Power Supply / Video Card troubles... :(

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jvittetoe

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Sep 20, 2009
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Greetings gentlemen,

This evening, my dad's PC has started to suddenly lose peripheral power. After about 5-10 minutes of being on, the monitor, keyboard, mouse all lose power. Well, the monitor doesn't, but it loses its video feed to the PC.

I figured this was a PS issue and started to investigate. I started reading some 1-2 star reviews on the case/ps we purchased. There's a lot of chatter about how the PS is a complete POS. Things started to make sense. I then opened up the case and turned it on to see if I could see anything when it decided to lose peripheral power. I did confirm that all the internals were still powered though, and it was just the peripherals that turned off. The case fan, cpu/fan were still spinning. However, I did notice that my video card fan wasn't spinning. In fact, it never spins. From the moment the PC is turned on, the GPU fan doesn't spin. I knew this wasn't a good thing and decided to check out the temp. it got as high 119 C before I was like, 'this isn't good', and shut her down.

Now, I'm at a loss of what could be wrong. I still think it's a PS issue. But, why am I only losing power to my peripherals and not my internals? Why is my video card fan not spinning?

The product pages of my parts are below. But heres a quick run down...

MicroATX 420W PS and ASUS EAH4830 ATI HD 4830 512MB PCIe.

PS - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811144162
VC - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121289

Any help or advice would be much appreciated.
 
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cmichael138

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There are 3 possibilities as to why the GPU isn't working: 1. Faulty GPU; 2. GPU fan clogged with dust; and 3. Faulty PSU. If te GPU isn't old, then my 1st guess would be the PSU; it's a low quality unit and possibly not supplying enough power to your peripherals. Do you have a tst unit to test the PSU or a substitute PSU?
 
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jsc

jsc

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Jul 14, 2004
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You are loosing power to the internals. That's why you have no video displayed on the monitor.

I am guessing that you are seeing an LED on the motherboard indicating "power to the motherboard". The last phrase was in quotes because that is not exactly true. A computer PSU has two completely separate sections - well, separate except for the AC input. The main section has the 3.3, 5, and 12 volt sections that actually power the computer. The smaller section, called the standby power supply, is always on if the computer is plugged into the wall. This smaller section is what powers the LED. All it indicates is that the PSU is plugged into wall and the PSU power switch on the back of the unit is on.

It's used for otherthings, bu tit primarilly indicates that the PC is plugged into a live outlet.

I agree. You probably have a power problem. At least, that's where I would look first. A quick way to tell would be to borrow a known good PSU and hook it up from the outside. If the PC then works, it's the PSU.

 
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jvittetoe

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You are loosing power to the internals. That's why you have no video displayed on the monitor.
Click to expand...

Oops, I meant to mention that I AM getting video to the monitor. Thats how I knew the GPU was getting really hot, via CCC. I will look for a PS replacement and see if the GPU fan kicks on and if I lose power at any point.
 
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jvittetoe

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Update:

I just purchased a replacement PS to test on my rig. My GPU fan still fails to spin.

Would an overheating video card cause the 'loss of power' to my peripherals? Perhaps a safety measure?

I have tried spinning the GPU fan with my fingers and noticed that there is a quite a bit of resistance. Compared to my other PCs GPU fan and the CPU fan, it is a lot tougher to spin. Maybe is clogged with something? Hair or dust?

I have detached the fan from the GPU itself and am trying the pop the blade off to see if I can't unclog whats resisting it. Any tips on how to do this? I am afraid of permanently breaking it.
 
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ohiou_grad_06

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First, what kind of power supplies are we dealing with and what are the amperage ratings listed under 12v+ on the side sticker? That's the first thing. The power supply may be working, just not be strong enough to power the card. Maybe get some canned air, and then use that to clean out the gpu fan. If it does turn out to be the video card, if you are afraid of breaking it, then you probably should not mess with it unless it's out of warranty.
 
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jvittetoe

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On my new PS, i have +12V1 = 1.0A = 18A

My vid card fan does the same with this new PS as it did with the other one. Rotates very very very slow ( i take back what I said about it not spinning at all. I thought this slight rotation was being cause by air flow from the case and PS fans. ). I'd guess 1 rotation per 15-20secs. It's trying, but there's too much resistance on the bearings i think. The fan blades dont seem to want to snap off its casing so I can get inside and perhaps lubricate. I guess im just going to have t buy a new heatsink/fan.

but, would this overheating of the vid card cause me to lose power to my mouse/keyboard and cause the video feed to go black ( my monitor then acts like there is no video card connected. it just cycles from analog to digital to hdmi looking for a connection even though it is connected ) ?
 
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ohiou_grad_06

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Ok. You could have a fan/overheating problem if the fan does not want to move. Personally, if you just bought the new power supply, I think in your shoes I would try to exchange for a better one.

Also, if you decide on a new heatsink/cooler, you may want to just look into a better card as it may not be much more, and prices have dropped quite a bit.
 
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jvittetoe

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Back again...

I just purchased a new heatsink/fan for my video card. here it is, http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835119080 however, I cant figure out how to install it onto my video card, link above. As you can see from this picture, http://www.newegg.com/Product/ShowImage.aspx?CurImage=14-121-289-S01&ISList=14-121-289-S01%2c14-121-289-S02%2c14-121-289-S03%2c14-121-289-S04%2c14-121-289-S05%2c14-121-289-S06&S7ImageFlag=1&Item=N82E16814121289&Depa=0&WaterMark=1&Description=ASUS%20EAH4830%2fHTDP%2f512MD3%20Radeon%20HD%204830%20512MB%20256-bit%20GDDR3%20PCI%20Express%202.0%20x16%20HDCP%20Ready%20CrossFire%20Supported%20Video%20Card I have removed the fan (black piece) and the aluminum heatsink underneath of it. I assume this is the proper procedure? Now, the new heatsink comes with 2 'pins' that are supposed to attach somehwere to the video card board. I do not see where these pins insert into.

Am I doing something wrong?
Also the heatsink came with some thermal compound, however, on the tube, it says CPU only...is this unsafe for my GPU?
 
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jvittetoe

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uuuuuuuuuuuuuuugh. this heatsink/fan is supposed to be compatible with Radeon cards. Could it not be fitting because this is an ASUS card? and not a straight up ATI card.
 
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EXT64

EXT64

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That is for pretty old cards (note the GeForce 3 and 4) and thus "all ATI cards" may have been all ATI cards 6 years ago. What I'd recommend is checking if the card is still under warranty. How old is it? A failing fan is their fault, and if it is still under warranty that is definitely the way to go.
 
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EXT64

EXT64

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Yes, but the Radeon name has been used for a very long time. My first card was a Radeon (9100) and my most recent one (4850) was one too, despite 6+ years between them. A Radeon 5870X2 is also a Radeon, however that cooler would fry in a second. You have to be very careful with compatibility on GPU coolers, as the bolt layouts often change.
 
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jvittetoe

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Yes, I have removed the black piece (the fan) and the silver heatsink it was sitting on that was screwed to the card. I have tried to remove the actual fan blades to get in there and attempt to lubricate or clean out any hair/dust that i can't see/get to currently, but i feel like I'm going to break the cheap plastic.
 
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