ashfox Posted February 20, 2006 Share Posted February 20, 2006 I mentioned this briefly when i was moaning about a possible virus that i might have. Basically the problem is: When im playing X3 The Reunion, the game will be fine one minute but then it will freeze for a second and then my pc will shut itself down!! This happens anywhere in the game. sometimes it happens as soon as i load a game and sometimes it will be 10 minutes into the game before it happens. I thought that it could be a virus or something but i have noticed a pattern where it only shuts itself down when i am playing the game! This is my pc: Windows XP Home Edition with service pack 2 3.0 GHz processor 1GB memory Sound system: Realtek AC’97 Audio card Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce FX 5900 card Could it be because my graphics card is over heating/broken or something because i know that the game is very graphically demanding. Any reasons why or any solutions to the problem would be appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TetsuoShima Posted February 20, 2006 Share Posted February 20, 2006 I'm inclined to say that you need to have a look at your power supply possibly upgrade to a better model, if it's not too late allready.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ashfox Posted February 20, 2006 Author Share Posted February 20, 2006 ok thanks for the help Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kiznik Posted February 20, 2006 Share Posted February 20, 2006 I mentioned this briefly when i was moaning about a possible virus that i might have. Basically the problem is: When im playing X3 The Reunion, the game will be fine one minute but then it will freeze for a second and then my pc will shut itself down!! This happens anywhere in the game. sometimes it happens as soon as i load a game and sometimes it will be 10 minutes into the game before it happens. I thought that it could be a virus or something but i have noticed a pattern where it only shuts itself down when i am playing the game! This is my pc: Windows XP Home Edition with service pack 2 3.0 GHz processor 1GB memory Sound system: Realtek AC’97 Audio card Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce FX 5900 card Could it be because my graphics card is over heating/broken or something because i know that the game is very graphically demanding. Any reasons why or any solutions to the problem would be appreciated. Definitely sounds like your graphics card is over heating. Try changing the quality settings and resolution of the game down all the way and see if it still happens. If it is your graphics card that is causing the crash, it could be because the card is inadequate or it could be that it's not receiving enough power. But... I believe the Nvidia GeForce FX 5900 has a reputation for being "under fanned"... which leads to overheating. If that is what it is, and you don't want to change the graphics quality (or can't), and you don't want to buy a new video card, then you can trying moving your case into an area with good air flow, and you can even take the cover off the side to increase cooling. Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ashfox Posted February 20, 2006 Author Share Posted February 20, 2006 ok. I didn't know that an overheating graphics card could make my pc shut down, i guess you learn something new everyday! I'll try and see what happens if I lower the graphics settings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TetsuoShima Posted February 20, 2006 Share Posted February 20, 2006 I used to have an fx5900, never had overheating problems myself but it was very powerhungry, download rivatuner (google it) to check your temps. Under load, the temps are allowed to rise quite high, the max temp before the core gets damaged, is about 130°C, but its best to keep them below 80°C or even 70°C. If they rise over 80, youve got a heat problem, if they don't then that is most likely not the problem. An overheating graphics card does not in itself shut down a computer, but when an application 'becomes critically unresponsive' (for example because the graphics card has quit functioning the way it should), windows XP will do it for you, normally seen though, that would result in a reboot, but depending on settings, it could also lead to a shutdown. This XP behavious can be disabled under advanced system properties >> start up and recovery >> automatically restart. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kiznik Posted February 20, 2006 Share Posted February 20, 2006 ok. I didn't know that an overheating graphics card could make my pc shut down, i guess you learn something new everyday! I'll try and see what happens if I lower the graphics settings. I had a Radeon 9000 and I played Quake 3 for hours, and I experienced the same thing: computer shut down. The graphics card has the ability to tell the motherboard "I'm experiencing more than I can handle, please shut it all down." On some motherboards it will reboot, on some it will shut down. I'm interested to know the results of any changes you make to determine for sure what the problem is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jhug666 Posted February 20, 2006 Share Posted February 20, 2006 to be honest it sounds like a card that either can't handle the game or is overheating terribly, had the same sorta problem when i bought splitner cell 3, once i got a new card (that included a vga cooler) everything was fine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sloany Posted February 20, 2006 Share Posted February 20, 2006 Try taking the side off your pc and clean the heatsinks on both your graphic card and processor. I would think it was more likely be the processor overheating than the graphic card as when they overheat they start to show artifacts or the picture gets corrupted and it boots you back to your os. But once you have cleaned your pc leave the side off the case as this will reduce temps and try the game again. I keep the side off my pc all the time as it means I need less fans and the ones I do need run slower and therefore make less noise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vystral Posted February 21, 2006 Share Posted February 21, 2006 Sound system: Realtek AC’97 Audio card Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce FX 5900 card there's your problem, bro. you need to go to start->run->dxdiag go to the sound tab and set the hardware acceleration to basic. your comp sounds very similar to mine. same problem. nvidia chipsets are not entireley compatible with the realtek ac 97 codecs. i have the same problem with San Andreas and Sim City 4. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gamer1978 Posted February 21, 2006 Share Posted February 21, 2006 Did you try updating your video card drivers and reinstalling directX (install the newest version) and is everybody absolutely shore the videocard is overheating could it not just be the ram it can cause the same problem and is more likely to fail. From my experiance anyway. You should also check your agp driver if you are using an agp slot the driver usually ccomes on you motherboard utility disc. and also you could check your bios/cmos settings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TFMF Posted February 21, 2006 Share Posted February 21, 2006 Did you try updating your video card drivers and reinstalling directX (install the newest version) Updating your Graphics card drivers is not always the best idea - it can often make your card run harder - it may make things worse... as i have found out.... :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ashfox Posted February 21, 2006 Author Share Posted February 21, 2006 I used to have an fx5900, never had overheating problems myself but it was very powerhungry, download rivatuner (google it) to check your temps. Under load, the temps are allowed to rise quite high, the max temp before the core gets damaged, is about 130°C, but its best to keep them below 80°C or even 70°C. If they rise over 80, youve got a heat problem, if they don't then that is most likely not the problem. An overheating graphics card does not in itself shut down a computer, but when an application 'becomes critically unresponsive' (for example because the graphics card has quit functioning the way it should), windows XP will do it for you, normally seen though, that would result in a reboot, but depending on settings, it could also lead to a shutdown. This XP behavious can be disabled under advanced system properties >> start up and recovery >> automatically restart. I downloaded rivatune and checked the temperature but it didnt go higher than 60 celcius. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ashfox Posted February 21, 2006 Author Share Posted February 21, 2006 Sound system: Realtek AC’97 Audio card Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce FX 5900 card there's your problem, bro. you need to go to start->run->dxdiag go to the sound tab and set the hardware acceleration to basic. your comp sounds very similar to mine. same problem. nvidia chipsets are not entireley compatible with the realtek ac 97 codecs. i have the same problem with San Andreas and Sim City 4. i have run dxdiag and it says on all the tabs at the bottom that everything is fine but i will set the acceleration to basic and see what happens. Also all of my graphics and sound drivers are the latest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ashfox Posted February 21, 2006 Author Share Posted February 21, 2006 I just noticed something really strange when i was trying to lower my graphics settings from within the game. I looked and saw that the graphics settings are already set to the lowest for the game. i thought i'd see what happens if i experimented with the settings. So i put the graphics settings to maximum from within the game. i know that the game is graphically demanding but i thought id try it anyway. i have run the game and it takes a bit longer to load because of the highter graphics but it doesnt seem to shut my pc down. this is strange!! :stare: If anything i would think that this would make my graphics card work harder and cause more problems!! (thats if it is my graphics card) any thoughts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TetsuoShima Posted February 21, 2006 Share Posted February 21, 2006 I downloaded rivatune and checked the temperature but it didnt go higher than 60 celcius. Well, in that case I again state my first remark: power supply. i have run dxdiag and it says on all the tabs at the bottom that everything is fine but i will set the acceleration to basic and see what happens. Also all of my graphics and sound drivers are the latest. Might help, but even so, it will give 'crappy' sound as well... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TetsuoShima Posted February 21, 2006 Share Posted February 21, 2006 I just noticed something really strange when i was trying to lower my graphics settings from within the game. I looked and saw that the graphics settings are already set to the lowest for the game. i thought i'd see what happens if i experimented with the settings. So i put the graphics settings to maximum from within the game. i know that the game is graphically demanding but i thought id try it anyway. i have run the game and it takes a bit longer to load because of the highter graphics but it doesnt seem to shut my pc down. this is strange!! :stare: If anything i would think that this would make my graphics card work harder and cause more problems!! (thats if it is my graphics card) any thoughts? As long as your graphics card isn't hindered by bad cpu performance, it allways works full trottle! So the only difference in workload on the gpu is mostly cpu dependant. In any case, it could indicate that the problem is either cpu dependant and not gpu dependant, or it couls still be the psu that gives out, since when you increase the graphics settings, it is likely that the cpu has to do less work and thus consumes less power and thus the psu will overload less rapidly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ashfox Posted February 21, 2006 Author Share Posted February 21, 2006 Lets say that it is my graphics card that is broken. if this is the case then what type of replacement graphics card do you recommend that is compatible with my computer (see specs at the top) and that is good at handling games that are very graphically demanding? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TFMF Posted February 21, 2006 Share Posted February 21, 2006 Is this just X3 you are having problems with? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ashfox Posted February 21, 2006 Author Share Posted February 21, 2006 yes its just X3 that i have noticed problems with (so far). x3 has got to be the most graphically demanding game i've got. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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