6850 arrived. PC shutting off with a blue screen... HELP! :-(

[Moropo]

So i currently have a 5670 and i ordered a 6850 which just got here. Instead of writing a big paragraph which makes it hard to get the course of action, i will list the steps i took as well as what happened in "bullet" point style:

-remove the 5670 (didnt remove the drivers or anything, was just too excited)
-connect the 6850 as well as the 6-pin power connector
-power on PC, i get to login screen and everything looks big as when you are in low resolution, i thought i will just raise the resolution etc, no big deal.
-login and get a windows message saying "display drivers not installed or not functioning"
-i pop in the CD that came with the 6850 and install Catalyst (even though i had it installed with the 5670). Setup finishes correctly and i get a message i need to reboot.
-get to login, put password and hit enter. Screen goes black for a good 15-20 seconds and then get a blue screen saying something went wrong with display driver and it is shutting off so hardware doesnt get damaged. This is as much as i can read because the blue screen goes away quick. This is when i realized i should of uninstalled the 5670 drivers and Catalyst etc. This is also when i started freaking out thinking i may have messed up something...
-remove the 6850, put back the 5670 and everything is fine, i get to windows perfectly etc. I go to device manager and uninstall the 5670 that shows up under "display adapters". Then go to Control Panel and uninstall Catalyst.
-remove 5670 and pop back in the 6850. Login screen again as if low resolution, i login and get the same message about drivers. Basically the same as before, install Catalyst and reboot.
-and then everything the same, login screen shows up, when i login it immediately goes to black screen (never see windows desktop) and then the blue screen.

I have no idea whats going on and dont know how to diagnose it, less fix it. My happiness of receiving the 6850 has been crushed.

I will really appreciate any help PLEASE!

Current system:
Intel i7 2600
Radeon 5670
8GB RAM
Windows 7 Home Premium

[Cantii]

Ok, take these steps and report back what happens:

Download Driver Sweeper and install it (http://www.guru3d.com/category/driversweeper/)

Download Catalyst 11.2 Drivers from AMD.com (http://sites.amd.com/us/game/downloa...n_win7-64.aspx -- assuming you're using Win7 64bit)

Run the downloaded driver package and choose Uninstall, then Custom. When it comes back with a list, SELECT EVERYTHING and uninstall. Reboot when it asks you to.

Load Windows into Safe Mode (spam F8 after POST, before Starting Windows comes up), log in and then run Driver Sweeper and check the ATI (AMD) box, Analyse => Clean, click yes and reboot normally.

Install the drivers you just downloaded, reboot when it asks.

I'm pretty sure the blue screens were coming from a driver issue, so give these steps ago and report back.

[Fuzzykins]

Quit installing the Catalyst on the CD. Install the updated drivers from the AMD website.

Ok, take these steps and report back what happens:

Download Driver Sweeper and install it (http://www.guru3d.com/category/driversweeper/)

Download Catalyst 11.2 Drivers from AMD.com (http://sites.amd.com/us/game/downloa...n_win7-64.aspx -- assuming you're using Win7 64bit)

Run the downloaded driver package and choose Uninstall, then Custom. When it comes back with a list, SELECT EVERYTHING and uninstall. Reboot when it asks you to.

Load Windows into Safe Mode (spam F8 after POST, before Starting Windows comes up), log in and then run Driver Sweeper and check the ATI (AMD) box, Analyse => Clean, click yes and reboot normally.

Install the drivers you just downloaded, reboot when it asks.

I'm pretty sure the blue screens were coming from a driver issue, so give these steps ago and report back.

Beat me to it ya' bugger.

[Cantii]

Quit installing the Catalyst on the CD. Install the updated drivers from the AMD website.


Beat me to it ya' bugger.

>,> The first thing I do whenever installing a new GPU is just completely wipe the old drivers before I even put the card in =V

I sold my old BFG 9600 GT OC to a friend as an upgrade to his GTS 250, he just put the thing in without uninstalling the drivers and was like "It's the same drivers, it'll be OK." All I did was shake my head and watch the ensuing two hours of headache. I got in there and had it up and running in 20 minutes with downloaded driver set :P

The moral is always clean up the drivers first! And NEVER use drivers from the CD

[Moropo]

Thanks both.

Question: do i do all those steps with the 5670? As i cant even get to windows with the 6850?

[Cantii]

Sorry, I should have included this:

Do everything, including driver sweeper in safe mode, with the old video card. THEN put in the new video card, boot up and install the new drivers with the new video card. If it still gives you blue screens and crashes, the card is defective and should be exchanged.

Also, what is your power supply?

[Fuzzykins]

And what in God's name gave you the urge to buy an i7 2600 and not a better GPU?

[Cantii]

It's been half an hour... I hope his computer didn't blow up

[Moropo]

And what in God's name gave you the urge to buy an i7 2600 and not a better GPU?

Ignorance.

Its a Dell XPS 8300 i got for $1000 with university discount with:

Intel i7 2600
Radeon 5670
8GB RAM 1333MHz
1TB HardDrive 7200rpm
23" inch 1920x1080 monitor

It was a mix of me not knowing how awesome the i7 2600 was and how terrible the 5670 was (until i started reading this forum). Now im fixing it right? :-)

---------- Post added 2011-03-26 at 01:31 AM ----------

It's been half an hour... I hope his computer didn't blow up

Had a fight with the wife so im not home to chill out.

I will do all you recommended when i get home.

[Cantii]

ruh roh... have a pint...

[Dizey]

I bet it's your PSU, which was the big concern in your previous post before buying the card:
http://www.mmo-champion.com/threads/...-on-a-460W-PSU

Correct me if I'm wrong, but you're running the factor PSU that has 3 +12v rails (12V-A 18A, 12V-B 16A, 12V-C 8A)? I could be wrong, but I highly doubt that it's 80+ certified, which makes things a bit sketchy since your practically running the minimum PSU requirements. Do you know which rail your PCIe connectors are on? If you have access to another gaming rig or psu through a friend, I would test it out first.

[Moropo]

I bet it's your PSU, which was the big concern in your previous post before buying the card:
http://www.mmo-champion.com/threads/...-on-a-460W-PSU

Correct me if I'm wrong, but you're running the factor PSU that has 3 +12v rails (12V-A 18A, 12V-B 16A, 12V-C 8A)? I could be wrong, but I highly doubt that it's 80+ certified, which makes things a bit sketchy since your practically running the minimum PSU requirements. Do you know which rail your PCIe connectors are on? If you have access to another gaming rig or psu through a friend, I would test it out first.

Doesnt the 80+ certification refer to the efficiency of the PSU in regards to how much power it draws from the wall socket to deliver whatever wattage the PSU delivers? Not that those PSUs with the certification deliver 80+% of the advertised wattage. So talking about 80+ is irrelevant.

You raise a good point on which rail is the 6-pin power connector im using. I just connected the first i saw (not sure if i have more 6-pin connectors). How do i know which rail are the connectors connected to?

Also, as i mentioned on that other thread you cited:

"Those who wondered (myself included) what brand was my 460W PSU. I just found out it is a Delta 460W, which i was told "it is basically the same as the Antec Basiq 500W"

And also by asking around on other overclocking forums, Delta PSUs are not known by their brand name because they dont sell directly to consumers, they supply other PSU sellers such as Antec and Corsair with the internals of the PSU. So i was told that i had a "quality psu" and it will handle the 6850 with no problems.

So i dont really want to turn this into a thread whether my PSU can handle it.

[Deleted]

Doesnt the 80+ certification refer to the efficiency of the PSU in regards to how much power it draws from the wall socket to deliver whatever wattage the PSU delivers? Not that those PSUs with the certification deliver 80+% of the advertised wattage. So talking about 80+ is irrelevant.

Yes - but another common trait of PSUs that don't make that certification is a less stable power delivery. A lot of PSUs start showing signs of stress and instability around 75%. Considering its likely a low quality PSU in general (OEM trait unfortunately); its very feasible that yours simply isn't delivering power at a reliable rate at the loads that the system now requires, causing one or more components in the system to fail proper operation.

[Cantii]

Doesnt the 80+ certification refer to the efficiency of the PSU in regards to how much power it draws from the wall socket to deliver whatever wattage the PSU delivers? Not that those PSUs with the certification deliver 80+% of the advertised wattage. So talking about 80+ is irrelevant.

You raise a good point on which rail is the 6-pin power connector im using. I just connected the first i saw (not sure if i have more 6-pin connectors). How do i know which rail are the connectors connected to?

Also, as i mentioned on that other thread you cited:

"Those who wondered (myself included) what brand was my 460W PSU. I just found out it is a Delta 460W, which i was told "it is basically the same as the Antec Basiq 500W"

And also by asking around on other overclocking forums, Delta PSUs are not known by their brand name because they dont sell directly to consumers, they supply other PSU sellers such as Antec and Corsair with the internals of the PSU. So i was told that i had a "quality psu" and it will handle the 6850 with no problems.

So i dont really want to turn this into a thread whether my PSU can handle it.

Well, whenever you can, follow the steps I laid out and install the new drivers for your new video card, and if it still goes about like it's been doing, get it exchanged. If the new one does it as well, try it in a different PC with a beefier PSU, and if it works, then it is indeed your PSU.

[narzinor]

-get to login, put password and hit enter. Screen goes black for a good 15-20 seconds and then get a blue screen saying something went wrong with display driver and it is shutting off so hardware doesnt get damaged. This is as much as i can read because the blue screen goes away quick. This is when i realized i should of uninstalled the 5670 drivers and Catalyst etc. This is also when i started freaking out thinking i may have messed up something...

With what is said about the problem here, I don't see this as a PSU issue. Also, considering the difference in wattage that they use is less than 50 watts at full load, and a little over 10 watts at idle speeds, if the PSU was really giving problems, it would be conceivable that he/she would be having a similar problem with the other card whenever a game or something stressful was being ran on the system.

The driver issue is what seems to be the culprit. Just need to do what the others have stated, about cleaning the other drivers off the system, and/or getting drivers from the net and trying those instead.

Another issue I see, is maybe the CD comes with 32-bit drivers, where he/she might be running windows on 64-bit mode, which getting drivers from the interwebs would alleviate.

[Moropo]

Your argument about it not being the PSU sounds very logical. When i play games, i do so at high settings which means my 5670 is getting pushed close to its full load of 61W and everything works perfectly, while my problem happens by just logging in to windows, which the 6850 should be at idle and consuming a lot less than 61W.

My system is 64bit.

When i run the setup on the CD it makes me choose between:

1) win xp / 64 bit
2) win vista / win 7

I always chose the win 7 option since the 64bit seems marked for win XP which is possible that the vista/7 is not 64-bit since it doesnt mention it.

I understand this is now pointless given i havent tried the suggestions, im gonna head home now and report back with results.

[Fuzzykins]

Ignorance.

Its a Dell XPS 8300 i got for $1000 with university discount with:

Intel i7 2600
Radeon 5670
8GB RAM 1333MHz
1TB HardDrive 7200rpm
23" inch 1920x1080 monitor

It was a mix of me not knowing how awesome the i7 2600 was and how terrible the 5670 was (until i started reading this forum). Now im fixing it right? :-)

---------- Post added 2011-03-26 at 01:31 AM ----------



Had a fight with the wife so im not home to chill out.

I will do all you recommended when i get home.

At least you're willing to admit it. You got a great computer, put another ~300 dollars into it and upgrade the GPU and PSU, and you'll be the envy of computer enthusiasts everywhere.

[narzinor]

off-topic : I just noticed how weird it looks, being a member here for getting close to 3 years, and only having 16 (now 17) posts :/

on-topic : hopefully all this advice works out and indeed, it does seem like the drivers on the disk might be 32-bit only.

[Moropo]

Followed everything VERY CLOSELY and IT WORKS !

Im extremely happy and grateful to all of you for the help!

Thanks.

(now to enjoy my new card, I no longer have a weak component in my system, yay)

[Cantii]

Followed everything VERY CLOSELY and IT WORKS !

Im extremely happy and grateful to all of you for the help!

Thanks.

(now to enjoy my new card, I no longer have a weak component in my system, yay)

Awesome. If it does randomly shut down or something similar, it's definitely a PSU issue. But I'm glad you got it working! Hopefully it won't have any nasty random shut downs!