPU is on a metal plate which holds it.) So means the GPU is screwed up? Or its just something weird going on?
If this is what happened, very likely you fried the GPU...eclectically. There's no recovery from that.
ASUS P9X79 PRO
What BIOS version are you currently on for your motherboard?
PSU: Cooler Master Silent Pro (850W)
How old is the PSU in question? What did it power throughout it's tenure?
Would be a good idea to pass on images of the artifacting you speak of. Host your image(s) on a site akin to Imgur and then pass on a link to the image(s) for us to see. You could try and reflash the VBIOS on your afflicted GPU but I doubt that's going to help.
My BIOS version is 4801, recently updated with UBU, a tool for refreshing old OpRoms and EFI drivers, among other features. The power supply is about six to five years old. It only managed to run the MB, SATA, and GPU. I plan to attempt a reflash of VBIOS or fix it by turning off defective VRAM modules. The current VBIOS is up-to-date; the GPU model is A1, chipset GK110.
Disconnecting the GPU from the motherboard using mains power with electricity connected to the PSU isn’t advised. I usually unplug the main cable from my computers before installing or taking components out.
Maybe I misunderstood “unscrewing the GPU.” Were you just detaching the video cable from the back of the card?
I’m worried about your comment about feeling shocked. There shouldn’t be any voltages above +/-12V DC in a normal home setup, which are far below the SELV safety limit. You shouldn’t be at risk of receiving a shock.
If you’re experiencing electric shocks, it suggests your computer isn’t properly grounded to the mains. This is required for Class I equipment like ATX power supplies. You might be picking up leakage currents from the junction of the Class-Y filter capacitors across Line and Neutral in the ATX PSU.
It’s best to consult a qualified electrician to inspect your home’s wiring and avoid dangerous mains shocks. Stay safe.
That's all right. I took the GPU out of the PCIe slot, the PSU was off, but there was probably some flea power. It wasn't a big shock, more like a tingling or spike, but it was okay. Everything seems fine now, though I lost 512MB of VRAM and a few bits of bus. The GPU is working again, even if I had to say goodbye to it.
I resolved the issue by turning off 512 MB of my VRAM, removing the Old NVIDIA artifacts, and it worked!