xfx hd 6950 xxx 1gb just wont work

[kmacca1992]

hi guys,
i bought my pc a week ago and thought id get something i could play some pc games on. decided id need better card than came with the pc so decided on the xfx hd 6950 xxx 1gb.

my specs are this:
Gigabyte GA-880GM-USB3 main board
AMD FX-8120 Eight Core Processor, 2812 Mhz
1tb toshiba hdd
Alpine 600W Gold Fan
16GB 1333mhz Mustang
Windows 7 Ultimate x64

so the problem is, i had the sapphire hd 6450 installed in my pc when it arrived and that worked fine in the pc, 2 days later my xfx graphics arrived, i thought it would be a simple case of remove the old drivers, put the new card in and install drivers, iv tried using driver sweeper, removing the graphics drivers of the xfx card through safe mode etc. but the problem is that the card basically refuses to work.

as soon as i login it is ok for a couple seconds then even clicking on something in windows or moving the mouse causes the screen to flash black with green interference then the amd graphics driver fails. sometimes it can recover other times iv had to press reset button just to get the pc working again, this is a brand new pc with brand new hardware from a brand new installation and i cant seem to get it working atall.

anyone got any ideas whatsoever may have caused it, or any idea on how to fix this problem, also iv tried the latest version of drivers and also numerous older versions including drivers from 2010 just incase it was a compatibility problem with latest drivers. still getting driver crashes. iv spent nearly £1000 on accessories and various components to make this pc great, just need to get it working to its full potential.

 

[Tokae]

It could be your PSU is not able to handle the increased load for that card. I have not had any personal experience with Alpine PSUs though. If you have a spare one to try, I would do that first.

 

[kmacca1992]

thanks for the quick reply, unfortunately i dont have a power supply that is more powerful that still has the 2 pci 6 pin plugs necessary to power the graphics,
i had a 800w sumvision psu but that had no 6 pin plugs and i had problems with that not working in my old pc, took it back to the shop but they couldnt find a problem,
just reluctant to go have to buy adapters to make 6 pin connections just so i can try the 800w psu that is already proven to be unreliable.

i was thinking psu as a culprit too tho but problem is this psu that is in the pc is my second iv bought in a week, had 450w installed when it arrived, upgraded to 600w alpine now may need higher again, anyone want to recommend a very powerful yet cheap psu, preferably from a uk seller or site?

 

[psionic98]

What do you consider cheap? If you want power with some overhead you'll want to hit in to the 750+ range.. and once you get up there you're looking to hit close to $100 bucks for a reliable unit.

Check the link in my sig (recommended power supply listing).. its been updated somewhat recently and shows the names/reviews of the better performers in each category (by power ratings) Most of the ones in the 700+ category are more than 100, but if you shop around using pricegrabber.com or something similar you could find a deal somewhere.. also.. if you have a microcenter near you check their listings as well..

 

[jd101]

id say go with a Corsair cx600 http://www.scan.co.uk/products/600w...v2uk-80-eff-80-plus-eps-12v-quiet-fan-atx-v23 as i use this one i thort i would of needed a upgrade for my 7970 but it runs it sweet with a oc

 

[kmacca1992]

i was looking at the xfx 850w black edition but they are £110 at the cheapest i can find on ebay, is that psu good enough to run my specs. and then again psu might not end up being the cause of the problems, i dont wanna throw money at this pc just so i can play mw3 and a few other games n stuff, iv spent nearly all my student loans on this pc and its becoming a money pit

 

[kmacca1992]

think its down to my psu just not outputting true 600w or maybe my pc needing a bit more power, or is it software related? i just dont know

 

[jd101]

yes it will run your rig + its cheap i got mine for 49.99 if i rember right it well push 480w and 40amps through the 12v rail . im running a 7970 on one

 

[kmacca1992]

ok youve got me, 49.99 to get my rig workin, i could live with, that plus if i do get the black edition xfx il never be able to enjoy the green fan coz my nzxt lexa s case is bottom mounted psu so fan faces out the bottom , ok so if we assume i need a new power supply, would that really cause a good graphics card to fail miserably even on just moving the mouse and clicking stuff in windows? or could i possibly have a combination of problems, just remember that the pc was fine with the sapphire hd 6450 but that is a rubbish card compared to the xfx 6950 xxx anyway so there probably is a lot of difference in power consumption as the 6450 didnt even need 6 pin connectors

 

[jd101]

do you know what the Alpine website is ? as i cant find it . i can find them for sale for £20 but cant find their main website . the power diff will be a lot . the 6450 just pulls power though the pci e slot .

 

[kmacca1992]

i cant find a website atall even checked the box and theres no website, its just a cheap one, this is the one i got

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Alpine-60...upplies_EH&hash=item4cfb9605b4#ht_1861wt_1270

 

[psionic98]

You could also try to unplug anything from the current psu that isn't necessary to get the system up adn running (extra hdds, cd/dvd roms etc) to take any other stress off the psu. Also do you have the latest drivers? Did you uninstall/use driver sweeper/reinstall new set.. sometimes its just a driver issue and nothing more. Though usually your system can default a driver to at least view the desktop w/o an issue.. worth a shot.

 

[Tokae]

I wouldn't say you need more power, but 'better power'. Perhaps the Alpine wasn't giving 12v on the rails or the proper amperage. 600w is more than enough power for a single card! A better quality PSU with the right connectors would be the way to go.

 

[kmacca1992]

You could also try to unplug anything from the current psu that isn't necessary to get the system up adn running (extra hdds, cd/dvd roms etc) to take any other stress off the psu. Also do you have the latest drivers? Did you uninstall/use driver sweeper/reinstall new set.. sometimes its just a driver issue and nothing more. Though usually your system can default a driver to at least view the desktop w/o an issue.. worth a shot.

i can try unplug stuff, but if its gonna be a power supply not giving enough power to have everything running i may up my psu to a better psu.

i was hoping it would be just drivers so iv used driver sweeper and then installed latest drivers, the graphics driver crashes when i do anything even clicking start menu or moving mouse causes severe crash which usually recover. iv tried earlier drivers dating back as far as 2010 so i shouldnt be getting these errors if its merely incompatibility with the driver and the card, the standard windows drivers work great and dont crash atall which is why im thinkin along the lines of driver problem, because i can run benchmarks ok through windows driver but obviously that wouldnt allow full driver support and wouldnt allow me to play games and use windows aero would it?

 

[grumperfish]

Alpine PSU's are no-name junk. Get a better unit.

It's not drivers. The problems you're seeing are due to a "600W" unit being unable to push 600W (or anywhere close to it) on the 12V rail. You need to replace the PSU.


Honestly I'd recommend against Corsair's CX series though, as I've had two DOA units already, and 40a on the 12V rail isn't alot for a 600W unit..
Look for a Corsair 650TX, Antec Earthwatts 650W, or Seasonic 550-650W PSU instead.

 

[kmacca1992]

Alpine PSU's are no-name junk. Get a better unit.

It's not drivers. The problems you're seeing are due to a "600W" unit being unable to push 600W (or anywhere close to it) on the 12V rail. You need to replace the PSU.


Honestly I'd recommend against Corsair's CX series though, as I've had two DOA units already, and 40a on the 12V rail isn't alot for a 600W unit..
Look for a Corsair 650TX, Antec Earthwatts 650W, or Seasonic 550-650W PSU instead.

Yeah iv realised that it is junk and that i highly doubt its giving the right amperage. Iv bought an xfx 850w black edition modular psu as everybody was saying my psu choice wasnt that good, hopefully spending 120 instead of 20 has its advantages and this psu should be able to sort the problem. Thanks for your help il let you all know if this psu fixed the problem

 

[jd101]

Alpine PSU's are no-name junk. Get a better unit.

It's not drivers. The problems you're seeing are due to a "600W" unit being unable to push 600W (or anywhere close to it) on the 12V rail. You need to replace the PSU.


Honestly I'd recommend against Corsair's CX series though, as I've had two DOA units already, and 40a on the 12V rail isn't alot for a 600W unit..
Look for a Corsair 650TX, Antec Earthwatts 650W, or Seasonic 550-650W PSU instead.

you may of just bad luck m8 . ive used them in many pcs builds i recommend one because they are cheap compared to the 650tx at the time he didnt want to spend a lot . 40a is plenty for a 6950 . i run a 7970 oc on one with no problems .

 

[grumperfish]

^^^
Check your voltages with HWiNFO64 while running furmark/kombuster and IntelBurnTest (set to max). I'd be very surprised if your 12V rail wasn't dropping down to 11.8-11.9v.
The CX series isn't a bad PSU line, it's just under-specced for the ratings given. The CX600 would make a decent 500W unit, but the 12V rating is very low compared to quality 600W PSU's.

Yeah iv realised that it is junk and that i highly doubt its giving the right amperage. Iv bought an xfx 850w black edition modular psu as everybody was saying my psu choice wasnt that good, hopefully spending 120 instead of 20 has its advantages and this psu should be able to sort the problem. Thanks for your help il let you all know if this psu fixed the problem

AFAIK the XFX you picked is a high-quality Seasonic-built unit. Shouldn't give you any trouble. It's pretty over-specced for your system, but it should last you practically forever (in PC terms).

 

[a c i d.f l y]

+1 for Alpine PSU's being total cheap garbage. I was so glad when I finally got rid of mine.