GeForce GTX 460 drivers constantly failing and recovering... and occasionally not recovering. - Hardware & Software

I've tried installing older drivers but that makes no difference, and the problem persists after re-installing windows as well. I need to set the fan speed to 100% while playing any video game so it doesn't overheat, even while playing something as undemanding as League of Legends... but still even at a reasonable temperature the drivers occasionally fail and recover, or other times not recover at all. The problem occurs infrequently enough for me to be able to do and play things on it for a comfortable amount of time... [I]most of the time[/I]... but still frequently enough to be occasionally [I]really[/I] irritating and inconveniencing. I've cleared all the dust visible from the outside... the only thing I haven't tried yet is taking the cover off to clean it on the inside. I would have tried that by now but I haven't been able to find a screwdriver around my house that fits. I've also considered replacing the thermal paste. I'm wondering what the likelihood of those factors being the problem would be, as opposed to it just being some virtually irreparable hardware damage... I have had it since December 2010 after all. To be exact, it's an [B]ASUS NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460 1GB[/B]: [IMG]http://cdn.overclock.net/1/17/800x600px-LL-179f6826_f242a5538c2d66be2769e98bc4e44b6a.png[/IMG] My specs are: [B]CPU:[/B] Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 2.4GHz [B]RAM: [/B]4GB [B]OS: [/B]Windows 7 Professional 64-bit This is the notification that appears after it recovers: [IMG]http://i.imgur.com/JBs8MKi.png[/IMG]

My old graphics card would do something similiar to this, then it got to the point that my computer was having issues with color with the graphics card then I couldn't even boot to see. Only safe mode wouldn't make me blue screen. I would honestly say buy a new graphics card but that is just me.

[QUOTE=Dizzeh;46237212]I would honestly say buy a new graphics card but that is just me.[/QUOTE] if your CPU has a integrated GPU you could run your monitor through that (Don't think that one has it? I have no idea) [url]http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130825[/url] [url]http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130921&cm_re=gtx_770-_-14-130-921-_-Product[/url] a 660 would be a fair upgrade, but a 770 would be an even greater upgrade chances are your system will bottle neck the gpu and you'll have to replace parts, if you don't have a 500$ budget a 660 would probably do well enough, it's certainly better (if you need a rebuild ComputerDr. Facepunch can help) if you are broke as shit a 550 ti would be good too [url]http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814133444&cm_re=560_ti-_-14-133-444-_-Product[/url] of course there could be a way to fix it but I'm not sure how

[QUOTE=~Kiwi~v2;46237257]He could also get a 750TI that basically outperforms everything except the 770 listed.[/QUOTE] that too I just listed the 770 since that was what I had and was familiar with [url]http://pcpartpicker.com/parts/video-card/#sort=a8[/url] tons and tons of solutions out there

[QUOTE=~Kiwi~v2;46237257]He could also get a 750TI that basically outperforms everything except the 770 listed.[/QUOTE] 750ti doesn't outperform the 660, but yeah. Also, the Q6600 won't bottleneck terribly. I ran a Q6600 with my 680 for a while :v:

[QUOTE=J!NX;46237237]if your CPU has a integrated GPU you could run your monitor through that (Don't think that one has it? I have no idea)[/QUOTE] There was never a CPU for the LGA775 socket that had an IGP. IGPs back in those days were discrete chips on the motherboard or integrated in the northbridge chipset. I think the reason for the GPU failure is due to a fractured solder joint. The card could probably be repaired with a heatgun, but everything would have to be taken off the card first (heatsink, fans, all removable plastic pieces, thermal paste.) But if the OP chooses to go with a new GPU, OP can also get an E8400 off Ebay for like $20 for increased performance, assuming the motherboard supports it. You lose two cores but the performance gain on the first two cores is worth it if you aren't doing heavy multitasking.

Okay, I've accepted I'm just going to have to buy a new graphics card... I've been planning to gradually building a new PC anyway, with an AMD FX-8350 4.0GHz 8-Core CPU. I just wanted to see if I could delay getting a new graphics card for another month or two, fixing the one I have for now, so I can save as much money as possible to get the best one affordable to me. The ones I'm considering at the moment are: [B]MSI NVIDIA GTX 660 2GB[/B] [B]Condition:[/B] Refurbished [B]Time of affordability:[/B] Now £110/$176 USD [img]http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51o7Fve3ZmL.jpg[/img] [B]Sapphire Dual-X Radeon R9 270X 2GB[/B] [B]Condition:[/B] New [B]Time of affordability:[/B] Next week £119/$190 USD [img]http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/516uAr30zXL.jpg[/img] [B]Asus NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760 2GB[/B] [B]Condition:[/B] New [B]Time of affordability:[/B] Next week £143/$228 USD [img]http://www.overclockers.co.uk/pimg/GX-347-AS_92655_600.jpg[/img]

The GTX 760 is slightly better than the R9 270x in everything except very high resolutions. Is it worth the price difference over the R9 270x for the extra performance? Not really, but that's for you to decide. I would get the R9 270x, but that's just me. But when you do end up getting a new card, you can try fixing the old one with a heat gun and keeping it around as a spare.

[QUOTE=GiGaBiTe;46246956]The GTX 760 is slightly better than the R9 270x in everything except very high resolutions. Is it worth the price difference over the R9 270x for the extra performance? Not really, but that's for you to decide. I would get the R9 270x, but that's just me. But when you do end up getting a new card, you can try fixing the old one with a heat gun and keeping it around as a spare.[/QUOTE] Why not just solder it back up?

[QUOTE=ashrobhoy;46304225]Why not just solder it back up?[/QUOTE] You can't just "solder back up" a ball grid array. Here's the process of fixing a BGA ASIC: [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PgncMQJZyxg[/media] One of these stations costs hundreds of dollars and considerable skill to avoid destroying the chip and PCB during any of the steps. Using a heatgun is a less desirable method and is just an attempt to remelt the cracked solder joints, which is usually successful depending on how you do it. As to how long it lasts entirely depends on how you treat it after the fix.

I had this problem in my y580, and I fixed it by changing it from "lenovo dynamic graphics" to "performance mode", not sure if you have software similar built into your PC, but it's worth letting you know. For me, it was the card overheating. That or it's failing I guess.