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Help! Graphics problems after blown PSU

Broken Arrow

Broken Arrow

Broken Arrow

Associate
Joined
13 Mar 2006
Posts
143
Hi,

My PSU died this afternoon so I nipped out and got a repalcement. The old one was rated at 360 watts and the replacement is rated at 400 so shouldn't have a problem there.

When I boot up I start to get grapical glitches moving down the screen in cycles and the display becomes really unresponsive and freezes up. When I boot in to Safe Mode the problem goes away, as it does when I uninstall the Nvidia drivers that were working fine until now. As soon as I reinstall the drivers the problem comes back.

Has my blown PSU buggered my graphics card? :(

Viewsonic 17" CRT
P4 2.6
1GB RAM
BFG 6800 GS OC 256
 
What are the specs on the new PSU, particularly the amperages on the 12V rail(s)?

It's possible your old PSU was far below spec and couldn't handle the load.
 
The old PSU worked fine since the PC was new. I put a new graphics card in about 3/4 months back but apart from that I haven't changed anything since it came from Mesh.

The replacement PSU I picked up is a Q-TEC 400 watt dual fan. And after a bit of googling it seems that it has a pretty poor rep to put it nicely. Bloke in the shop said it would be fine.

*sigh*
 
Ian_Heeley said:
The replacement PSU I picked up is a Q-TEC 400 watt dual fan. And after a bit of googling it seems that it has a pretty poor rep to put it nicely. Bloke in the shop said it would be fine.
Click to expand...
That is an awful PSU, no offense. It will probably not be up to the job, not even close.

Q-Tec are to be avoided at all costs.
 
No offense taken - my fault for being a mug!

So could the underperforming PSU be the cause of the artefacts that I see when I try running my card with anything but the default display drivers then?

Any suggestings for a low cost 400w PSU suitable for a P4 AGP motherboard?
 
qtec is a wounded psu, especially the 400w version.

if your on a budget get a hiper 425w psu. they can be had for real cheapo and are quite good.
 
I guess I'll try that tomorrow. :( If they turn out to be the scum that I suspect them to be, would the following be good enough?

Akasa Ultra Quiet 400W Paxpower Active PFC ATX2.0 PSU - Black Nickel (CA-012-AK)

Comes out at just over £40 with VAT.
 
LoadsaMoney said:
I hope your not using it, if so GET IT SWITCHED OFF AND OUTA THERE NOW YOUR WHOLE RIG IS GOING TO BE TAKEN OUT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :eek:
Click to expand...
Thanks for the concern! I'll get it out asap, though the system does seem perfectly stable just running the default display driver.
 
Ian_Heeley said:
I guess I'll try that tomorrow. :( If they turn out to be the scum that I suspect them to be, would the following be good enough?

Akasa Ultra Quiet 400W Paxpower Active PFC ATX2.0 PSU - Black Nickel (CA-012-AK)

Comes out at just over £40 with VAT.
Click to expand...

you have no probs with that choice ive had one in the past and never had any issues, i only upgraded mine as going too a x1900xt the chap at overclockers advised me to get a more powerfull one.
 
Ian_Heeley said:
Akasa Ultra Quiet 400W Paxpower Active PFC ATX2.0 PSU - Black Nickel (CA-012-AK)
Click to expand...
Decent PSU, but try to go for something just a tiny bit better if possible like the 460W Paxpower. Locutus12 is using that PSU, and I am using the 460W version of that PSU.
 
Bear in mind the PC is a few years old and I'm not looking to set the world on fire with it (though the Q-tec might help with that, right? ;)). The cheapest option that will get me back to where I was before my old PSU blew up this afternoon will do. :)
 
If your not planning to upgrade the system, the Akasa 400W you already mentioned should be more than sufficient.

Avoid the Qtek, as you have a Geforce 6800GS, which while not insanely power hungry, are enough to take a Qtec over the edge.

Qtec always qoute peak power, so whatever they claim, just divide it by two and you have the approximate 'safe' power handling of the thing. So a Qtec 400 is really the same as a good branded 200W PSU, and the 650, well its about comparible with most peoples 300W supplies.

Dont turn the PC on again until you have replaced the PSU, while Qtec are 'ok' when they are running a very light load, anything stressfull sends their voltages way out of spec, and can cause system damage.

For your computer spec, any PSU with 20A or more on the 12V rail should be sufficient. Though obviously more is better. (No need to get a 1000W PSU though, there is always a point where more is just overkill)
 
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