Kevnvek Posted January 7, 2011 Share Posted January 7, 2011 I'm posting from my laptop. I had another BSoD that, when viewed with a program called BlueScreenView, seemed to be related to the GPU, as tech support informed me. I had it before when I first got my system and it was buggy, but I reformatted it and haven't had any problems since. A couple hours ago I just got that BSoD again, called tech support, got the info, and just shipped out the GPU. It was under suspicion of being faulty since I got it, so now I'm getting it RMA'd. Only cost to me was $7.50 shipping. The system was still fully usable, but I wanted to get the GPU replaced ASAP if it's not working completely right and will have the occasional error.Not really a problem, just means I'll be without my new computer for about a week. I can still stream and advertise the giveaway, but it will be something simple like Torchlight (Synchronized save files with Steam Cloud is definitely nice).Also, maybe I'll get a chance to make some progress in Fable 3 now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThermoNukePanda Posted January 7, 2011 Share Posted January 7, 2011 *sad face* I'll keep my fingers crossed you get it back soon dude! In the mean time, watch some Soul Eater or Kenichi! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skylark95 Posted January 7, 2011 Share Posted January 7, 2011 That sucks...Sure didn't last long.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevnvek Posted January 7, 2011 Author Share Posted January 7, 2011 That sucks...Sure didn't last long..It happens sometimes. Not all hardware is guaranteed to be perfect when you get it, but free replacement is nice. I kind of suspected that the GPU had a problem within the first few days of getting it after talking to the tech when it was acting up, but I was just hoping it was a one time glitch. Most of the problems I had initially were from the operating system being on too small of a hard drive before I reformatted to the bigger one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dateranoth Posted January 7, 2011 Share Posted January 7, 2011 Yep, just part of it. I'm surprised they didn't do any burn in testing since they built it, but at least they're replacing it. Even so, it happens. That's the worst part of building yourself is getting a part and being all excited and it being DOA. lol, least you got to play for a while before it went to hell. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevnvek Posted January 7, 2011 Author Share Posted January 7, 2011 Yep, just part of it. I'm surprised they didn't do any burn in testing since they built it, but at least they're replacing it. Even so, it happens. That's the worst part of building yourself is getting a part and being all excited and it being DOA. lol, least you got to play for a while before it went to hell.The process is supposed to include a burn-in, but maybe they didn't redo it since I changed the GPU during the process. The change only delayed it by like a day or two, which surprised me since most part changes I at iBP I hear could delay it up to a week. The customer service guy said it would be about a week.And that's the nice thing, it never actually "went to hell" or got unusable, I was fully able to use it, right up to the point I took it out to return it, but the latest BSoD once again indicated that something was wrong. So it was more of a "something could go wrong eventually, or in certain conditions". I used BlueScreenView to check and this was the second BSoD related to atikmdag.sys, a driver file for the card, and I had updated the drivers with the latest for it from the ATI/Radeon website.And when I talked to the tech, I found out I guess the warranty is 1 year parts, 3 years labor, and lifetime tech support.I do have one question which I forgot to ask the tech, when I get and install the new card, will I have to do anything driver related when I start the system back up, or will it be fine since it's the same card? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dateranoth Posted January 7, 2011 Share Posted January 7, 2011 As long as it's the same card and you haven't booted the system without it you won't have to do anything. Though, for thoroughness I suggest completely removing the drivers and reinstalling them when you get the card back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevnvek Posted January 7, 2011 Author Share Posted January 7, 2011 So should I use something called Driver Sweeper, then download and install the latest drivers again from the site? I did kind of have a "beta driver", I had a preview version of the new Catalyst Control Center, but that only really seemed to change the GUI, and I installed that over a week ago and didn't have any problems. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dateranoth Posted January 7, 2011 Share Posted January 7, 2011 Na, don't need to use driver sweeper. Just uninstall them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevnvek Posted January 11, 2011 Author Share Posted January 11, 2011 I called to check on the status of my RMA and they said the new GPU should be shipping out today, so I should get it by Friday at the latest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dateranoth Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 Good news, I was just wondering if you had it back yet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevnvek Posted January 11, 2011 Author Share Posted January 11, 2011 Good news, I was just wondering if you had it back yet.I figured it would take about a week, assuming they had the GPU in stock, due to my proximity (I shipped it out last Thursday).I'll get back to streaming F.E.A.R. and maybe some other games and advertising the giveaway some more.No Super Meat Boy or racing games for a while though, as I just returned my controller, planning to preorder the Razer Onza TE (available for preorder on the 17th), so I won't receive that until it ships out after it's cryptic unannounced release date. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevnvek Posted January 13, 2011 Author Share Posted January 13, 2011 Have I said before how much I like the United States Postal Service over UPS or Fedex? I shipped out my package last Thursday afternoon, about an hour before the local post office closed, and the package got to it's destination the following Saturday. I get it shipped back via FedEx on 1-11, and it still says it won't be here until the 14th, tomorrow, despite being at the nearest facility, which is only about an hour away.If I'm lucky it may still get here today, if that estimate is a bit over, though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThermoNukePanda Posted January 13, 2011 Share Posted January 13, 2011 WOOT! Pretty soon we can get back to some SupCom2 matches (as long as the two of us don't get steamrolled by the AI like last time. LoL) and maybe set up a time to play some NWN2 dude! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevnvek Posted January 14, 2011 Author Share Posted January 14, 2011 Got the new GPU, and everything seems to be working fine. Where should I go to uninstall the drivers? Device manager? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dateranoth Posted January 14, 2011 Share Posted January 14, 2011 If there isn't any newer drivers then don't worry about it. If there are, then just install them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevnvek Posted August 24, 2011 Author Share Posted August 24, 2011 So I did this again. The new GPU had a rattle since I got it anyways, and with some recent BSoDs (always preceded by artifacting) I figured it was time to replace it again while I still have the warranty. I did a bunch of tests and found the RAM and CPU to be stable, but a few bad clusters on the HDD which, though it doesn't mean it's bad, indicates a higher chance of it becoming corrupt. So I replaced that too since I intended to reformat and reinstall Windows anyways.I got the parts back yesterday and have pretty much everything up and running now, aside from maybe a couple programs I haven't installed yet. It's running better than before too, as I reinstalled the OS to the 30GB Solid State Drive again (with the 1TB for data, mostly Steam games). My Windows Experience Rating went up to 6.5 from 5.9, because the hard drive setup (the lowest number on my system, which is used as the score) got a better score.It gets easier every time, I think I'd like to study and get into computer repair in the future since I'm still not quite able to find a job lol.So if you noticed slightly less activity from me, that's what was going on. I was on my crappy old laptop lol.One cool thing, I actually got a slightly newer model GPU. It has all the same specs and is still an XFX Radeon 6870, but the design is different. It's lighter, slightly smaller (so it goes in super easy and doesn't have to be angled around cables like the old bulky one) and has a much better looking fan, that is actually a fair bit quieter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dateranoth Posted August 24, 2011 Share Posted August 24, 2011 Let me give you a word of advice. If you want to do just computer repair then start looking early and get your foot in the door as soon as possible. Even behind the bench at best buy or something. It's an extremely saturated market and starting pay can be low. Experience goes a long way on top of the degree. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spawn622 Posted August 24, 2011 Share Posted August 24, 2011 Computer repair is a pain in the ass. I'm just going to put it out there. I did it for 6 years and it was the worst job I've ever had. Other than that, congrats on getting your PC fixed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skylark95 Posted August 25, 2011 Share Posted August 25, 2011 LOL, I have a drive just for steam games. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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