Graphics New graphic card glitching - XFX 5830

I've purchased a XFX 5830 card to get back into PC gaming which arrived today. I've installed it in the computer it is destined for but it is glitching/artifacting all over the place. This is both within windows (7) and within the BIOS. I have therefore ruled out it being driver issue (although FYI the latest catalyst drivers were installed, and reinstalled just in case!).

The specifications of the computer are as follows;
I5 750 @ 3.8Ghz,6GB Corsair 1600mhz DDR3,OCZ Vertex 2E 60GB, WD 640GB Blue and Dual Samsung 2243 monitors. This is powered by a OCZ Stealthstream 500W PSU.

I have also installed it for testing in my work computer which is an i5 2500k @ 4.3ghz, 8gb RAM, OCZ vertex 2 SSD, Gigabyte P67 UD3 (with updated chipset) and a Corasir 500W power supply. The same issues occur both in Windows (7 pro) and BIOS.

The glitching becomes more apparent when the card is underload, and has resulted in complete white/grey screens and heavy artifacting. I have removed the OC on both processors to make sure that wasn't affecting it but neither showed any improvement running at stock frequencies. The graphics card is showing the correct frequencies itself and does not appear to be very hot (about 65C).

I think the card may be faulty, but does anyone else have any opinions on it?

Much appreciated.

 

Knee-jerk reaction is RMA.

However to rule out some rather unlikely but possible things:
Check the cable connection between the card and the monitor.
Check the power plugs are fully inserted into the card (if it has any)
Check that the card is seated correctly into the PCI express slot (and no junk, fluff etc in the slot)

If those are fine: RMA it.
Scrap the above checks, just RMA it, IMHO.
I hadn't seen that you had tested in another PC.
Should be fine to send it back direct to the seller, but check with them first.

 

Thanks PhoenixTank. I didn't want to jump in and RMA (if nothing else but the wait for the replacement!).

The cable connections are ok and have been checked. As i've checked it at work it's also been through different cables and adapters (DVI-VGA).

The power cables are in correctly and as its been in and out a few times. I've ensured that the clip has engaged with the socket too.

The card is fully in the slot and no muck is in it. In the work PC the motherboard was replaced only a few weeks ago so shouldn't be any build up (Sandybridge replacement board).

Thanks again

-----------------
Just seen your edit! No worries, looks to be a return. Doh! Had a nice weekend of Crysis planned!

 

No worries. Usually a bad sign if getting graphical glitches at the BIOS level as well as Win. Pretty clear cut if it does the exact same thing on two machines
Best just to nip it in the bud and send it back - unfortunately no Crysis for you.

On a side note, since you are sticking with last gen... if you opt for a refund, and can extend your budget a little, it might be worth your while to pursue one of these:
http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/graphics/2011/06/10/sapphire-hd-5850-xtreme-1gb-review/1

 

I was looking at the 5850 Xtreme, but to find it in stock and at a reasonable price was proving difficulty. This 5830 was £73 + delivery from aria and avaliable immediately. Seemed a good buy to me, but it's now starting to feel less of a bargin now with hassle factor being added!

 

Yeah the issue replicating within BIOS and on 2 different machines right there is more than enough to send that back. Like Phoenix says, if you can somehow return it instead of RMA and throw in a few bucks more you could go up to a 5850 while you're at it...

 

If your card is artifacting instantly then its a bad card and definately RMA the thing imo. Once a card starts artifacting it is impossible to repair as the damage is done and unfixable ( too long winded to explain what causes it all ) so make sure they send a brand new one and not fob you off with a repair job coz it wont ever work. I run a Sapphire HD5830 with no issues, it overclocks well and performs great. Hope you get a working one back soon they are nice little cards. I get 40-100 FPS in most games ( Bad Company 2, MOH , Brink etc ) temps not exceeding 58c and thats overclocked !

 

Thanks Mechraven and OCJunkie. I shipped it back to aria today. They issued an RMA nice and quick and without question after informing them of the issue so hopefully it'll all go smoothly. I may be just up the road from them for work next week so may swing by and try and speed the process up! They don't have any more 5830s in stock atm, but hopefully they'll have more shortly, or decide to give me a 5850 instead (here's hoping!).

Thanks again.

 

Thought i'd give you an update. The card was found to be faulty in a matter of seconds today at aria. Been replaced with a 5850 (although i had to pay the difference).

Thanks for all your advice.

 

Hi dukebox , If you don't mind me asking , how long did the whole replacement process take from start to finish?

I just received a new XFX HD5850 Black edition from Aria and sadly its totally dead. I need to ring them monday to sort it out and am hoping it's going to be a quick process.

Cheers

Paul.

 

My return was quick, but I was lucky enough (or unlucky given they're based in Manchester!) to have had to go down to near them for work a couple of days after I sent it back. They tested it while I was there and gave me store credit but annoyingly they "couldn't" process the postage return costs and told me to send in the recipiet via e-mail (even though i had it in hand in store!). I'm still waiting for the return postage cost.

I asked the returns chap whether they had many back and he said they'd had a load of the XFX 5800 range back. Apparently they've contacted XFX about it but they haven't had a resolution. It doesn't appear to be batch related either. TBH I'm a bit disappointed that aria continue to buy these cards in if they know there's a problem with them.

My replacement 5850 works a treat, but another chap bought two and both were faulty on arrival.

Hope it does smoothly for you.

 

Thanks for the info dukebox , I think I will go for a refund and see if I can source a different make of 5850 elsewhere seeing as aria don't have any in stock right now.

Hopefully it won't take too long, I was totally gutted friday night when I went to test out my new HD 5850 crossfire setup.

Thankfully I still have my powercolor 5850 pcs+ which has worked like a dream for the last year or so.

Cheers

Paul.

 

What's going on with xfx? But glad you go it sorted.

I've had an xfx 8800 gts 640mb for about 4 years now, "god damn you why won't you die, WHY!"

 

Have you tried dropping the overclock on your PC?

I had a GPU that didnt react well to overclocking, even if i locked the PCI-E bus speed.

Worth a try!

 

Not sure if your reply was aimed at me but as the other chap with issues didn't mention OC'ing i presume it was!

I did drop the overclock, more to mitigate excessive power draw then because of a locked PCI-e bus but didn't help. The supplier confirmed it as dead/dying so wasn't just me!

Ta,

 

The chap at aria did say it only seems to be the XFX 5800 series and that there wasn't any particularly death rates on their other cards. Maybe a poorly designed or implemented circut on the 5800 series rather then XFX cost cutting to the extreme on all their boards.

 

Well I posted the card back to aria today , fingers crossed they find it to be dead too.

I sincerely hope its not down to overclocking as I didn't buy a 2600k and a P8P67 Evo to run my pc at stock speeds lol.

Cheers

Paul.

 

Too right! Given what the chap said it wouldn't surprise me if it's DOA! Btw if they seem to be taking their time with the RMA put a note on their forum. They seem to up the game when it's on their public forum (but they have a section specifically for it).

 

Thanks for the tip dukebox , been on their forums for a few days now so I will certainly do that if needs must.

Cheers

Paul.

 

No kidding...