[SOLVED] Two graphics card stopped working one after another

Aug 4, 2019
6
2
15
Hi,

I am running in to a bit of mystery here with my PC which is turning in to a bit of a "graphics card eater". Need the force of collective minds here to figure out what's going on.

So, I have been using my current PC for two years now without much of an issue. Two weeks ago, my displays suddenly disappeared. After a bit of troubleshooting, I figured that it was due to the graphics card as when I plugged my displays in to motherboard they came on. Later that day, I remembered that I had an older gaming PC with a graphics card. I proceeded to install this card and boom the displays came on when I plugged them in to this older graphics card. This went well for about two weeks until today when the plot thickened. My displays were plugged in to this graphics card and working. I stepped away for a few minutes and when i came back the displays were gone! I again plugged displays to motherboard and they worked. I tried my other graphics card which had stopped working two weeks and no luck. I was thinking about trying another borrowed graphics card but am a little hesitant in case this graphics meets the same fate. Any help in troubleshooting this is appreciated!

Below is my configuration (let me know if any other details are needed):
Motherboard: MSI Z270 PC MATE
CPU: i7-7700k
System memory: 2x8GB ADATA DDR4 3000
First graphics card: MSI GeForce GTX 1070 6GB
Second graphics card: EVGA GeForce GTX 960 2GB
Storage 1: Kingston 240GB A400 SSD 2.5'' SATA
Storage 2: Samsung PM961 512GB M.2 NGFF PCIe Gen3
 
Solution
My money is on the psu. Failing PSUs are a known component killer and you may be finding that out. It is probably time to get your self a good psu before it kills everything in your system. If the video cards come back with a new psu, you're lucky. But I personally would not bet on it. A FAILING PSU WILL KILL YOUR WHOLE SYSTEM.

So get yourself a nice EVGA, Corsair, or Seasonic PSU. Don't use the system any more with the old PSU.

Mandark knows a thing or two about computers so I would not discount his suggestions. But for sure killing components (drives, graphics cards, mobos) is a symptom of psu malfunction. It has happened to me more than once.

Greg N
D

Deleted member 14196

Guest
In order to determine the card is actually bad it must be tested in another system at least

If it’s not bad that means your motherboard has issues possibly or your windows is messed up
 

gn842a

Honorable
Oct 10, 2016
666
47
11,140
My money is on the psu. Failing PSUs are a known component killer and you may be finding that out. It is probably time to get your self a good psu before it kills everything in your system. If the video cards come back with a new psu, you're lucky. But I personally would not bet on it. A FAILING PSU WILL KILL YOUR WHOLE SYSTEM.

So get yourself a nice EVGA, Corsair, or Seasonic PSU. Don't use the system any more with the old PSU.

Mandark knows a thing or two about computers so I would not discount his suggestions. But for sure killing components (drives, graphics cards, mobos) is a symptom of psu malfunction. It has happened to me more than once.

Greg N
 
Solution
Aug 4, 2019
6
2
15
I installed the 960 graphics in my older PC and below is what happened:
  • I first started PC with display connected to the graphics card. Display came on for about 15 seconds and then went off
  • Restarted PC but this time Display didn't come on at all
  • Plugged display in to MB and restarted, display came on. Setup Windows
  • Tried plugging in to graphic card and restarting a few more times. Display came on about 3 times out of 10 for about 15 seconds and then went off
  • I also noticed that the graphics card fan starts spinning for a second or two every now and then
 
Once you've tested with a known good PSU of sufficient wattage, ...we'll know more...

Make sure GPU has it's needed PCI-e GPU power connectors (might be one or two 6 pin and/or 6+2 connectors from PSU labeled PCI-e GPU PWR, etc

If your PSU is old, it is best not to use Y and/or molex adapters; if you change PSUs , do NOT reuse old PSU modular cables
 

gn842a

Honorable
Oct 10, 2016
666
47
11,140
The wattage should be sufficient because both graphics cards worked in the original systems they were in for two years. Is there anything else I can try?


I think your Corsair has given up the ghost and the "thing to try" at this point is a new PSU. I would suggest choosing from the Tom's Hardware recommended list, though these days I just go for whatever Seasonic suits my tastes.

I know it's hard to believe that a trusted brand psu may have let you down but even though I've run Thermaltakes for years I did have one that kicked the bucket after three months.

Read this list of psu failure symptoms. Man you are right there. And what worries me now is that the more you mess around with this psu the more likely it is that you will have systemic component failures.

It should also be remarked that, as a general rule, when something goes on a build, it is the psu, and probably the next major source of failure is the gpu. I think both private builds and corporate computers tend to skimp on the psu. They don't need to be the most common source of failure, but they are.

Greg N
 

gn842a

Honorable
Oct 10, 2016
666
47
11,140
if you change PSUs , do NOT reuse old PSU modular cables
listen to what mdd1963 is saying: Use the cables that come packaged with the psu and only those cables take all the old ones out

Not knowing that piece of information cost me about $1k. I'd still be using my old build if someone (and I mean the OEMs) had informed me that cables from another psu WOULD KILL EVERY COMPONENT OF THE SYSTEM
 
Aug 4, 2019
6
2
15
Thanks Greg for your in depth help in troubleshooting. Seasonic SSR-600TL looks to be fitting the bill for me. Will be looking to replace PSU in next few days. Not in a hurry as I can work on my older PC in meanwhile (of course without graphics card and without 144Hz refresh rate). Thanks once again for all the help. I'll respond here when I have an update.
 
  • Like
Reactions: gn842a
Aug 4, 2019
6
2
15
Update: I ended up taking my PC to a PC repair shop. They tried my graphics card on a couple of their PCs and it didn't work. I also tried it on a friend's PC just to double check and it didn't work.

Although the card was within manufacturer warranty, nvidia told me that since I bought it from a third party (iBuyPower) it is OEM's warranty that applies which was one year only which kind of pissed me off.

I ended up getting a new EVGA RTX 2070 graphics card and EVGA 850W Gold PSU. All set.
 
  • Like
Reactions: gn842a