New card = blue screen (of death)

[Max209]

Hey, I've searched FAQ and other similar posts and didn't find much related contents...

I bought a new GFX card ATI Sapphire 5770 Vaporx-1 and I wanted to install it right away. What happens is whenever I boot computer with that card inside it goes into blue screen dumping memory and it says this:

Stop 0x0000007e (0xffffffffc0000005, 0xfffff80002e57830, 0xfffffa60019d6e78, 0xfffffa60019d6850)

My computer is Gateway DX4300-03, and I have reasons to believe it should be compatible with the new card, if some expert here says I'm wrong, well it's fine I obviously have a lot to learn still. Oh yeah and I also prepared myself for the new card by buying OCZ 700w stealth power supply, maybe too much maybe not, but definately enough.

Just in case you may wonder:
- old gfx card ati hd4650 (subvendor sapphire) works normally.

What I tried:
I already tried to update BIOS drivers, although I do not know if it was successful or not, because I simply didn't get any kind of confirmation (I followed THESE instructions, the last post). I try to keep my computer drivers constantly updated. That's all I can think of now. Ask more questions and I should answer them asap.

Thanks,
Alek

[JJ 3000]

Did you uninstall the drivers for the ati hd4650 before you installed the new card?

[thelaymanscomputer]

Some things to try:

Re-seat the card (take the card out...blow some air onto the slot to ensure there is no dust or debris in there...then put the card back in)

Make sure any auxilliary power cables are connected to the card.

Allthough it is always a good idea to uninstall old drivers before upgrading hardware, it should at least boot to windows I would have thought...particularly as they are both ati cards. Just to be sure though, try booting in safe mode, as that will by-pass any drivers anyway.

Lastly, if all else fails, return the card promtly for a refund/replacement, as it sounds like it may be a memory issue with the card.

Good Luck

[Max209]

Did you uninstall the drivers for the ATI hd4650 before you installed the new card?

I will try that.

Some things to try:

Re-seat the card (take the card out...blow some air onto the slot to ensure there is no dust or debris in there...then put the card back in)

I already inserted and reinserted that card many many times, and only the old one works so this shouldn't be the issue.

Make sure any auxilliary power cables are connected to the card.

I think I covered that.

Allthough it is always a good idea to uninstall old drivers before upgrading hardware, it should at least boot to windows I would have thought...particularly as they are both ati cards. Just to be sure though, try booting in safe mode, as that will by-pass any drivers anyway.

I'm unable to turn on the computer into safe mode. I have absolutely no clue why. I get only 2 options:
-"fix on reboot" which does absolutely nothing. The screen blinks once and comes to the same thing asking what to do
- start windows normally
no other options. I tried pressing F8, and nothing happens. Maybe I have to unlock those options somewhere? (BIOS is by AMI)

Lastly, if all else fails, return the card promtly for a refund/replacement, as it sounds like it may be a memory issue with the card.

Good Luck

Yes, definitely this will be the last thing I will do. I just had this card shipped to me directly from Amazon.com. I bought it new so there is absolutely now reason for this card to be damaged.

[Allan]

Make sure the drivers you installed are the correct ones for your OS. Also look here:
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/330182

[Max209]

Yeah, that won't be necessary anymore.

What I did, was finally managed to go to save mode by:

.From the Windows Start menu, click Run.
.In the Open field, type MSCONFIG and click Ok.
.On the BOOT.INI tab, check /SAFEBOOT.
.Click Restart when prompted.

While I was in the safe mode, I actually couldn't even install new drivers but after few restarts I went back to Normal Mode and guess what. The Windows booted normally. But I downloaded all the newest drivers from ati site and installed them right away and rebooted. It all works. I suspect that screen resolution must've messed up something, because that is the only things that has changed during the process.

It works nice, I will be testing it soon in some demanding games.

Another things slightly ir/relevant to the topic (because it's software issue more).
There is this "Speccy" program by Piriform (maker of CCleaner), and the thing is, Speccy doesn't recognize the new card. According to Speccy I'm using integrated ATI 3200. According to "little info" from CCleaner HD5770 is in use, and so does windows display options and ATI Catalyst says as well. Would that be a minor issue with computer having trouble reading the card or is it just Speccy fooling with me?

Anyways thanks for the brainstorming here, I nominate this topic as solved