Screen goes black when switching to the desktop.
Screen goes black when switching to the desktop.
I have an RTX 3070 that began experiencing problems where it boots to desktop normally but after a minute the screen turns black and the system freezes. I tested with a GTX 1070 and it works, so it’s likely not a motherboard or power supply issue. My GPU has shown unusual graphical issues for about two weeks before this started, and these only appeared after moving my desktop in the car. It might have been damaged during transport, though no physical damage is visible.
My system details are:
CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 5600X
GPU: ASUS TUF GAMING RTX 3070
Motherboard: ASUS TUF GAMING B550-PLUS
PSU: HIGH POWER 700W
Anyone have suggestions on whether this can be resolved or if the GPU is failing?
What type of power supply is this? The power consumption is nearly double that of the GTX 1070. A faulty PSU may lead to voltage instability and VRAM failures with glitches. Temperature also significantly affects PSU performance. It might just be a coincidence you relocated it, but if you didn’t remove the GPU from the PCI, it could be damaged. I’d recommend trying another PSU before inspecting the costly GPU part.
Capture an image of the interior of your case. I'm asking this because I want to verify that your RTX 3070 is connected properly with high-power 8-pin Molex connectors. Please also share the total amount of RAM installed. Just to clarify, 700 watts is only sufficient for your new RTX 3070. Ideally, you should aim for at least 800 watts or a higher gold rating: https://www.amazon.com/EVGA-Supernova-Mo...B07WSXQTD9
Even though your PSU might be doubtful, the occurrence during GPU idle and absence with the previous model leads me to believe it's not a PSU issue (though replacement is still recommended).
Have you recently updated the Nvidia driver? If yes, revert to an older version, preferably 566.36.
If you relocated your computer and the issue began then, ensure the card is firmly connected in the PCIe slot—avoid sagging—and use a GPU support bracket if needed. Confirm all power cables are securely attached on both the card and PSU.
Did you purchase the card recently? Was it new or used at the time of purchase?
Thank you for the guidance. It seems the power cables might not have been connected correctly or the GPU wasn't inserted properly into the PCIe slot. After reinserting the GPU, the black screen issue has disappeared. Although occasional black screens still occur during booting software, and the computer sometimes displays green bars that don’t fade away until a restart, my motherboard also makes a beep intermittently. Based on what I’ve learned, this beep likely indicates a power problem. I plan to replace the PSU to see if it resolves these concerns. The card is approximately four years old and was brand new at the time of purchase.
Remove the GPU and inspect the PCI slot on it; possible damage might be present. Also, consider a questionable PSU manufacturer—high power can affect performance. It’s wise to re-seat the GPU first and verify the cables. When transporting a PC, always lay it on its side, place the motherboard tray upward, and use anti-static bubble wrap if you prefer not to use foam padding. This helps protect the GPU and internal components.
Follow-up
The specifications are as follows: CPU is an AMD Ryzen 5 5600X, GPU is ASUS TUF GAMING RTX 3070/GTX 1070 Founders Edition, motherboard is ASUS TUF GAMING B550-PLUS, power supply is "ASRock gold Steel Legend 850W", RAM consists of two sticks of "TEAMGROUP T-CREATE Expert 16GB DDR4" located in slots 2 and 4.
Since the initial post, I have upgraded my power supply to an "ASRock gold Steel Legend 850W" and replaced the CMOS battery; neither change resolved the problems. To recap, my ASUS TUF RTX 3070 is experiencing green bar issues where they appear across the screen approximately 60% of the time during launch, forcing me to restart the PC until it appears normal. This behavior does not occur in the BIOS and shows up in the boot screen before BIOS settings, disappears while in BIOS, and reappears after launching. This problem persists.
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Alongside this, my RTX 3070 encountered difficulties where it would freeze on a black screen a few minutes after startup and remain unresponsive until I turned off the PC. I am uncertain about what caused this change, though the black screen now appears only when the GPU is under load. The most recent instance happened while playing Dark Souls 3. I have attached the event viewer logs in the sequence of events.
Furthermore, my GTX 1070 Founders edition, which was functioning properly at the time of our last discussion, began booting to Windows and displayed only a black screen with a blue loading cursor that could be moved. After resetting the CMOS by shorting the CLRTC pins, it now shows a grey square in the corner, a white square in the middle, and the cursor is a standard pointer, which I can move around. The VGA light on my motherboard is white during this process. I am not sure if this relates to my new power supply, as I have not yet reinstalled the previous one.
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At this stage, it remains unclear which component is affected. These problems appear in both PCIe slots, and it is unusual that both GPUs are facing completely different issues. Do anyone understand what the event viewer logs indicate or offer suggestions for the other concerns?