Waterblock weight and Video Card Problem

Right now I have a MCW50 WB on my BFG6800GT on an Asus A8V MB. I have had this current setup for about 5 months. Out of the blue about 4 weeks ago, only 3 days before I was to leave the country for 2 weeks, my video got nothing but artifacts when booting up. No readable text whatsoever from the minute I turned it on. So, I contacted BFG, they RMA'd it (very good service), and about a week later I got the RMA. I was however out of the country when it arrived. I had plugged in my ATI9200 backup VC on the system so that my wife could use it while i was gone. It worked fine with the ATI card while I was gone and for about a week thereafter while I used it.

I came back, and finally a few days ago put back on the watercooling block and ramsinks and plugged the 6800GT replacement back in. Nothing but artifacts again. I bought a new 6800GT card from Best Buy and it did the same thing. I brought the new one back, and fiddled with my current 6800GT. If I plug the ATI9200 in, it works fine (this card has only a heatsink and is very light).

It seems that if I mess around with the 6800GT card in the AGP slot I can get it into a position that it works fine. I did this for the last few days and once I got it wiggled until it worked, it did so for a few days until it started artifacting again. I messed with it again, plugged and unplugged, jiggled, etc. and got it to where it is working again.

Has anyone had this sort of a thing happen? I am wondering if somehow the weight of the rather heavy MCW50 and hoses could have somehow messed up the AGP slot on the MB? I am stumped on this one and have never seen anything like this before. Anyone have any solutions (besides the obvious MB RMA?)

i've seen people prop their cards up with a small dowel or something, or you could pick up one of thoes "cardkeeper" things to keep it straight


edit:

link: http://www.cardkeeper.net/

You could try proping the card up with something so the mobo won't have to take card of all the weight.

I've never seen that cardkeeper. I might give that a try. The part that is so confusing to me is that its not like the card is getting unplugged or coming loose or even getting moved around or anything. And it took me tonight about 10 minutes of fiddling and plugging/replugging tonight to get it working again. I am wondering if it is possible that a solder joint on the AGP slot could be loose or something.

When it quit working earlier tonight (it had been working fine for several days) I tried just picking up on the outside edge of it and that didn't do a thing. I had to physically unplug/replug jiggle, etc. until it decided to work.

IDK but i'm gonna pick up one of the cardkeepers for my x850... its sagging a little bit, and they don't look that bad either


but i def. know what you're talking about with the 6800... my 6800gt sagged a nice 1/2" at the far corner from the waterblock & tubing pushing it down

The AGP slot could be touchy. When I had my gut assembled outside of the case while I modded the case, I noticed that if I bump the desk hard enough while the PC's on I'd lose the video until I rebooted. The weight of a large fan wasn't helping at all as it was pulling the card sideway. I ended up using a cardboard to keep the card straight until I got it back in the case.

I'm not sure how you WCed setup is configured, but if it is leak proof, trying running your case on its side so the card is completely vertical. I'd do this before spending any money on an item.

My watercooling is watertight, but I can't really run it on its side because #1. It won't fit in my desk that way, #2. I have my car rad mounted on the right side (MB) of the case.

Maybe I will make my own type of card holder out of acrylic or something instead of ordering one, provided that it is not that much trouble. It doesn't look like there is too much to that thing.

I'm just hoping that the AGP slot isnt messed up and that something along these lines will remedy the problem..

Have you ever wanted to put a sledgehammer through something?

I was just in the middle of optimizing some images for my daughter's science project in Photoshop when my screen turned into nothing but artifacts. I shut it down, and proceeded to try the plug/unplug/wiggle/replug/off/on/off/on process for about 10 minutes and all I got was artifacts.

I finally gave up and plugged my ATI9200 in and it works perfectly. Absolutely no artifacting whatsoever. Something has got to be wrong with the AGP slot on the MB. I am wondering if there is some kind of voltage issue going on with the MB. I guess I am going to have to call BFG and/or Asus and try to find out what the deal is. Man, I don't want to have RMA this MB and be high and dry for 2-3 weeks. If I had the money, I would just go and buy a PCI Express MB and a new 7800GT, but alas I don't have the $500 at present. And in the meanwhile no half-life 2. Figures that I had just gotten around to trying to finish the game after no having played it in a while.

Any other suggestions?

Link to the card keepers- http://www.frozencpu.com/search.htm...rd+keeper&Submit.x=0&Submit.y=0&Submit=Submit

z0n3 said:

Link to the card keepers- http://www.frozencpu.com/search.htm...rd+keeper&Submit.x=0&Submit.y=0&Submit=Submit

Click to expand...

Maybe its just me, but that link dont show the product. Additional browsing was necessary.

I'd rather buy something from here: http://www.performance-pcs.com/cata...th=176&zenid=e583b5662ef6cfa9173a032d62a39fda

than from FrozenCPU (just my preference though)