Motherboard/Video Card Incompatible

[ten2368 0]

Problem: computer freezes sporatically.

 

Background: computer built 5 years ago; lightening storm blew out modem 3 years ago - replaced modem; computer started freezing - possibility storm blew out video card - replaced ATI Rage 128 to VisionTek Xtasy 2d/3d Accelerator; now thinking could be motherboard (ABIT VA6)incompatible with video card; have FDisk'd and reinstalled all software several times; upgraded OS from 98SE to XP Home.

 

I'm looking for experienced advice. I have intermediate PC support skills.

 

Thanks for taking the time.

 

ten2368

[ScinteX 0]

Hi,

 

when does the PC lockup? I mean is there anything in particular that causes it? What actually happens- does the screen just freeze or does the pc turn itself off?

 

Maybe you could have a little think about:

 

What program you might be running

If a launched program is likely to take a lot of RAM (it might be a memory problem).

If the program (game) is going to be using 3D graphics (driver problem).

If your PC has been on for a long time (heat problem).

Any hardware that still remains the same (a mouse, keyboard, printer etc. that uses its own drivers).

 

What wattage/make is your power supply? The increase in demand from the new graphics card and anything else that u may have added may be tipping it over the edge.

 

A few other things you could try:

You can also try a BIOS update or resetting the values to default maybe.

Put in the XP CD and run the compatability utility - this will tell you if XP doesnt like a piece of hardware.

 

 

Anyone else got any ideas?

 

S

 

 

[ten2368 0]

ScinteX - thanks for your response.

 

Question: When does the PC lockup? I mean is there anything in particular that causes it? What actually happens - does the screen just freeze or does the pc turn itself off?

 

Answer: The PC usually locks up after startup sometimes before; it doesn't shut down. As I start 'opening windows' it will partly populate a window and freeze. CTRL/ALT/DEL won't work at this point either. When I say 'opening windows' the latest example was when I was opening the Desktop properties to change the resolution of the desktop because I thought this might help and the PC froze.

 

Question: What program you might be running.

 

Answer: XP Related Window, MS Word/Excel/PPT, IE 5.5, doesn't seem to matter what is running. I'm luck to open a few things and it freezes.

 

Also -

 

This computer is not used for games.

 

This doesn't happen when the computer has been on for a long time; it freezes to quick to have it on too long.

 

How would I know what wattage/make the power supply is?

 

I have checked the BIOS and reset to default except for the CMOS Soft Menu.

 

I checked XP compatibility prior to upgrading and everything was fine. There really wasn't much on the computer at this point. Plus this problem was happening way before XP was installed.

 

 

Again, thanks for you suggestions/ideas.

 

Any other thoughts out there?

 

[Wilhelmus 1]

Does this lockup happen also in safe mode?

 

Run memtest, http://www.memtest86.com/.

Let it run for couple hours.

 

[ten2368 0]

Wilhelmus - thank you for your reply.

 

Question: Does this lockup happen also in safe mode?

 

Answer: Hmmmm. I don't think it has. I really think it has something to do with the resolution settings, in Safe Mode the colors are grainy and the icons are huge. If I change the resolution when I'm not in Safe Mode, well, I'm lucky to get the Desktop Properties window saved and closed (after making changes to a higher resolution) before the PC freezes.

 

I will run Memtest tonight; what exactly does memtest 'test'? Does it test the memory of all components, ie video card, ram, etc... or has my lack of PC knowledge just ran out?

 

Thanks for taking the time...

[Wilhelmus 1]

Originally posted by ten2368:

Quote:

what exactly does memtest 'test'? Does it test the memory of all components, ie video card, ram, etc...

It tests the RAM, so you can determite the failing memory module.

[ten2368 0]

and so what would i do with that information?

[jmmijo 1]

Originally posted by ten2368:

Quote:

and so what would i do with that information?

 

Well it's a way to troubleshoot the system down to a possible and/or probable cause of the problem(s).

 

Say you have (2)Two sticks of ram installed on your machine and Memtest finds one of the sticks with bit or some other kind of errors, you could remove that one stick of memory from the system, power on the machine and retest once again.

 

If Memtest passes this single stick of ram then you may have indeed found the culprit to the problem(s) you are experiencing

 

Other possible issues could be the Power Supply, the Motherboard, the HD etc...

 

[ten2368 0]

So I ran memtest for over 13 hours with a result of no errors. What a bitter sweet result...

 

Well, if anyone has any other ideas I would greatly appreciate a response.

 

Much thanks to all who have helped so far!

[Shadow64Bt 0]

Sounds like someone has a cooked CPU-to-PCI/AGP bridge. If that is the case, looking for a new motherboard is probably your only option. I have had experience with electrical storms, and they are not pretty. I lost a modem, a video card, and two sticks of ram to one. Not a happy day. Also, move your computer to another outlet, and use a different power bar. (You ARE using a power bar, right? no offence meant, just covering every angle) It could be something as simple as a blown ground, which would cause your computer to run on dirty power. In short though, it could litterally be anything, which is why I hate computers. And yet, I still work with 'em all the time. Odd, eh?

Good luck.

[ten2368 0]

Shadow64bt - thanks for your reply.

 

"Sounds like someone has a cooked CPU-to-PCI/AGP bridge." Is there a tool 'out there' that could detect this?

 

"Use a different power bar. It could be something as simple as a blown ground, which would cause your computer to run on dirty power." I am using a power bar; it is the same one that was in the storm. I'll change it and see if that makes a difference.

 

 

[Shadow64Bt 0]

I'm not sure if there is a tool out there for testing the North and South chipsets, but I wouldn't be surprised if a program like SiSoft's SANDRA would be able to tell you if they are working properly or not. I will look into it for you. Just had a power outage here yesterday and I've now lost control of my USB ports :S so I'm also working on that too. Far too many problems these days.

[ten2368 0]

Shadow64Bt - thanks for your reply.

 

I went to the SiSoft site and decided to wait for you to check it out for me as I have no idea how I would use this software to help me.

 

Soooo, if you get the chance and remember my little teeny problem, thanks a bunch!

 

Ness.

 

 

[Sampson 0]

I had lightening hit one of my units. It took out the dialup modem (which was an external modem hooked to a serial port), the serial port and then discretely made its way to the processor itself. The motherboard was fine, but the processor would not work with the peripherals properly. The machine would run fine with anything that read from the hard drive, but change a setting on the video card (which happened not to be affected by the lightning), and the unit would go south. Personally, I wouldn't go through anymore software tests. Since the unit is 5 years old, you would be better served to get a new unit or slap a new motherboard and processor into the old case. Be sure your Power pack is up to the task and you have plenty of ventilation.