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I've been noticing when playing certain games, I've been getting a black screen after a minute or two (or less) of game time. If I minimize the game, the screen starts working fine after ten or twenty seconds.

Now, I googled this particular problem, but most other people's issues include having looping sounds and crashes that force a restart. In my case, if I have my VGA hooked up to my computer/TV, I can actually continue playing the game normally. The picture stays on the TV screen, but my laptop monitor stays black. If my video card was overheating or the PSU had problems, wouldn't the screen cease to work on the TV as well? I'm kinda stumped. I downloaded the newest NVIDIA drivers to be sure, but it hasn't fixed anything.

Have you tried turning it off and then turning it back on again?

Yes, if the video card was having trouble, you should see the picture vanish from the external as well (unless you have two separate video cards that are NOT ganged together in SLI/XFire or something). I'm guessing it's a refresh rate thing? Try setting your refresh to 60fps AND turning on VSync to force the video card to respect that 60 setting.

--Patrick

So......I went into Nvidia control panel, set vsync to "On" and....I think it worked? Considering just an hour or so ago, I couldnt play Walking Dead: S2 without a black screen and I just got past the intro to ep 3 without a black screen...success?

Also, I noticed the Video card 1 temp fell by an average of 15*C. Did turning on Vsync do that?

Can you check to make sure it's plugged in, sir.

Terrik said:

I noticed the Video card 1 temp fell by an average of 15*C. Did turning on Vsync do that?

Click to expand...

It's...possible. If your video card(s) kept making more frames than the display could display, that's more work. Less work would make the graphics card's(') temperature go down. But whatever. If your temps went down and your screen started working more reliably, then WIN.

--Patrick

so uhm...the heat thing didn't go away.

I installed Divine divinity and the card was reaching well over 90. I decided it was time to investigate,so I took the WHOLE DAMN THING apart, took the the video cards, took THEM apart, checked the thermal paste (might need a recoat, but dont have any right now), but it all back, set the cards back into their slots, put whole thing back together and now Windows won't recognize that either Nvidia card exists---just the integrated.

So i took everything apart again, reset the cards again and....


doesn't recognize my cards exist.

So what, did I break them?

/miserable.

Also, I snapped the connector of the 2nd keyboard ribbon and had to use tape to hold it in. FFS.

I don't even know what to do now about these video cards.

Hopefully this is just a case of needing that thermal paste. It's kinda vital.

--Patrick

Yeah but would that cause the video card to suddenly be undetectable?

Terrik said:

Yeah but would that cause the video card to suddenly be undetectable?

Click to expand...

If you're lucky, then the video card may be shutting down automatically due to exceeding thermal limits due to no paste.
If you're not lucky, then turning them on with no paste has fried them and they may never work again.
FWIW, I'm really hoping it's the first one (or something equally as inconvenient-but-not-disastrous).

--Patrick

PatrThom said:

If you're lucky, then the video card may be shutting down automatically due to exceeding thermal limits due to no paste.
If you're not lucky, then turning them on with no paste has fried them and they may never work again.
FWIW, I'm really hoping it's the first one (or something equally as inconvenient-but-not-disastrous).

--Patrick

Click to expand...

They never had no paste, they still had some. I just replaced the paste and my computer still doesnt dectect the cards. WTF did I do wrong. I don't understand.

can you give the model again? I'll want to look up the parts.

--Patrick

I think I fixed it.

Hold on.

Ok....so here's where we're at.

I opened up the case and took out the GTX 580M cards, re-reapplied thermal paste, and as an afterthought reapplied thermal paste to the CPU as well. Put everything back together, and all was great---well, except certain keys on my keyboard stopped working--and strangely, after a period of time, they started working again.

Great.

Played Divinity: Original Sin all day. GPU temp kept 80 or below--typically between 60-75 C which is fine. Got in the mood to play Ep 4 of Walking Dead Season 2. Played an hour---system froze.

Huh.

Restarted, played again---10 minutes later...system froze.

Oook.

Restarted again---system froze.

WTF.


Restarted again---black flashing screen --drivers failed and recovered

Uhm

Drivers failed and recovered

Hey wa--

DRIVERS FAILED AND RECOVERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

*freeze*

Lets try this aga---*freeze*

Ok...SAFE MODE

Clean install of video drivers

*Reboot*

....


*FLASH FLASH FLASH FLASH*

*freeze*



Ok...lets try this

SAFE MODE!----WITH NETWORKING!


Dum de dum....*freeze*

WTF?

*Run system / memory tests*

*pass*

Ok that's it. Time to roll back the drivers.

*Run malaware bytes*

*delete a trojan*

*Open CMD box sfc /scannow*

*bitmap error*

* sfc /scannow /f *

*restart*

*scan*

*safe mode*

*install drivers*

*Drivers have failed and recovered*

*screams*

Fine damn it. Only thing I know left to do is open up the case again and reseat the cards again.

*reseats cards*

Starts system.

*waits*

No flashing...great. No freezing...great! Temperatures---fine!

...some keys on the keyboard don't work. The same ones. And oh look, they start working on their own again after a period of time again.

What?

....Success?

This sounds like...it might be time to start saving for a new laptop.

--Patrick

That bad, huh?

That much trouble, at least.

Something somewhere sounds like it is physically messed up. If your keys always don't work until the computer has warmed up, for instance, that suggests some kind of thermal expansion is messing with connections. Flex cable connections, solder connections, something. I'm no stranger to only-works-when-you-squeeze-it-here syndrome, and that's always the point where you should probably start evaluating whether or not it's worth the hassle.

--Patrick