The life of your video card?

[mindless1]

When considering the lifespan of a video card, there are too many variables to easily come to conclusions.

Some things to consider are the adequacy of the motherboard in supplying clean power.
Quality of the PSU itself.
Core cooling
System cooling
Capacitor Type & quality (varies a LOT).

For example, I still have a Geforce 3 TI500 GS from Gainward that uses "almost" all Tantalum caps, should last a very long time. During the same era and more recently, I've seen many GF3, TI200, TI500, with cheap electrolytic caps that can't be expected to last more than 2-3 years, if that... they might, or might not. That is also a MAJOR issue with GF4TI4200 cards, their less robust capacitor/onboard power supply circuitry is one of the major differences between a TI4200 and (TI4400 and thereafter in the GF4 line). I also have a GF4TI4200 card that will most likely die before the GF3 TI500, even though the GF3 card has been highly o'c since day 1.

ATI cards quite often use more tantalum caps, which is good for the lifespan of the card, but Tantalum caps have their own serious implications.

 

[screw3d]

Originally posted by: mindless1
When considering the lifespan of a video card, there are too many variables to easily come to conclusions.

Some things to consider are the adequacy of the motherboard in supplying clean power.
Quality of the PSU itself.
Core cooling
System cooling
Capacitor Type & quality (varies a LOT).

For example, I still have a Geforce 3 TI500 GS from Gainward that uses "almost" all Tantalum caps, should last a very long time. During the same era and more recently, I've seen many GF3, TI200, TI500, with cheap electrolytic caps that can't be expected to last more than 2-3 years, if that... they might, or might not. That is also a MAJOR issue with GF4TI4200 cards, their less robust capacitor/onboard power supply circuitry is one of the major differences between a TI4200 and (TI4400 and thereafter in the GF4 line). I also have a GF4TI4200 card that will most likely die before the GF3 TI500, even though the GF3 card has been highly o'c since day 1.

ATI cards quite often use more tantalum caps, which is good for the lifespan of the card, but Tantalum caps have their own serious implications.

Interesting.. How do you identify tantalum caps?

 

[mindless1]

Originally posted by: marvie

Interesting.. How do you identify tantalum caps?

They might look like this, but on semi-modern video cards, other devices, they're now mostly surface-mount chips, like this.

Edit:"Someone" seems to have removed their pic of the tantalum caps, or at least the link isn't working for whatever reason, so here's another one., though they're often yellow instead of black... so many components are black, when will we see rainbow colored surface-mount electronics?

 

[CelticDemolition]

voodoo3... 1 year
radeon 32mb (non-ddr, pci)... 9 months
radeon 8500... 16 months and still going

i am planning to upgrade though, as soon as i get enough money, to a AIW 9700 pro. i think 18 months is a goodly number for gpu upgrade time.

edit: oh, and nothing ever died on me

 

[Genx87]

Well physical life or useful life?

I have video cards that are running in a couple of my machines from 1996-97. But they have zero usefulness for todays games.

I usually do an upgrade cycle about every 18 months or so. Somehow with the games I play I have gotten ahead of the performance curve and my Ti4600 is running all my games smooth and at high rez. Of course I am not playing the top of the line games. Newest game is BF1942. But in January I plan on upgrading with an Athlon64 + 5900 so i should be in the middle of the pack again as usual. That is fine by me because top of the line costs too much for such a little return.

 

[clicknext]

I've never had a video card die.

 

[BFG10K]

My video cards are usually useful for around 6-12 months although my current Radeon 9700 Pro is probably going to break this trend.