Problem after installing new graphics card

[Terp]

Hey all, I decided to purchase a new graphics card after accidentally breaking a piece off of my old Sapphire X1950 Pro card. The resistor that broke off seemed to not cause any major problems but I wanted to replace the card to be safe.

That is where I am running into a much bigger problem. I went purchased a XFX HD4850 and installed it, computer booted up and I ran the most current catalyst driver install from the web. After the install was complete, it asked to reboot and upon doing so I am unable to get the system to boot back up. It makes it to the Windows loading screen with the XP logo and then proceeds to reboot and try to load again. I have tried everything from resetting the CMOS to placing the other video card back into the system and I have yet to find a solution to the problem.

Running XP Pro on a GA965P-S3 mobo with an Intel E4300 chip. 4GB Ram with a FSP AX500-A power supply 460W(500peak), 12V1==17.5A+12V2==17.5A, which from what I understand should be able to run the card just fine.

Any input is greatly appreciated, let me know if I am missing any information needed.

Thanks

 

[skolpo]

Have you tried going into safe mode? Try getting into safe mode and uninstall the drivers and try an older driver.

 

[Terp]

Same thing happens when I try to go in to safe mode. Doing more research I think I might have a bad mobo since Gigabytes seem to be prone to endless reboot cycles. Gonna try tinkering around with where the ram is on the board since that seems to help some people.

 

[skolpo]

If you think it's a hardware problem, the best thing to do is to reseat all your components. If you have spare parts, you can try to isolate the problem by replacing one part at a time to see if it'll boot. Have you tried using the X1950 to see if you can get to the desktop screen?

 

[Terp]

I'm in the process of trying to isolate it now, the first thing I tried was putting the old card back in and was still getting the same problem. I have tried one stick of ram to see if one of the sticks went south, also trying the old ram from when I first built the computer to see if that helps any.

 

[skolpo]

I have a strong feeling that there is a corrupt file after you installed the new drivers. Since you cannot boot into safe mode to perform a system restore, you can try to repair/reinstall XP with the XP CD.

 

[JackNaylorPE]

Always uninstall old drivers before installing new hardware.

 

[Terp]

Not able to repair the install off of the XP cd... gets about half way through and a blue screen pops up for a second and it restarts again. Any further suggestions/pointers?

 

[Terp]

Shot some video with my cell phone to see what the blue screen said since it is just a quick flash, says that ati2mtag.sys is the problem child, then it does a physical memory dump and restarts, would this being corrupted cause the reboot loop?

 

[Mousemonkey]

Maybe the slightly higher amperage requirement of the 4850 was the straw that finally broke the camels back or in this case the PSU.

 

[Terp]

Any easy way to test if the PSU is messed up or is buying a new one going to be the only way?

 

[Mousemonkey]

Other than trying parts in another machine, no not really.

 

[Terp]

Update to the situation: Got a new PSU and it didn't help the problem, so I pulled a old HD in to install XP and at least save the files since the repair on the XP install cd keeps crashing.

Now, when I try to install the video card software on the fresh install, the system reboots shortly after I start the install. I am at a loss at this point.

Thanks for all the help guys.

 

[skolpo]

Now I'm guessing a hardware issue. The last thing you introduced to the system was the video card. Since your old video card might be rendered broken, your best bet is to test the system with another card to see if the problem fixes.

 

[Terp]

Well, I am not experiencing crashes with the system right now, the only time I can get it to force the reboot is when I try to install the ATI Catalyst package that I downloaded off of the internet. I installed the drivers off of the disk that came with the card onto the fresh XP install and it is working now, no problems. So I am thinking there is some sort of conflict with the driver package that I downloaded and not necessarily a hardware issue.

 

[skolpo]

Maybe you should install the driver previous to the latest one, unless you're not interested in taking the rest again.