problem with games on radeon 9800 pro

[deathfalls]

i just got through reformatting/installing windows xp pro to try to solve my problem, with no luck... so i turn here to hopefully get some advice/suggestions.

my system specs:

asus p4p800 deluxe
p4 2.8c
1gb apacer pc-3200 ram (CL3) (2x512mb, dual channel)
ati radeon 9800 pro (128mb, using catalyst 4.7 drivers)
sound blaster audigy 2 platnium
powmax 400W power supply

nothing is overclocked, never has been...

while playing games (it has happened on pretty much every game i've tried: wolfenstein enemy territory, max payne 2, battlefield 1942) i notice a lot of different colored blinking "squares", and other blinking areas. for example, here is a screenshot of it in wolfenstein enemy territory: http://img59.exs.cx/img59/759/wolfet.jpg.

so, at first i tried patching the games, updating my video card drivers, and flashing my motherboard bios (all to no avail). i tried lowering the resolution, and graphic quality, same results.

i then proceeded to reformat my hard drive, and try with a fresh install... no dice. so, i installed the asus pc probe utility (monitors temperature, and voltage)... motherboard and cpu temp. are 35/30 degrees celsius respectively while just browsing/etc. that jumps up around 5-10 degrees while gaming... but, the voltage monitoring part of the utility is saying that my +3.3v line is at 2.96, could this be the cause?

as far as cooling goes, the case i have is a chieftec AX-01BD (http://www.directron.com/adx01bd.html) with a side window (has a fan on it)...two fans in the back, can't remember if there are any fans in the front (i'll look later)... if this is an issue of the card overheating, what could i do about that?

just for reference, i took out the 9800 pro, and put in an older card (a geforce4 mx460) and it does not have the problem. so, could this problem mean that my card is defective?

i've searched around, and tried posting on some other forums (no luck with that), so i'd appreciate any help i can get... thanks.

 

[tyanni]

Have you tried the 9800 PRo in a different PC? I would do this first. If it works fine, I'd try a different power supply, b/c as far as I know a powmax doesn't even come close to making the list of good power supplies.

 

[deathfalls]

no, i don't have another PC available to try it in... maybe this weekend i can convince one of my friends to let me try it on his system. as far as the power supply is concerned... yeah, i guess it's pretty crappy, at the time i bought the parts to build my system, i was unaware how much brand name could affect the performance of a power supply. i'm looking into getting a new one, but unsure of what to go with... i was thinking maybe an antec 480w or a thermaltake.

hopefully i can get this problem solved though... i've tried emailing ATI customer support, and got a pretty generic response (get new drivers, patch games, etc., etc.) to try stuff i've already done.

 

[Delorian]

Maybe try underclocking the card with ATItool or similar program, sounds and looks like a heat issue to me

 

[deathfalls]

sorry to bump this post after so long, but i've still been wondering what to do. as far as solving the heat issue, i guess i'd have to get another heatsink/fan for the video card? any recommendations? also, i don't understand why i'd be having such an issue with this card... i've searched around other boards and what not, and most people who posted having problems with artifacts were overclocking. it's just annoying that i bought what was supposed to be a pretty good video card and can't get it to work properly without having to add crap to it.

i guess i'll need to get a new power supply as well...

thanks for the help!

 

[Fern]

I'd suspect the powmax psu, cuz I've had probs with them b4. I think the radeon 9800 pro draws a lot more power than the older card.

Your temps as reported above don't seem high. Sounds like your case has good cooling too.

If can try your card in another pc, or borrow someone's psu, you might be able to nail down whether its ur vid card or psu that is the problem.

Good Luck with it.