Resolved - Video card crashing

[Parker 1st MRB]

Name: B. Parker

Rank: Lt. Col.

Type of issue: Hardware

Brief Description of Issue: So I have a Nvidia Geforce GTX 560 Ti video card and it crashes when I play 3D games (even with games that are less graphic intesnsive) and when I'm watching youtube videos. It will lock up my computer to where I can only shut it down by turning it off on the rig. I've updated my drivers to the current one (301.something) and still no change. I looked into the issue myself and found a lot of people having the same problem which seems to occur with drivers from 290 onwards. I will try to find some older driver versions and install those instead to see if it fixes my problem, but if you guys have any other ideas please let me know.

My comp:

Asus P8Z68-V LX

Nvidia GeForce GTX560 Ti

Intel i7 2600K

WD Caviar Black 1TB

Corsair Vengeance 8GB

ULTRA LSP 550W Power Supply

***Medical Supply Staff ONLY Below this line***

Current Status: Resolved

Main Technician: T. Dillon

Supporting Technician: N. Holland

[Bryant 1st MRB]

we have the same rig. ill do some research as soon as i get home and try to find the issue. and are you overclocling the car sir? When clocked too high those cards become unstabe. Also try changing the port into the board. take it out and either stick it in a new one or try to refit it in the same one.

[Harding BAR]

If I am allowed to piggyback onto this topic, I am experiencing the same issues...I was overclocking it, I have since returned to original settings, I shall let you know how it goes.

[Holland 1st MRB]

Are the fans on the card working properly? You should be able to see them spinning if you take the side off your case.

Have you made any attempt to overclock your hardware in the past? If so, attempt to underclock your PC, using essentially the same method and see if there is any difference.

When you load a 3D game, what specifically crashes? The system? The program? Your display?

Double check the graphics settings for your card, and be sure there is nothing strange going on there. As usual, if there is an option you do not fully understand, google the name of it before you change it.

NVIDIA graphics settings are usually accessed through right clicking on your desktop, and clicking the NVIDIA Control Panel option.

Once all the above has been looked into, and with nothing improving, then my conclusion;

What this sounds like to me, is a PSU (Power Supply) that is failing to send enough power to the graphics card in order to run properly. This would typically cause the card to work fine for basic things, but the moment you attempt to do something more graphics intensive (3D games), you may get a black screen, computer freezing, crashing, etc. which would be caused by a power supply that is insufficient for the needs of your components.

You will need to purchase a new power supply for your computer. Something that more appropriately matches the needs of your components. Off hand, I do not know of an exact wattage you should be looking for in a power source, though it will need to be higher than your current setup. Perhaps some of our other members will be better informed than I am about the required wattage for your components.

[Rather]

I use this tool to calculate required PSU wattage: http://images10.newegg.com/BizIntell/tool/...tage-Calculator

When I put all your hardware into the calculator I get a max required wattage of 483 watts. This is still lower than your 550 watt PSU, but not by much, so the issue may and may not be power related. However, I would like to do some research today before it is ruled out.

Edited May 24, 2012 by Rather 1st MRB

[Parker 1st MRB]

No I do not overclock my card and yes all my fans are spinning. I've also checked the settings and everything seems to be ok. When I play a 3D game or watch youtube videos my screen locks up, it freezes with weird colors and stripes on it and it won't allow me to do anything so I normally have to manually shut down my comp. Like I stated in my description, I'm not the only one having this problem with the GTX 560 card, it seems to be an issue with the drivers nvidia is releasing so I'm currently trying to find an older driver version to install. Thanks for the ideas anyways guys.

Here is what I found:

Nvidia forums

Article

[Dillon 1st MRB]

PSU looks good. The only concern I would have would be if you were crossfire/SLI'ing it up, because of only having 1 12v rail. It may be a driver issue, but there could also be something wonky with the card itself. I'd start looking into the RMA process. As new as this card is, I would not expect there to be issues. The driver may or may not be the issue. However, keep this in mind: the driver may actually be revealing an issue that has always been there. You can roll the dice on it. I do know that nvidia came out with new drivers in the last week, and it provided a huge increase in performance for Skyrim. If you are using these drivers, go ahead an revert. IF you hadn't tried them yet, I would try the new drivers. If you find that it happens across the board, on all sorts of different drivers, RMA your video card immediately.

[Yamagata 1st MRB]

we have the same rig. ill do some research as soon as i get home and try to find the issue. and are you overclocling the car sir? When clocked too high those cards become unstabe. Also try changing the port into the board. take it out and either stick it in a new one or try to refit it in the same one.

Your mispelling made the techs at my work laugh at you.

Anyways, rolling back the drive is a good quick fix. If it's restarting on you, it may even be a faulty power supply. That or your your temp monitor is getting tripped, how's the cooling on your rig?

Colored lines and such might mean you're card is dying, maybe try swapping it out.

[Parker 1st MRB]

PSU looks good. The only concern I would have would be if you were crossfire/SLI'ing it up, because of only having 1 12v rail. It may be a driver issue, but there could also be something wonky with the card itself. I'd start looking into the RMA process. As new as this card is, I would not expect there to be issues. The driver may or may not be the issue. However, keep this in mind: the driver may actually be revealing an issue that has always been there. You can roll the dice on it. I do know that nvidia came out with new drivers in the last week, and it provided a huge increase in performance for Skyrim. If you are using these drivers, go ahead an revert. IF you hadn't tried them yet, I would try the new drivers. If you find that it happens across the board, on all sorts of different drivers, RMA your video card immediately.

I'll definitely try that, there's just one problem...wtf is RMA?

[Dillon 1st MRB]

I'll definitely try that, there's just one problem...wtf is RMA?

Return Merchandise Authorization. Sending it back to the manufacturer to get you a good video card.

[Parker 1st MRB]

Return Merchandise Authorization. Sending it back to the manufacturer to get you a good video card.

Oh alright gotcha gotcha, I'll try a few other things before I do that.

[Al-Jefri 1st MRB]

Did you just get the card recently? Might be a defective card

[Parker 1st MRB]

Did you just get the card recently? Might be a defective card

Got it maybe 2-3 months ago.

I just installed the latest driver so we'll see if I have any problems.

[Bryant 1st MRB]

Your mispelling made the techs at my work laugh at you.

Anyways, rolling back the drive is a good quick fix. If it's restarting on you, it may even be a faulty power supply. That or your your temp monitor is getting tripped, how's the cooling on your rig?

Colored lines and such might mean you're card is dying, maybe try swapping it out.

lol this was four in the morning for me, (yay insomnia so i dont exepect it to be my best work)

[Parker 1st MRB]

Just an update, I've installed the newest driver that was released 3 days ago and so far no problems *knock on wood*. I've played some 3D supported games and watched some youtube videos and it hasn't crashed, but I don't think I'm out of the woods just yet. Stay tuned.

[Bryant 1st MRB]

Good to hear! Keep us posted!

[Holland 1st MRB]

How did the drivers work out for you?

[Parker 1st MRB]

So far so good, I suppose you can close this topic so it's not pending. If it happens again I'll just reply here. Thanks again for the help.

[Holland 1st MRB]

Happy to hear the problem was resolved.

Thank you to all of those who have put their time into sorting out this issue.

Ticket resolved.