video crash

[size=13]I've tryed everything. diffrent
drivers, updates, re-installs, etc. but I keep having huge
problems while running hl2 (for the most part) as well as other games.

I'll fire up a game and it will work fine for hours then boom... out of
no where the screen flicks off like its going into suspend and the
computer stops responding. Other times, with hl2 and hammer, the
program will start to slow down and studder and then freeze up.
There will be artifacting other times there wont...

help me please!

Radeon 9600 128mb pro

1.8ghz AMD

512 RAM

I'm pulling my hair out here!

[/size]

its prolly hot, hows your cooling situation?

try turning its acceleration down for a while and see if it stops borking.. if it does, i bet its hot.

It might be a heating issue.
It could either be your processor or your graphics card. Try checking
the fans and heatsinks, make sure the fans are all running and not
clogged up with dust or anything, make sure the heatsinks are sitting
flush and haven't popped out. Even if this isn't the problem, it can't
hurt.

*Edit: Didn't see orphs post... must've happened while I was typing this :/

Its all clean and cool, I've even run test while gameing and there has
been no heat issues on the processor. I havn't tested the
graphics card, but not only did it work fine in my last computer but
there is a fan right under it (in the PCI slot).

I think it has somthing to do with my drivers. What really really
bugs me is that I was able to play through hl2 fine on the ATI beta
drivers that came out with hl2, but after I updated it stopped
working. I've rolled back my drivers and I've even tryed 3rd
party drivers.

Faster CPU, more RAM. Don't worry about overheating - my computer runs too hot to touch and it seems just fine. The exact temperature is between 68 and 72 degrees C and there's no problems. Of course, if it gets so hot you see smoke coming out, then that can cause problems...

Sorry, but if your computer is getting
too hot to the touch, then it probably wont stand the test of time.
Also, you might want to look at your power supply, that's usually
what causes things like that. However, you're also in a warmer part
of the world (if I'm not mistaken) and that plays a role too.

In
any case, Fox, if your computer hiccups, don't be surprised.

Glass,
there might be a problem with your graphics card fan. There may be an
issue with some of your graphics card's memory (That's what usually
causes artifacts along with GPU overheating). But then it may be the
drivers.

Just some things to check, see if the fan is having
issues. Sometimes, if you have anything in the PCI slot next to the
AGP it could "interfere" with the Graphic card's operation
(they may be physically touching). Go through BIOS and check your AGP
timing.

It could be almost anything, to be honest.

Try a clean driver install. Uninstall the current drivers, boot into
safe mode, use a tool like driver cleaner to get rid of all the traces,
then boot up normal again, and install the drivers.

lets see, nothing touching it.. though it isn't quite fitting into the
slot. The card dosn't line up with the screw whole all the
way. everything seems to be wokring well on the card.

I have uninstalled the drives, but didn't clean out the drive.

I guess I was hoping that some other person had this same problem.

thanks anyways, I'll keep trying things.

That really sounds like a Video Card overheating. And to say that
temperature isn't important is naive. There are a few components where
heat isn't an issue, but in processors it is, in any form. The lifetime
of your computer has been dramatically decreased by running it at
70C...which is rediculously high for any processor (I have a T-Bird
which has a high threshold and even then, 60 is too much.) You really
need to have airflow in that computer. Try to aim for a max of 50 to
maximize the lifetime of your CPU and bear in mind your VPU/GPU will be
running quite a bit hotter than your CPU. Power Supplies can add a lot
of heat to the system as well, the higher the wattage the higher the
heat (they aren't perfect machines, lots of energy is wasted as heat)
so make sure your computer has adequate ventalation and that you have
at least one or two case fans minimum. The only time you can get away
without is if you really know what you're doing.

Oh, and in the odd event there is a conflict, know that often the video
card shares the same IRQ as a PCI sound card (and even though PCI
should have addressed the problem of IRQ conflicts, strange stuff can
still happen.)

i read someplace that if, you do not set your bios correctly, or your slot isn't supportive of the newer cards, that one of these two will cause cards to get hot, or to cause artifacts to appear after extended use.

it wouldn't be the first time that someone failed to look in their bios after installing a high end video card.

i could also be completely off base and talking out my ass, so use this info as you see fit.

Well, the voltages for a 2X, 4X and 8X AGP card are different, so if
you try and mix a card of the wrong type (often it's expressly stated
on your motherboard, BIOS and everything in print around your system)
you'll be putting in a lot more or a lot less voltage than the card is
designed for. So you'll either not get enough power or you'll have a
very hot or destroyed card.

I'm running the radeon 9600 pro with 8x AGP which the card does
support. I've tryed to change the voltage and other settings in
my BIOS.

I'm starting to think that maybe it is the heat isssue. Only
thing is that some games will work fine, then others will only last for
a short time, still others like hl2 will crash minutes after starting
game play.

<DIV class=quote>
<DIV class=quotetitle>? quoting DrGlass</DIV>
<DIV class=quotetext>
I'm starting to think that maybe it is the heat isssue. Only thing is that some games will work fine, then others will only last for a short time, still others like hl2 will crash minutes after starting game play.
</DIV></DIV>

well there you have it bucko.. high end games put stress on the cards processor and cause.... heat.
do as i suggested, try turning the acceleration down a bit and see if it helps..assuming you can do such a thing with a 9600.

Wait .. did I miss something here? Glass, DO you have the ATI accelerator on?

also check Dxdiag for problems,

Dxdiag comes up clear, I have no acceleration on, I did how ever put in
a 3rd party 'omega' driver that allowed me to up the power to the card,
so I just pulled the bar down a bit and that F*cked up the computer...
the second I hit apply both my screens (I run duel moniters) got
mad artifacting.

I did a system restore, back to the driver that allowed my hammer and other MODs to work, other than hl2.

And tools to mesure heat on the card?

Dxdiag comes up clear, I have no acceleration on, I did how ever put in
a 3rd party 'omega' driver that allowed me to up the power to the card,
so I just pulled the bar down a bit and that F*cked up the computer...
the second I hit apply both my screens (I run duel moniters) got
mad artifacting.

I did a system restore, back to the driver that allowed my hammer and other MODs to work, other than hl2.

And tools to mesure heat on the card?

The ATI "Overdrive" area should tell you termperatures ... I hope it's
not only when activated. By the way, "Only changing the voltage" IS
clocking at a non-default setting, just so you know.

Did you ever check to see if the actual fan is working properly? (I
don't remember, and I'm too lazy to check the rest of the thread at the
moment)

must ... destroy ... double posting
...