I have been reading this forum for a long time, but this is my first post…. Never had a problem like this one before. :newb: My config: Intel Core 2 E/400 Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3L G.Skill DDR2 1000 4GB (2 x 2GB) (F2-8000CL5D-4GBPQ) WD Velociraptor XFX GeForce GTS250 *Old PSU: Coolmax M-500B (500W) *New PSU: Antec True Ppower-750 (750W) The Problem: I was playing COD World at war for 2-3 hours and suddenly my PC turned off automatically. After that I tried to turn it on and I hear a small explosion inside the case :uhoh:….. The Coolmax PSU never turned on again. I tested the 500W coolmax with a multimeter and it was dead, however it was odd because its fuse was in perfect condition. I decided to buy a new PSU and I went with the Antec TP-750 after reading reviews and comments about it. My new 750w PSU arrived and I installed it immediately …. I double checked that everything was connected right, (my GTS250 has only one 6 pin connector) then turned the system on and…… an explosion again!!!:bawl:, but this time it smelled to melted plastic/metal. I don’t know why, but I tried to turn it on again (I was frustrated with all that mess:bang and it started normally….. vista started and everything seemed to be working fine until I tried to run 3D applications (Games like Crysis, GTA, SFIV, COD, even turning vista aero mode on) the monitor goes to powersaving mode, the system crashes and the GTS250 fan starts to spin at its maximum capacity…. Then no response at all, I just hat to turn the PC off. I was sure it was a video card problem, but just in case I checked the new antec 750w PSU with the multimeter and all voltages where more than perfect (excellent PSU by the way). Also I tried to use another 12v rail with the GTS250 and got the same bad results. I decided to examine the vcard carefully and I found a burned/partially melted small chip near the fan!!! (Couldn’t upload a photo because my powershot camera just died a few days ago) Finally I realized that the GTS250 was the problem and not the PSU, so I decided to keep the system off and unplugged because that vcard malfunctioning can cause damage to the other HW parts. I think that all that mess was produced by the Coolmax 500w PSU, it was not enough to power the system, so it overheated and somehow caused damage to the GTS250 and leaves it ‘unprotected’….. After that, when the new Antec PSU connected it fried the card. Do you think this is the cause of the problem? I want to be 100% sure of this, because I am going to purchase a new vcard (maybe a eVGA GTX295) Please Help me. Thanks in advance…
sorry to hear about your nightmare it but a 295 isnt that like going from the frying pan into the fire? i'd go for a 5800 series as these use a lot less power than a 295.
he has the power to run it and it is the fastest single card gfx out there still.. albeit the price/power might not match.. and theres no dx11 support in it yet.. Id say rma the 250 if possible, and sell it afterwards, get the card you want
it would probably be a good idea to take a look at the pcie slot your card was in. grab a flashlight and see if you can find any burned contacts in the slot. also check for any brown or burned traces on the backside of the mb.
to bad men, i suggest to examinate all your rig,, component by component to ensure what MAXFLY said..
The pcie slot seems to be ok, I am looking the back side of the mobo to check if there is any burned trace as maxfly said. Also, I will double check again every part.. I know I have enough power for the 295, but as you said is a good idea to sell the gts250 first……. So I am trying to RMA (hope this will no take long) Thank you every one for your help.
Does your M/B support onboard video? Im just thinking if it does then you could reset the bios for the onboard vid just to test the rest of the system till you receive your new GPU. If there is a prob then you would know its beyond GPU alone. This is one of the reasons im glad i have integrated ATI graphics on my M/B should my 260 ever act up. At least I have a backup. I assume if you had onboard you would have already done this test but thought id mention it anyway.
