Video display corrupt ?voltage problem

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I have a Petium 2.8 Ghz PC with an ASUS PC4800 deluxe motherboard. The utilities with the motherboard include a voltage monitor. For the last 2 months the 12V threshold voltage has been dipping to as low as 9.3 volts. During this same period the display becomes corrupted and sometimes the PC freezes. This was with an NVIDIA FX5600 card. I changed to a Radeon 9600XT card but the problem has remained. I have emailed ASUS twice in the last 6 weeks but no reply. I am suspecting either the power supply or motherboard as the problem. Does anyone else have any other suggestions before I try replacing them.

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Two things I would recommend you check:

1. See if the video card has an additional power plug dangling from it somewhere. Newer cards suck up a lot of juice and recently manufacturers have started adding this additional molex plug to provide the extra power.
2. Check the output wattage of your power supply and make sure it is capable of handling the demands of your system. If you have a full load, including multiple drives, fans and other components, the power supply may not be up to task.

You may also consider having the power supply tested at a local shop. The motherboard should have an onboard voltage regulator to prevent wild fluctuations in the power delivery that is faulty, but it is more likely that the power supply is to blame. If the motherboard is under warranty then a replacement may be what you need, if you can have it cross-shipped.

HTH,

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Thanks for reply. The PC worked fine for the first 4 months then voltage problems occurred. Power supply should be adequate – is Antec true power 380W. Will try another power supply first as that is cheapest option. Could voltage regulators on MB be problem. Thanks for suggestions.

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Have to agree with Mark that it is most likely the power supply. You might be amazed at the power load a full running box will consume.

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Thanks – will certainly try the power supply first – this will be cheaper option as well.

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Yup – power supply – and you might want to invest in an UPS – much better than ANY – Repeat – ANY power strip at protecting your system from spikes and surges than power strips – and they also protect you from brown outs (low voltage situations) and, of course complete power outages. And the good part is that they have come down in price to that of a more expensive power strip.

Note that every time a power strip takes a hit, it gets weaker.

I plug my strips into my UPS.

Note that if you have an LCD monitor, you can easily run your PC, Monitor, and all your network devices comfortably off a 500VA UPS which you can get for under $75 US.

Go for a bigger one for multiple PCs or you want to run your CRT monitors – Note that in the case of a complete outage, all you need is about 5 minutes of run time to perform a “graceful” shutdown.

Bill (AFE7Ret)
Freedom isn't free!

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Thanks – I already use a UPS. Doesn’t seem to have saved the power supply though. Will be trying a new one tonight.

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Well, don’t get turned off by Antec, they still make great PSs. I will add that the Tru Power series is a “quiet” type supply – if you have any case fan speeds controlled by the PS you might try using non-speed controlled connections.

You can get a really inexpensive generic video card just to verify it is the card. I have PNY card that I use just for testing, troubleshooting and verification that I keep on hand – that way if the mobo or ps is wiping out cards, I won’t destroy a good one.

Bill (AFE7Ret)
Freedom isn't free!

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Tried new Abtec Tru power supply and its done the trick. 12V supply is now nice and clean with no dips. No more display or lock up problems. Thanks everyone for your replys, its saved me a bit of time and money.

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Excellent news! Glad it got fixed.

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Excellent news! Glad it got fixed.

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Great – glad you got it fixed and thanks for posting that you got it fixed – so many postings are left with no follow-ups – it is good to see what led to the resolutions.

Bill (AFE7Ret)
Freedom isn't free!

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Great – glad you got it fixed and thanks for posting that you got it fixed – so many postings are left with no follow-ups – it is good to see what led to the resolutions.

Bill (AFE7Ret)
Freedom isn't free!

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Tried new Abtec Tru power supply and its done the trick. 12V supply is now nice and clean with no dips. No more display or lock up problems. Thanks everyone for your replys, its saved me a bit of time and money.

Reply | Quote

Well, don’t get turned off by Antec, they still make great PSs. I will add that the Tru Power series is a “quiet” type supply – if you have any case fan speeds controlled by the PS you might try using non-speed controlled connections.

You can get a really inexpensive generic video card just to verify it is the card. I have PNY card that I use just for testing, troubleshooting and verification that I keep on hand – that way if the mobo or ps is wiping out cards, I won’t destroy a good one.

Bill (AFE7Ret)
Freedom isn't free!

Reply | Quote

Thanks – I already use a UPS. Doesn’t seem to have saved the power supply though. Will be trying a new one tonight.

Reply | Quote

Yup – power supply – and you might want to invest in an UPS – much better than ANY – Repeat – ANY power strip at protecting your system from spikes and surges than power strips – and they also protect you from brown outs (low voltage situations) and, of course complete power outages. And the good part is that they have come down in price to that of a more expensive power strip.

Note that every time a power strip takes a hit, it gets weaker.

I plug my strips into my UPS.

Note that if you have an LCD monitor, you can easily run your PC, Monitor, and all your network devices comfortably off a 500VA UPS which you can get for under $75 US.

Go for a bigger one for multiple PCs or you want to run your CRT monitors – Note that in the case of a complete outage, all you need is about 5 minutes of run time to perform a “graceful” shutdown.

Bill (AFE7Ret)
Freedom isn't free!

Reply | Quote

Thanks – will certainly try the power supply first – this will be cheaper option as well.

Reply | Quote

Have to agree with Mark that it is most likely the power supply. You might be amazed at the power load a full running box will consume.

Reply | Quote

Thanks for reply. The PC worked fine for the first 4 months then voltage problems occurred. Power supply should be adequate – is Antec true power 380W. Will try another power supply first as that is cheapest option. Could voltage regulators on MB be problem. Thanks for suggestions.

Reply | Quote

Two things I would recommend you check:

1. See if the video card has an additional power plug dangling from it somewhere. Newer cards suck up a lot of juice and recently manufacturers have started adding this additional molex plug to provide the extra power.
2. Check the output wattage of your power supply and make sure it is capable of handling the demands of your system. If you have a full load, including multiple drives, fans and other components, the power supply may not be up to task.

You may also consider having the power supply tested at a local shop. The motherboard should have an onboard voltage regulator to prevent wild fluctuations in the power delivery that is faulty, but it is more likely that the power supply is to blame. If the motherboard is under warranty then a replacement may be what you need, if you can have it cross-shipped.

HTH,

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Tony,
Sounds like the PS to me also.
You could try unplugging a few of the non critical units like CD reader or Sound card or the like, to see if there is a difference without their current draw.

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