Graphics card problem?

[Jokerman]

For some reason my computer screen has started to go black when playing games which had previously played without problems.  The computer is almost three years old, I'm running Windows XP, it has 1GB ram and has a Radeon X1600 graphics card.  I have run Norton utilities, C Cleaner and they have found no problems, Gone into control panel - system and checked the devices, all OK.  Rolled back the graphics card driver, still no joy.  Any ideas.

[quaxo]

Over heating? Have you cleaned the inside of your computer lately?

[DA8686]

This could definately be overheating.  After time, the thermal paste between the video card and heatsink goes bad.  I would take a look at cleaning out your case and maybe even cleaning off your GPU and reapplying thermal paste.

[Jokerman]

I have cleaned the graphics card (slightly dusty) a few days ago but still no joy.  Card is tight in it's slot, no loose connections.  Regarding the cleaning off of the GPU and reapplying the thermal paste, I think that may be a bit beyond me

[dr_iton]

You mentioned that you did cleaned the graphic card, I don't know if your card is integrated or not. If not I suggest you to check the slot of graphic card if you pushed it till the end (i think that it is a contact problem), if this is not going to help you try to upgrade the graphic card driver to the newest one.
Cheers.

[Amiman]

If you haven't taken off the cooler then don't bother with worrying about thermal paste. That stuff is inert and will be just the same in a hundred years as it is now. If it's going blank only when you are playing a game, then it's absolutely a heating problem. When I start some games such as crysis, you can hear the fans slowly spinning up for a few minutes and spin down when closing. I had problems with crashing so I took a look and found a giant clump of cat hair and dust blocking the cooling fins. If your fins are clean and its still blanking it may be your card has had it.
Does it do it on every game? It is a really old chip and old tech. what does the game suggest for minimum system requirements?
Did you have the latest drivers?
have you tried it on another machine?
Will your local computer repair guy check it for free? Or a friends computer?
Those graphic chips were also used on laptops. Is this a laptop?

[DA8686]

Another idea is try to add a few fans to your case or move your system to a better case if you can do it.  Also, moving your computer to a place that is cooler with more ventilation could help.

[Karnac]

If this is a desktop, the power supply may be a problem....swap it and see if the problem persists.......fluctuations in DC power when the processor is under the stress of gaming may be causing the problem.....

[Jokerman]

One game is Camanche 4, the game checked the graphics card when it was loaded and stated that it met the requirements, I have played it for over a year without problems.  The other game is a childs game that my nephews play, which has cartoon type graphics so it shouldn't overload the graphics card.  The card is free from dust, there is not dust in the fan blades, so I can only assume that the graphics card is on the way out
I'm planning to get a new system when Windoows 7 comes out (and they have fixed it's teething problems) so I'll live with the problem until then.

Thanks for all your help guys.

[kamz1245]

you need to buy a new one or use less because it overheat , it is not built for the new gane

[quaxo]

you need to buy a new one or use less because it overheat , it is not built for the new gane

If you actually read what the poster has said, this isn't the issue. The games they are having issues with worked fine for a year, so it's not about whether or not that card is built for new games. The card they have meets the minimum requirements for Comanche 4, as well as most other games.

Jokerman, how long do you usually get playing a game before the screen goes black? For some ATI models, the Catalyst Control Center can show card temperature. If you can find the temperature readout, trying leaving it open, playing your game for a few minutes (long enough to warm it up, but not long enough to cause it to shut down). Quickly exit the game (or ALT+TAB out) and check what the temperature is.

Does your card have a metal heat sink, a fan, both, or neither? (Sorry, can't remember what they did with the 1600 cards.)

[Jokerman]

Sometimes the screen goes black after about 10 minutes, other times it can go on for much longer (playing Comanche 4).  My nephews played a game called Azteca for well over 2 hours the other day and the screen didn't go black at all.

I have just downloaded a new ATI program + the latest drivers, hopefully the new program has a temp read out.  I will run this over the next couple of days and see what comes up (wife permitting, not keen on me "wasting time playing games").

The graphics card looks like it just has a heatsink, the card is in the top slot of the motherboard, so it is close to the cpu fan.  Would the cpu fan help keep it cool or would the heat from the cpu heat it up?  If this is the case I can always put the graphics card in a lower slot.

[quaxo]

(wife permitting, not keen on me "wasting time playing games").

Do what I did... get her into playing games. 

Sometimes the screen goes black after about 10 minutes, other times it can go on for much longer (playing Comanche 4).  My nephews played a game called Azteca for well over 2 hours the other day and the screen didn't go black at all.

....

The graphics card looks like it just has a heatsink, the card is in the top slot of the motherboard, so it is close to the cpu fan.  Would the cpu fan help keep it cool or would the heat from the cpu heat it up?  If this is the case I can always put the graphics card in a lower slot.

Yeah, it really does sound like an overheating issue. Azteca is graphically very simple being 2D, so the stress on the video card is minimal compared to 3D games. Comanche 4 on the other hand is 3D and much more graphically intense, which would lead to more stress on the card and therefore more heat faster causing it to shut down.

While heat sinks do help, they're not as effective as fans, or fan/heat sink combos. Close proximity to the CPU could also be an issue, as it lets off a substantial amount of heat. Moving the video card further away might help.

Some things to look at for now:

1. Make sure all case fans are clean and working properly. Make sure the fan in the rear of the case is blowing outwards and if there is a fan in the front of the case (there isn't always) that it is blowing inwards. This helps generate airflow through the case, carrying hot air out and bringing cooler air in.

2. If there isn't a fan in the front of the case, but it has a place to mount one (most cases do), you might consider putting one in. As I said before, it helps generate airflow.

3. Make sure your wires and cables inside the case aren't blocking proper airflow. IDE cables are about the worst at this since they're the widest cables in a system. Try bundling them together to one side or the other so air can flow more freely through your case.

4. You could consider replacing the heat sink on the video card with a fan. Newegg.com has a nice selection of replacement fans and heat sinks for VGA cards starting at about $5-10.
http://www.newegg.com/Store/SubCategory.aspx?SubCategory=576&name=VGA-Cooling

[manish07]

Ya, its caused from over heating or its problem in your RAM.

[quaxo]

Ya, its caused from over heating or its problem in your RAM.

Thanks, Sherlock. Please stop spamming the forums with useless suggestions now.