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ATI Radeon 9800 Pro serious problems

R

rahulprabhu

Junior Member
Hi All,

Some 3-4 months back I bought an ATI Radeon 9800 Pro Card. But since then life has been miserable. In normal circumstances the
PC works perfectly fine. But as soon as I start playing games (any of the
new games), after about an hour or two suddenly the Power Supply blows off
!!! This happened twice in the beginning and as it was the rainy season at
that time, I though that it might be causing it in some way... I know it
sounds silly (Moisture and all that nonsense as per the Hardware guy). When
it happened for the third time, the power supply took the Processor and
Motherboard along with it. After putting in lot of efforts, I somehow
managed to claim the warranty for both and luckily I got a new Processor
and Motherboard.
This time I used a 400W Power Supply of Company - IBOX, but yesterday
even that blew off while playing FAR CRY. This keeps happening with me
whenever I play games. I am tired of getting new Power Supplies everytime.
What do think the problem might be ??? I know that it has something to do
with the Graphic Card and Games for sure... isnt it?? Can there be some
leakage of current in the Graphic Card or something ??? If that was the
case then the computer shouldnt have started at all right ?? I dont think
it would have waited for 2-3 hours to burn if there was some problem.
Do ATI Cards have this problem ??? Do you think 400W Power Supply
is not good enough ??? but even if it was less, should it blow off ??

My ATI Card does require a direct connection to the Power Supply for the FAN. Does this have anything to do with the Power Supply blowing off.

Please let me know ASAP on what you feel about this whole issue and what
I should do ....
 
I've never heard of Ibox, and you're shooting yourself in the foot if you keep putting cheap generic PSU's into your case (if it blows, it could take your whole system down).

Get a good brand 350W or higher PSU from Enermax, Antec, OCZ, etc. Forget anything that weights 2 pounds and has a name like Ibox ...
 
First start posting your system specs.

But I would say you are using cheap power supplies.
An overloaded power supply should simply power down, not blow.

Try an Enermax or OCZ.
 
Sorry for not putting in my system specs. You can find it now in my signature.

hey guys, I stay in India and unfortunately none of the Power supplies you guys mentioned in your posts are available here.

I found a few SMPS makes which are available in India and are claimed to GOOD -
APC, Champion, Powercom, iBall, Digital, Powersafe and VIP.

Which one out of these do you guys suggest me to buy ??? Please reply !! thanks
 
Wow, I haven't heard of any of those brands except for APC, and I had no idea they made power supplies.

Your best bet is to get one that's 400W or more, but most importantly it should have 1-2 fans (2 80mm fans, one in the bottom, one in the back are best), it should be fairly heavy and sturdy feeling, it should have quality rubbery feeling power cables (not cheap thin ones that seem of low quality). Another important thing to look at is the voltage rails: a good PSU will have at leat 25A on the +12V rail, while cheap ones often have 15-20A. Also cheap PSU's sometimes lie or exaggerate their voltages by putting in maximum amperages which are way off the average.

Best of luck!
 
Originally posted by: jiffylube1024
Wow, I haven't heard of any of those brands except for APC, and I had no idea they made power supplies.

Your best bet is to get one that's 400W or more, but most importantly it should have 1-2 fans (2 80mm fans, one in the bottom, one in the back are best), it should be fairly heavy and sturdy feeling, it should have quality rubbery feeling power cables (not cheap thin ones that seem of low quality). Another important thing to look at is the voltage rails: a good PSU will have at leat 25A on the +12V rail, while cheap ones often have 15-20A. Also cheap PSU's sometimes lie or exaggerate their voltages by putting in maximum amperages which are way off the average.

Best of luck!
Click to expand...

Weird..my Antec 450w only has 17a on the 12v2 and 15a on the 12v1 :/
 
Originally posted by: Cdubneeddeal
Originally posted by: jiffylube1024
Wow, I haven't heard of any of those brands except for APC, and I had no idea they made power supplies.

Your best bet is to get one that's 400W or more, but most importantly it should have 1-2 fans (2 80mm fans, one in the bottom, one in the back are best), it should be fairly heavy and sturdy feeling, it should have quality rubbery feeling power cables (not cheap thin ones that seem of low quality). Another important thing to look at is the voltage rails: a good PSU will have at leat 25A on the +12V rail, while cheap ones often have 15-20A. Also cheap PSU's sometimes lie or exaggerate their voltages by putting in maximum amperages which are way off the average.

Best of luck!
Click to expand...

Weird..my Antec 450w only has 17a on the 12v2 and 15a on the 12v1 :/
Click to expand...


Yours is different - it has two 12V rails, so the rules are different. You can essentially consider that as ~32A total for the +12V rails (it's not exactly the sum of the two figures, but it's pretty much equivalent).

Notice that yours adds up to well over the 25A rough guideline, so you are totally safe.

My 485W Enermax has two 18A +12V rails, and it definitely provides more consistent voltages (And allowed me a slightly better o/c) than my previous 460W Enermax with a single 35A line.


Most PSU's, however, are still using a single +12V rail, so that's why I mentioned it. Only the top brands even have dual +12V rail PSU's 🙂 .
 
Originally posted by: Cdubneeddeal
Thanks for clearing that up, Jeff. Makes feel a whole lot better purchasing Antec.
Click to expand...

No problem. Antec is a good brand. Personally, Enermax is my #1 (their 350W PSU's are excellent, and the 400W+ Noisetakers are just great), but OCZ makes some awesome 520W PSU's, and Antec is almost the same as Enermax - anything 350W or more is excellent.

I put a 430W Antec in my sister's rig (and it was in mine a few years earlier) that has been going strong for almost 5 years now, so they definitely last 🙂 .
 
Originally posted by: rahulprabhu
I repeat -
None of those PSU brands you guys are mentioning - OCZ, Antec, Enermax etc are available in India.

So out of those brands which are available in India I have found PowerSafe to be a good option. So please have alook at these links and let me know what you guys feel -
http://www.powersafeups.com/smps.htm
http://www.techtree.com/techtree/jsp/article.jsp?article_id=53044&cat_id=641

Thanks !!!
Click to expand...


I am sorry those links and reviews tell us nothing about the specs we need to see.....features are not specs....I dont like the sound of it still...Did you nootice the guy complaining of blow offs with the 500watter???? doesn't sound good....How is your power in terms of quality fed into the house>> Maybe you need a UPS as well and top of the line surge protector or line filter.....crappy wiring and power in a 2nd to 3rd world country, if this is the case (not saying it is necessarily always true), could be the issue....

i agree with above and say thank god you haven't lost the whole system...
 
Sorry to hear you have no good choices in India. We won't be able to recommend anything any of those power supplies you mentioned as none of us here have had any experience with them. Most likely they are all generic quality though.

Your best bet is to maybe buy one from Ebay and have someone ship it to you.

good luck 🙂
 
My ATI Card does require a direct connection to the Power Supply for the FAN.
Click to expand...

The connection is not for the fan. It powers the whole card.

Try to give the video card a power plug all to itself.

Try removing all of the unneccessary items in the computer and just leave in what you need to play Far Cry. If you can play the game with some of your cards and drives removed, then you probably need a more powerful PS.

I would also try a surge protector or a line conditioner.
 
Hey guys,
I checked my BIOS. And it gave me the following values for the PSU -

+1.5V 1.441V
Vccp 1.247V
+3.3Vin 3.396V
+5Vin 5.105V
+12Vin 11.937V

Well, I dont understand anything out of this. Ofcourse I do understand that my PSU has a single +12V rail. But how do you guys measure the Ampere ratings for a particular rail ??? Do we get it from the BIOS ?? Sorry if I sounded silly, but Im truly a newbie as far as PSUs are concerned..

Thanks !!!
 
Hey junitjam123 - Can you please explain why I shouldnt use my MBD ???

Well, some days back I had posted some links pertaining to a Power Supply brand named - "Powersafe" (http://www.powersafeups.com/smps.htm, http://www.techtree.com/techtree/jsp/article.jsp?article_id=53044&cat_id=641 ) and some of you guys told me that you guys could not find the Rail ratings etc on these urls.

So I have managed to get another Website which has done the review of this PSU and also given the rail ratings etc. Please go through this link and tell me what you guys feel -
http://www.techarena.in/forums/printthread.php?t=12764&pp=50

Thanks !!!
 
Originally posted by: Duvie
Originally posted by: rahulprabhu
I repeat -
None of those PSU brands you guys are mentioning - OCZ, Antec, Enermax etc are available in India.

So out of those brands which are available in India I have found PowerSafe to be a good option. So please have alook at these links and let me know what you guys feel -
http://www.powersafeups.com/smps.htm
http://www.techtree.com/techtree/jsp/article.jsp?article_id=53044&cat_id=641

Thanks !!!
Click to expand...

I am sorry those links and reviews tell us nothing about the specs we need to see.....features are not specs....I dont like the sound of it still...Did you nootice the guy complaining of blow offs with the 500watter???? doesn't sound good....How is your power in terms of quality fed into the house>> Maybe you need a UPS as well and top of the line surge protector or line filter.....crappy wiring and power in a 2nd to 3rd world country, if this is the case (not saying it is necessarily always true), could be the issue....

i agree with above and say thank god you haven't lost the whole system...
Click to expand...

Can you explain us what is a 2nd World Country? Can you give us examples?
 
Originally posted by: rahulprabhu
Hey junitjam123 - Can you please explain why I shouldnt use my MBD ???

Well, some days back I had posted some links pertaining to a Power Supply brand named - "Powersafe" (http://www.powersafeups.com/smps.htm, http://www.techtree.com/techtree/jsp/article.jsp?article_id=53044&cat_id=641 ) and some of you guys told me that you guys could not find the Rail ratings etc on these urls.

So I have managed to get another Website which has done the review of this PSU and also given the rail ratings etc. Please go through this link and tell me what you guys feel -
http://www.techarena.in/forums/printthread.php?t=12764&pp=50

Thanks !!!
Click to expand...

A 500W PSU with only 18A on the 12V rail? That's not good. As jiffylube said, you want at least 25A. My Enermax 490W has roughly 36A combined 12V1/12V2.
As suggested, can you get on eBay and have someone ship to you? Any shipping costs would far outweigh the price of blowing your PSU and damaging your system each time you play a game.
 
OK GUYS !!!
After all the suggestions and recommendations I got from you guys, I have made up my mind to buy a new 450W Antec PSU which Im LUCKILY getting in India. So Im saving on the shipping costs!!! 🙂)

This particular model fits my budget and also the requirement benchmarks as per jiffylube1024.
Please have a look at this link -
http://www.antec.com/us/productDetails.php?ProdID=26450

Please look at the specs etc carefully and let me know if everything is fine and whether its enough and appropriate for my system.

But, after me spending so much, are you guys absolutely sure that it will solve my problem and this PSU wont blow off like my previous ones ???? OR still can there be the probability of a faulty card which sucks a lot of Power while playing games ??
 
Originally posted by: rahulprabhu
OK GUYS !!!
After all the suggestions and recommendations I got from you guys, I have made up my mind to buy a new 450W Antec PSU which Im LUCKILY getting in India. So Im saving on the shipping costs!!! 🙂)

This particular model fits my budget and also the requirement benchmarks as per jiffylube1024.
Please have a look at this link -
http://www.antec.com/us/productDetails.php?ProdID=26450

Please look at the specs etc carefully and let me know if everything is fine and whether its enough and appropriate for my system.

But, after me spending so much, are you guys absolutely sure that it will solve my problem and this PSU wont blow off like my previous ones ???? OR still can there be the probability of a faulty card which sucks a lot of Power while playing games ??
Click to expand...

Yeah, unless there's a metal filament or something else hideously (and visibly) shorting your video card to the case or somehow else grounding it out, this PSU will run it flawlessly. I've had their 1st gen. SmartPower 400 for ~5 years in my old system and it's never failed on me.
 
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