Graphics Problems - Help

[Macaroni]

Having huge graphics issues today.

for no reason (have not isntalled/changed anything today) - I get a BSOD (blue screen of death) saying something like NV_4_disp caused an infinite loop, etc.

I can ony start in safe mode and the screen where I select taht displays a bunch of 0's and nonsense text.

I uninstalled my Nvidia driver (Nvidia 6800) and tried reinstalling - no luck

I have downloaded and run a driver cleaner - cleaned out all the nvidia astuff and tried again

i have defragmented

i have run chkdsk c: /f

im outta options.

[SgtChopper]

Here you go this might help

http://www.christopherjason.com/articles/nvidia-nv4disp-problem/

[Macaroni]

thanks for looking - i tried that exact thread first - no go.

[Copydude]

Cheese head... I see in several posts that folks own a dell and Mcafee... try uninstlaling Mcafee also.
PS is your system also a dell?

[Macaroni]

yes - dell xps 400 w/mcafee..

i will uninstall it

only thing i have done recently is put in another gig of ram - but cant see how that would do this (i took it out and it still is f'ed up).

weird thing - if i remove my nvidia driver and boot just to the vga - it is ok - if i install the nvidia driver - i get a bunch of mess /0's on the loading screen... looks horrible then either the infinite loop message or if i start in safe mode - i am using the vga stuff...

will post back once i try mcafee

[SgtChopper]

Talking about Mcafee I remember awhile back with another system I had the exact same thing happen and I had to uninstaller it to get the drivers for the card to install correctly

[Macaroni]

uninstalled mcafee... no difference.

sad sad mac and cheese - no COD

:-(

[Cookiemonster]

This is a thread on the NVIDIA forums that discusses this problem. One guy found that it was a conflict with his audio driver. Who knows. Wish I could fix it for ya.. I'll keep poking around.

http://forums.nvidia.com/index.php?showtopic=4432&st=100


Cookie

[Cookiemonster]

Unplug whatever you can and see if its power. Maybe it crashes when it detects your cd or dvd drive at bootup and draws power from the card. just wild ass guesses at this point.

[Yourself]

Do you have a 2nd video card you can try?

Do you have another machine you can try the 6800 in?

After looking at several links out there, this really is a puzzle.

You said it works fine in VGA mode (native windows drivers) - that only lets you run at 640 x 480, or 800 x 600?

I assume you've tried reseating the card?

Does the fan work on the card?

Have you tried moving the ram around in your system?

Some common symptoms have been video cards, drivers, ram, and bios.

Have you tried to reset your bios?

I'm not sure about the bios on the XPS systems - not sure if there is a slow or fast setting, or what you can change.

Do you have memtest - and does your system pass it?

Sorry that I don't have many ideas.

Yourself (Dave)

ps. did you drip cheese into it?

[Macaroni]

had this chat with Dell...

(conclusion - resintall windows - if that doesnt work - new video card).

What is weird - computer worked fine today- even played COD2 this morning...

09/19/2007 07:08:25PM Session Started with Agent (CSS_Scott _162423)
09/19/2007 07:08:32PM Agent (CSS_Scott _162423): "Thank you for patiently waiting. You have reached Dell Small and Medium Business Hardware Warranty Chat Support. My name is Scott and I will be assisting you today. In order for me to help you, can you provide details about the issue you’re having?"
09/19/2007 07:09:11PM tom clark: "unpon restarting computer - get BSOD - NP4_DISP error about an infinite loop"
09/19/2007 07:09:37PM tom clark: "uninstalled/resinstalled drivers, started in safe mode, defraggged, etc"
09/19/2007 07:09:42PM tom clark: "cant solve it"
09/19/2007 07:10:08PM tom clark: "only way i can start the pc is in safe mode - and the screen where i select safe mode - all messed up - bunch of 0's all over the screen"
09/19/2007 07:10:48PM Agent (CSS_Scott _162423): "Tom I understand that you are having a issue with your system booting and I will be happy to assist you."
09/19/2007 07:11:54PM Agent (CSS_Scott _162423): "To ensure we are working with the correct system, the model type is a (DIM9150XPS400)?"
09/19/2007 07:12:10PM tom clark: "yes"
09/19/2007 07:13:47PM Agent (CSS_Scott _162423): "Incase we get disconnected is there a phone number that Dell can contact you at? And what would be the latest time we could contact you today?"
09/19/2007 07:14:14PM tom clark: "941-351-3769 - anytime"
09/19/2007 07:15:35PM Agent (CSS_Scott _162423): "Ok, did you try reinstalling the video card driver in safe mode Tom?"
09/19/2007 07:15:45PM tom clark: "yes sir"
09/19/2007 07:15:48PM tom clark: "several times"
09/19/2007 07:16:12PM tom clark: "uninstalled it first - restarted in safe mode - reinstalled - restarted computer - same issue"
09/19/2007 07:17:15PM Agent (CSS_Scott _162423): "Did you try a system restore from safe mode?"
09/19/2007 07:17:49PM tom clark: "yes - did not work"
09/19/2007 07:18:23PM tom clark: "also removed the card physically from the box and reinserted it to ensure it was in all the way"
09/19/2007 07:19:37PM Agent (CSS_Scott _162423): "Ok, the next step would be to reload windows Tom. Do you have the CD's?"
09/19/2007 07:20:12PM tom clark: "what are they called? i am not sure the system came with them - it was preloaded?"
09/19/2007 07:21:04PM Agent (CSS_Scott _162423): "Well, that system may have a back up partition we could restore from. Is there any data on the system you need to back up before we reload?"
09/19/2007 07:21:41PM tom clark: "will i lose all on the C drive?"
09/19/2007 07:22:09PM Agent (CSS_Scott _162423): "Yes."
09/19/2007 07:22:25PM tom clark: "ouch - yes - i would need to do a backup"
09/19/2007 07:22:32PM tom clark: "what is the quickest way?"
09/19/2007 07:22:43PM Agent (CSS_Scott _162423): "You should be able to get into safe mode and back that up first."
09/19/2007 07:23:17PM Agent (CSS_Scott _162423): "A zip drive, CD, or another hard drive. You should be able to pull the data off of the drive from safe mode."
09/19/2007 07:24:06PM tom clark: "ok - im talking to you on the computer now"
09/19/2007 07:24:21PM tom clark: "can you send me the steps to backup and then reinstall from the partition?"
09/19/2007 07:24:33PM tom clark: "also - can we confirm i have the partition first?"
09/19/2007 07:25:02PM Agent (CSS_Scott _162423): "I can't tell you how to back up. To confirm you have the partition you have to try to boot to it and see if it boots."
09/19/2007 07:25:28PM tom clark: "ok - let me know how to do all the above and i will give that a try"
09/19/2007 07:25:39PM Agent (CSS_Scott _162423): "To back it up just locate what you want to save and move it to the drive or CD."
09/19/2007 07:25:52PM tom clark: "ok - i can do that"
09/19/2007 07:26:30PM Agent (CSS_Scott _162423): "To launch the restore. Hold both the F11 and the CTRL key when you see the Dell logo at startup and release them at the same time."
09/19/2007 07:27:09PM tom clark: "ok - then follow the prompts?"
09/19/2007 07:27:44PM Agent (CSS_Scott _162423): "Yep."
09/19/2007 07:27:58PM tom clark: "ok - anything else i need to know about this issue?"
09/19/2007 07:28:30PM Agent (CSS_Scott _162423): "If you still have the issue after reloading the video card may need to be replaced Tom."
09/19/2007 07:28:51PM tom clark: "understood - thank you for your help - i will give that a try"
09/19/2007 07:29:33PM Agent (CSS_Scott _162423): "Ok."
09/19/2007 07:29:43PM Agent (CSS_Scott _162423): "Is there anything else I can help you with today?"

[Copydude]

yuk

[Yourself]

OMG

I love the following quote:

"To back it up just locate what you want to save and move it to the drive or CD."

What an understatement.

It's cheaper for them to say that than to ship you a new video card.

I wish I had one laying around to send to you for testing...then you could tell them you reloaded windows, and it's still not working.

Yourself (Dave)

[Crazy Ivan]

Whis I had seen this thread earlier, hope you haven't re-installed yet.

Mac I feel sooooo bad for you I have had a similar problem with an ATI card a year or so back, Messed up display as soon as I would power on machine, THE CARD WENT BAD,

IF it is a driver issue, while you are booting XP hold th F8 key down and select "Last known good configuration" option and see if the last restore point helps?

Good luck.

Dan

[Carper]

Only 2 other things I can think of that havent been mentioned are:-
Have you overclocked? If so, try going back.
or
Overheating? I had this problem that would give my the BSOD, only when playing graphic hungary games - easiest way to check is to take the side of your case and put a desk fan next to it (blowing into the case). Boot-up as normal and try and play... I was recommended this and it worked!

[Macaroni]

thanks all for jumping in and the suggestions.

i did the restore of windows - it wont even boot up without the BSOD. Stupid me - the restore would install the Nvidia drivers which are the issue to begin with. well - since the restore did not boot up yet for the first time - i cant start it in safe mode - gives me the message windows not fully loaded. ugh.

so - i am convinced it is the graphics card. cause now the screen is all messed up all the time.

earlier suggestions
i did swap out my memory - same issue
i started the computer when cool (after several hours) and same issue immediately - so not a heat issue

It seems screwed up in VGA mode now too - so graphics card has got to be it.


Maybe I should just buy vista while im at it and go all out. So much for my "week off" from technology - hehe

Thanks brothers!

Tom

[Higgins]

Dell is like Microsoft, the New York Yankees, and onions....the DEVIL! Not that something a guy that hasn't had more than dialup in 2 and a half months holds much water, but that, at the very least, should give you a laugh. I do believe it though and Curt can attest to my dislikings of Dell.

Chad

[AladdinSane]

Dell is like Microsoft, the New York Yankees, and onions....the DEVIL! Not that something a guy that hasn't had more than dialup in 2 and a half months holds much water, but that, at the very least, should give you a laugh. I do believe it though and Curt can attest to my dislikings of Dell.

Chad

Amen!

[Yourself]

I don't know....

I've been extremely happy with the Dell equipment I've had, and also with the performance of the equipment we've purchased at a prior job.

It's the customer support that has been pretty questionable.

I think in this case, the common thread is the NVIDIA hardware - not the Dell branded hardware.

Tom - you have an XPS, (I believe you said) - isn't that a different support number, that has access to a higher (or more specific) level of support than regular Dell customers?

I don't have an XPS, but I remember reading about the extra level of support.

The FX5200 issue that I spoke of earlier was a choice on my part, and not an issue of Dell - they had it available as an option, but I selected it.

Come to think of it - I gave that card away, and it recently blew up.

Oh well.....I just wanted to chime in and say that I've been pretty happy with Dell as a manufacturer.

Yourself (Dave)

[Macaroni]

yes - xps

i like the system a lot.

this issue is between nvidia and microsoft apparently - they cant agree who owns the issue and who will fix it. you go to the nvidia site - they tell you to contact your computer manufacturer

you go to microsoft - they tell you to contact nvidia

oh well


i'm highly considering the 8800 gts... just have to find someplace local that sells it.

newegg had it for $269 (after $20 rebate) but once you add shipping - would rather just run out and buy it somewhere.

[Yourself]

Unfortunately, that's typical between manufacturers.

The 8800GTS is a great choice....looking at the 320 or the 640 meg version?

You're looking for good DX9 performance, not DX10 performance with that card, correct?

Yourself (Dave)

[Cookiemonster]

If I'm not mistaken the 8800 needs lots of physical space so make sure you have room and power for it. I think it has a boeing 737 jet engine strapped to it :icon_wink:

[Macaroni]

well - i did it

got teh Geforce BFG 8800 GTS w/320 RAM (wife said the kids apparently need to eat this week - so i saved the extra 2 hundred and didnt get the 640mb version).

I put it in - worked. Apparently my Geforce 6800 went whacky. If anyone wants an expensive paperweight....


ANY suggestion on custom settings for this card?

I have 2GB ram and 70 GB free space and Pentium D 2.8 GHZ (dual core) so I think my PC can handle the highest settings.

Just didnt know if there are some advanced settings - clock speed, etc that others may recommend.

Thanks for all your help

[Yourself]

LOL

From a 6800 to an overclocked 8800GTS!

Whee!

Just a quick question - is your case ventilated enough, and have enough airflow to overclock the video card?

If so, this appears to be an excellent link regarding overclocking by FiringSquad (http://www.firingsquad.com/hardware/nvidia_geforce_8800_gtx_gts_overclocking/)

Let's see...CoD2 at 1280 x 1024, max graphics settings:

8800gts (stock) 61.9 fps
7900gts (stock) 48.2 fps
8800gts (overclocked) 72.5 fps

WOW.....good luck on the overclocking.

I don't overclock myself, but I do have a bit of knowledge that I picked up reading about it, so post your experiences and questions.

Yourself (Dave)

[Macaroni]

If I'm not mistaken the 8800 needs lots of physical space so make sure you have room and power for it. I think it has a boeing 737 jet engine strapped to it :icon_wink:

ur right - it takes up one PCIE slot - but 2 physical slots

[Yourself]

Oh, and your 2.8 ghz P4 is not really dual core.

It is HyperThreaded (HT) - that means (basically) it is only a single-core processor, and emulates a second processor during the wait cycles.

That's not technically accurate, but accurate enough to describe the performance - think of it as your main processor at 100%, and the emulated second processor at 20%.

In other words, while not as powerful as a true dual core processor, it is more powerful than a true single core processor. So tasks that shut down a single core processor (for example, heavy processing that causes the mouse on the desktop to lag) perform much better (in this example, the mouse doesn't lag).

Yourself (Dave)

[Copydude]

makes you wonder why Intel dosen't use hyperthreading in their dual and quad cores, that was part of the reason I didn't go with intel in my new computer. And AMD will have it in their quads when they fiinally come out.
Karl.
Mac, I was tempted to by the xps.... the 8800 requires monster power to run... how much wattage is you power supply?

[Yourself]

Intel will be reintroducing their HyperThreading technology in their newest processors - it is coming back with Nehelem (linky to Intel announcement). (http://www.techreport.com/discussions.x/13232)

That will make their new 8 core processor effectivley into a 16 core processor.

An interesting discussion occurs here. (http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview.aspx?catid=28&threadid=2097500&highlight_key=y&keyword1=hyperthreading) It starts kind of slow, but then introduces a bunch of information.

Keep in mind.....there is additional overhead related to additional cores and additional threads (multi-threaded tasks). In today's desktop world, the number of cores is effectively moot once you exceed two (assuming all cores have the ability to run at the same speed). The upcoming 3 core units from AMD may be questionable as to their usage (I think it's more of a marketing ploy than an effective processing ploy), but the only time you benefit from more cores is when you max out your existing cores. If you have a process that will max out a 4 or more core desktop system, I would argue that there are more bottlenecks in that system than just the processor, and that process should be running on a server class machine.

Regarding the power usage of the 8800GTS...I think the 8800GTS uses about the same (or a little more) than an X1950PRO - unless you have high-draw components in your system (and use them all at the same time), you should be (Your Mileage May Vary) fine with an efficient power supply 350 watts or larger, or a conventional power supply of 450 watts or larger.

I think it draws something like 26 amps (full out) on the 12 volt rail.

Yourself (Dave)

[Copydude]

I know when we upgraded my old Sony Via pen4 3.8's vid card with an AGp 6800 that the power supply wasn't adequate and we had to upgrade to 450 watt. so just curious

[Macaroni]

i just checked (then ran into booting problems - THANKS KARL).... it is 375 Watts.

You run power right to the card too to help it.

[Copydude]

yea three prong plug direct to the card

[Yourself]

Karl said:

yea three prong plug direct to the card

Hahahahahaha....I really liked that one!

The extra power dongle is required for the card to run at max power.

At max power, the card draws more than the maximum 75 watts that are delivered over the PCI-e slot.

I'm not sure about the extra power connection - is it a 4 pin drive connection, or a 6 pin PCI-e connection?

In the ATI world, you can't overclock the X2900XT unless you have the 6-pin connecter hooked up, but I don't know about the 8800GTS.

Just watch your system - if it reboots randomly (or freezes up randomly), it may be a power issue.

You SHOULDN'T get a BSOD due to power (I never say never.....)

Yourself (Dave)

[Copydude]

sorry 4 pin lol.. I just looked real quick forgot to count.. same as any ohter device needing power...
and Dave :p
:p

[Macaroni]

yes 4 pin

i went to add an additional fan today - hooked it up and computer froze upon booting.

had to take it out.

the XPS has a huge front intaxe fan - right to the processor. the only other fan is on the power supply (built in) and one on the grpahics card - i kinda thought it would be good to put a fan blowing OUT in the back to draw the air from the front out the back.

plus it would be just above the PCIe slot / graphics card fan... thought it would help cool it... butr alas i guess i need more wattage.

[barkingmaduk]

I have twin fans that sit in a dvd/cd rom bay it takes up the same room as a dvd/cd rom and blow out the front they work on a normal 4 pin power that you use to power a dvd/cd rom
it sit above my hard drives and pulls air up through it away from the hard drives
i had the same problem with air flow
i only had a fan in the back and this helped alot in the summer
the only other thing to do is get a desktop fan and point it at the back to cool it, i point my a/c at it in the summer to keep it cool

this is what i have
http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=26523&criteria=cooling%20fans&doy=22m9

and this is also what i was looking at
http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=28682&criteria=cooling%20fans&doy=22m9

this takes the heat from the center and fits in a pci bay at the back

[Yourself]

However, doesn't the cooling fan on the video card suck air from inside the case and exhaust it out the back?

So, it should only add minimal heat to the inside of the case....maybe even cool it better than it was before.

That is assuming the air being exhausted in the back of the case (power supply and gpu exhausting air out of the case) is not being sucked back into the system.

On one of my machines, I had a heat issue. It turns out the CPU shroud was pulling air in from the back of the machine, cooling the cpu, and exhausting that air INTO tha case - it made a world of difference once I turned the shroud fan around so it exhausted air outside of the case.

I still have a heat issue on the other machine, however both machines are in a closed off 2.5 x 3 foot area with limited airflow, so I kinda expect it.

Yourself (Dave)

[zatoichi]

having 12 years experience in hardware and OS issues. I have see this too many times to count cuased my multiple things hardware and software so there is no finite point to start, hardware is the first option unless you have just installed windows updates or some other software.

Option 1- This option elmintes hardware; first take out the ram you added then try it. then if does not work as some one else mentioned take it down to the bare minimum. no CD,remove any add on cards, no USB anything except a keyboard, no floppy unhook it all then try it. if it is still failing. pull the current memory out and put the other memory in then try it. if it continues then try the next step addressing software.


Option 2 -Now start with the software. uninstall all the nvidia drivers and let windows load it's drivers after rebooting and see if still BSOD's. next do yo have any of the Nvidia software other then the drivers. I had this same problem when it loaded the performance components in the Nvidia control panel and started tweaking settings. it first would BSOD once in a while during a game then got the point it started doing in loop until went into safemode and removed the software and it was all fine.

[capt.morgan]

Come on Tom ,time to buck up and build a REAL computer like the rest of us!.LOL

Good Luck,

Todd

[Macaroni]

Come on Tom ,time to buck up and build a REAL computer like the rest of us!.LOL

Good Luck,

Todd

LOL - this was over a year old mate!

[SolidSnake]

Computers are fine when they work, but you feel like smashing them when they don't.
Hope you get it sorted mate!!!
Sounds about right to eliminate one thing at a time at this point.
Good luck!

[Macaroni]

Computers are fine when they work, but you feel like smashing them when they don't.
Hope you get it sorted mate!!!
Sounds about right to eliminate one thing at a time at this point.
Good luck!

LOL i appreciate all the nice comments and stuff

BUT THIS POST WAS OVER A YEAR OLD

Since then I have gotten the Nvidia 8800GTS and have been fine. The graphics card was toast