PCI slots are starting to act up due to one faulty AGP video card ?

[MidnightMike]

I'm having a very big problem with either my mobo, the PCI slots on it or my 2 year old ez-tv3xp tuner card.
This all started back on sunday evening I had bought a faulty AIW 9600 pro video card on ebay that I mentioned in another thread, when I installed it and it wouldn't work properly at all it had crashed my computer on tuesday morning, after that my pci slots had started to malfunction one by one.
It has now gotten to the point where I can "NOT" touch my tv tuner card or my radeon 9250 or any other PCI realated hardware to adjust some wires on the back of the pc without it shutting down my whole computer and then I have to have unplug the power cable and put it back in to get it to boot up.
Is there anyway I can make minor repairs to the PCI slots or would I need to reflash my motherboard again ?

I know I am do for a new motherboard but I won't be buying one until after december 25th.

[yoda313]

Try uninstalling the video card and see how it works without it installed.

Edit - if you have onboard video on your mobo try using that also - perhaps the drivers got corrupted somehow. Downloading updated drivers would also be a good idea in general.

[minidv2dvd]

you really shouldn't be playing around inside the case with the power on. it's just not a good idea. with the power off, remove and re-insert cables, and power connections. there could be a loose connection from something you bumped into.

[MidnightMike]

you really shouldn't be playing around inside the case with the power on. it's just not a good idea. with the power off, remove and re-insert cables, and power connections. there could be a loose connection from something you bumped into.

I was never "PLAYING" around inside with my pc on, I said that when I inserted a cable on the "BACK" of my pc onto of tuner cards socket the PC quickly lost power and that goes for anything else that is in the other pci slots.

[minidv2dvd]

the first step is still the same. open it up and re-seat everything. you might as well pull the pci cards and do them also. give the comp a shake while it's open and check for any rattles. like a loose screw rolling around.

[Nelson37]

Had something similar on my old capture board for a couple years. I believe the cause was either a hairline crack in the motherboard, or a warped board or case causing the card to very slightly unseat from the slot.

End result was similar to yours. Barely nudging any card caused a complete boot failure, requiring reseating of the video card. Sometimes two or three times. Get it working, then don't even breathe hard on it.

Unless there is a loose screw or something, there is no practical way to repair a slot or mobo.

[MidnightMike]

Ok I got my PC under control for now apparently the PCI slots are screwed up, I had to install XP pro twice last night due to one of the hardwares in one of the slots and got 3 blue screen of death while trying to install xp, but I it fixed for now.
Also the pci slots are empty which means no sudden freezes, BSOD, or the pc crashing....
Would I need to reseat the mobo again ? also I did notice some dusts on the bottom of my case and one screw was rattling around in there, I took it out and I am going to clean out my case later on today when I have a chance, if I need know if there is any damage to my mobo what do I look for ? I know it's odd that I am asking this, but I never really had a problem with a motherboard that would go berserk over a stupid component....

[budz]

If you had a screw that was rattling on the bottom of the case that could have been the culprit of your problem. Was that screw connected to anything? Or was it just a screw you found at the bottom of the case? A screw just laying around in the case can cause the mobo to short out & even some components that are attached to it.

[vhelp]

I too had similar (mysterious) failures in a motherboard. Several years ago, when my Rage Fury failed, I thought it was my motherboard, and searching earnestly, I found a replacement Rage Fury (had to be the same rage fury pro) and everything was working again.

As it turned out, the graphics card edge connector where the screw meats the i/o hole, it was warped ever so slightly, also the pc frame was warped too--prob from my leaning over it a lot over time--that when seated properly in the expansion slot, when I would screw in the screw, guess what it would do ? You guessed correctly, it would secretly lift one of the pins in card and was enough to cause mysterious faults, including no graphics/image, etc etc etc. That was on the old rage fury pro card. With the replacement rage fury pro, it was not warped and I could screw it in properly to get a secured and snugged fit.

I would suggest that whenever you get a new card (any i/o card) that you examine it for any signs of ware or warpness (bending of color, etc) and then review how it fits snuggly in the expan slot and then proceed to screw it in, but watch *carefuly* as you screw the screw tight, making sure that the other end of the i/o card does not show any signs of lifting from the slot. What I like to do, is I first install my i/o card and then plug in the wires, and then re-seat the i/o card and then finally screw it in, watching as I turn the screw. This is my insurance that there are no leaks, if you know what I mean.

I recently upgraded my graphics card to the ATI Radeon HD 3450, 512ram, on my XP Home computer. So far, it is doing ok and as expected. Since I don't do any gaming, this was the card for me, least for now cause I'm still shopping/browsing around since I'm looking to hook up my..

--> 19" Westinhouse[DVI-D] -to-> [HDMI]hdtv_receiver

..and on my HD 3450 it only offers the [DVI-I] output connector, so I'm not sure what to do to get my receiver(s) connected properly to it. So, a hunting I am going, hehe..

PS: so far, I have NOT found *any* graphics card that can surpass my ATI Rage Fur Pro (AGP) output for dvd playback, etc. Its disapointing to find this out in todays current line of fancy graphics cards. The rage's theater chip in this card (IMHO) was the best.

-vhelp 4931

[lordsmurf]

The nVidia card in my laptop works as well as any ATI card, in terms of DVD playback, that I've ever seen. It's one reason (of many) that I pounced on this machine, lots of good performance out of this HP box.