What graphics card should I buy? Since my nVIDIA GeForce 9600 GT doesen't work

[gatordh7]

Greetings! I was wondering if anyone here could help me figure out what kind of graphics card I should get - or which one would be most compatible with my system. Currently I have a nVIDIA GeForce 9600 GT which in theory isn't a bad card but my computer crashes after playing mostly any type of game for more than 5 minutes.

I've pretty much tried everything to find the issue but nothing seems to work. I refreshed the system and have re-installed all the latest drivers and the problem persists. I even took my computer in to get fixed and they couldn't find the problem, they just ran some stability tests which indicated to them that everything was in order, but I doubt they actually tried playing a game.

I've noticed a lot of people are having similar crash issues with the nVIDIA GeForce 9600 GT and no one has found a solution to the probelm so I've just come to the conclusion that it's a faulty card

anyways sorry to digress, but if anyone could recommend a good graphics card that would work with my system I'd really appreciate it! Thanks!

Here are my specs

Computer:
Computer Type ACPI Multiprocessor PC
Operating System Microsoft Windows XP Professional
OS Service Pack Service Pack 3
Internet Explorer 8.0.6001.18702
DirectX 4.09.00.0904 (DirectX 9.0c)
Computer Name OWNER-8A1D95FF4
User Name Owner
Logon Domain OWNER-8A1D95FF4
Date / Time 2009-11-12 / 10:16

Motherboard:
CPU Type QuadCore Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600, 2400 MHz (9 x 267)
Motherboard Name XFX MB-N780-ISH9 (2 PCI, 1 PCI-E x1, 3 PCI-E x16, 4 DDR2 DIMM, Audio, Dual Gigabit LAN, IEEE-1394)
Motherboard Chipset nVIDIA nForce 780i SLI
System Memory 2816 MB (DDR2-800 DDR2 SDRAM)
DIMM1: OCZ XTC Platinum OCZ2P8002G 2 GB DDR2-800 DDR2 SDRAM (6-6-6-18 @ 400 MHz) (5-5-5-15 @ 333 MHz) (4-4-4-12 @ 266 MHz)
DIMM2: OCZ XTC Platinum OCZ2P8002G 2 GB DDR2-800 DDR2 SDRAM (6-6-6-18 @ 400 MHz) (5-5-5-15 @ 333 MHz) (4-4-4-12 @ 266 MHz)
BIOS Type Award (12/21/07)

Display:
Video Adapter NVIDIA GeForce 9600 GT (512 MB)
3D Accelerator nVIDIA GeForce 9600 GT
Monitor SyncMaster 920BM (Analog) [NoDB] (H9FQ718350)

Multimedia:
Audio Adapter Realtek ALC888/1200 @ nVIDIA nForce 780i SLI (MCP55PXE) - High Definition Audio Controller

Storage:
IDE Controller NVIDIA nForce Serial ATA Controller
IDE Controller NVIDIA nForce Serial ATA Controller
IDE Controller NVIDIA nForce Serial ATA Controller
IDE Controller Standard Dual Channel PCI IDE Controller
Disk Drive ST350032 0AS SCSI Disk Device (500 GB, 7200 RPM, SATA-II)
Optical Drive TSSTcorp CDDVDW SH-S203N SCSI CdRom Device (DVD+R9:16x, DVD-R9:12x, DVD+RW:20x/8x, DVD-RW:20x/6x, DVD-RAM:12x, DVD-ROM:16x, CD:48x/32x/48x DVD+RW/DVD-RW/DVD-RAM)
SMART Hard Disks Status OK

[RicheemxX]

Well some troubleshooting ideas - What are your temps? What PSU do you have? could be either the card is overheating, the cpu might be overheating or your psu isn't strong enough to provide adequate power.

Card suggestions - well without a budget its hard to say, so how much are you looking to spend?

[gatordh7]

Hi RicheemxX thanks for the fast reply, sorry it took me forever to respond!!

I have a OCZGXS700 (700W) PSU - ATX Power Supply Units Roundup. Part VI (page 5) - X-bit labs

and while playing call of duty world at war this Speedfan monitoring software that I have told me that my GPU was 60c and nothing happened. For some reason my computer does not crash when I play certain games like call of duty and left for dead

But while I was playing Battlefield 2 my GPU only got to 50c before the the whole computer just crashed and I had to restart. My computer also crashes on other games like civilization 4 and the new wolfenstein game.

I can spend up to 600 on a new graphics card.

[Aaron_8015]

Wow tbh that card is letting your system down regardless if it was working.... With that budget pick up a 5870... you wont regret it.

If you want to stay nvidia with mabye hopes of SLI now/future.. then look at a 275.

[gatordh7]

your talking about the Radeon 5870 right? Would it work with my system? Thanks


But do you think my graphics card is the actual problem causing my computer to crash?

[Aaron_8015]

Quote:

Originally Posted by gatordh7

your talking about the Radeon 5870 right? Would it work with my system? Thanks

But do you think my graphics card is the actual problem causing my computer to crash?

Yes...

Cant really say... until you try another GPU.... but I suppose you dont have a spare lying around....

[Vietster1]

600 bucks on a gaming card, that is sickening, If that were the case, stick with what you have and go and buy a PS3... Do your gaming on there. You know you can install windows on a PS3.. At least with a PS3 you wont have to worry about if a game is going to run or not. You may also try, since you seem to have the loot, upgrade to Windows 7. Perhaps if the card is running in a different environment the problem will go away.

One other thing I just noticed, your Bios is gonna be 2 in a few days. Happy Birthday dear BIOS. Have you looked to see if there is an update for it?

I have read a few posts on different forums that say people switch cards and problem solved... Perhaps you should just go with a different card as you are.. However with me, I dont give up until I get to the root of things... Oh, another thing, if the stuff is under warranty, RMA the card. If it is less than a year old, RMA the damn thing, Have them send you a new one, and try it out... even if you are going to go with something better. Then you can sell the 9600GT on ebay or something.

[Aaron_8015]

The 5870 is around $380, its the 5970 that is around $600