posted
I have a BFG 7800GS AGP card (yes, I know it is outdated and I need to upgrade, but I simply don't have funds at the moment), and recently it stopped working.
650w power supply ASUS P5PE-VM motherboard Core 2 Duo 1.6ghz 2gb ram
Except I don't know if it is my video card. This problem started after I moved. When I hooked my computer up again, I also installed a wireless networking card (which I have used in the past), before booting my computer up. When I booted it up after inserting the wireless card, there was a steady, high-pitched whine that continued for about 5 seconds, then my computer shut off. I thought the wireless card was jacked up, so I took it out.
Then I rebooted it, and this time, no noise, but also just a black screen. My computer sounded like it was going to boot, but it never did the standard PC beep that comes with every boot. The computer just hung and never actually booted.
I plugged my monitor into the onboard VGA port, but it still wouldn't boot with my 7800gs still plugged in. However, the 7800's fan was still operating normally.
Once I took the 7800 out and just used my onboard video, everything works fine (except of course, that my computer now has crappy graphics). Every time I put the 7800 back in, the comp won't boot. Once I tried to boot, while the 7800 was still in the AGP slot, but without the power supply plugged into the 7800, and I got the exact same high pitched whine that started all of this. I know that probably wasn't smart to do, but I was just testing things.
So, basically, I don't know if my power supply just isn't working at full force anymore and is only giving the 7800 partial power, or if my motherboard AGP is not working, or if the video card is partially dead (i.e., fan working, but something else broken on it). If it's just the power supply, I will get a new one until I can get a better computer. If it's the video card or the motherboard, then I am stuck living with no pc gaming until the day I can afford a new computer.
Is there any other way to diagnose this, given that I have no other computer equipment to test the video card on?
Posts: 684 | Registered: Aug 2001
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posted
I doubt it's the power supply. I used to have a 6600GT, and if I didn't plug in the extra power cord to it, it would still boot but would then give me an error message in Windows saying that it needed more power and might be damaged without it. And you're probably not coming anywhere near maxing out your PSU, so I doubt that's the problem.
When that video card finally died, it didn't die all the way—it would still work in safe mode, but if I tried a higher resolution or color depth, I'd get a black screen. My computer expert friend said it was probably the memory going bad, so it couldn't handle full res anymore.
At any rate, the fact that it boots without the card and won't boot with it leads me to think it's the card. Which sucks more than usual, since I don't know if you can find an AGP card above a GeForce 6200 anymore. Good luck.
Posts: 9945 | Registered: Sep 2002
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posted
Yeah, I'd wager it is the card as well. Sadly finding an AGP card is going to be pretty difficult. You may be able to find some on Ebay for cheap, but other than that I don't know where else you could look.
Posts: 1937 | Registered: Nov 2006
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posted
If it is the video card I wonder why the high pitched noise when the power supply is not plugged into the card?
Posts: 684 | Registered: Aug 2001
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posted
I think that circuit boards can whine sometimes when the circuitry starts to go bad. But I'm no expert. Could you tell where the whine was coming from?
Also, this thread seems to say that BFG cards have tiny speakers on them, presumably to serve as alarms.
Posts: 9945 | Registered: Sep 2002
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posted
Looks like you guys were right. It is my video card. Just after posting this thread, I happened upon someone selling the exact same video card, in mint condition, on Craigslist for $35. I took a chance and bought it, and it works like a dream. And for some reason, my games seem to have a smoother frame rate than they did on my old 7800.
Anyway, thanks for your help!
Posts: 684 | Registered: Aug 2001
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posted
I bet if you look at some of the capacitors on your old video card you'll see that one or more of them as gone bad. They won't necessarily look terrible at first look, but on closer examination they will have a bulged appearance to them.
Posts: 1753 | Registered: May 2001
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