Evil Genius Posted August 5, 2011 Hi Guys, seems like lightning just fucked up my system. I know its pretty unlikely that someone has exoerience with this particular error but maybe theres someone who knows what to do. I was in the garden when i suddenly heard a very intense and loud thunder. The Lighting struck somewhere near the house but it was not a direct hit. When i got back into the house, the PC had shut down somehow. I started it, booted and was happy to see everything seemed alright. But after another reboot, the graphics where totally fucked up. It works but everything has blockings and fine lines in it. I doubt its the monitor. Im using the system right now but i need to get this fixed. I have a backup laptop but it would really be sad if i couldnt get this fixed myself. I use XP and an Asus Motherboard. I tried to reinstall the driver for the graphics Adapter but somehow this didnt work. Is there a way i can find out if the graphic card has a hardware damage? Fucking shit bastard of a magnetic storm. Are there any apps i can use to get the Graphic Adapter working again? I tried Sisoft Sandra to find out whats the error but im not sure how to read the results. It found out that one of the fans isnt working properly but this could also be a coincidence. I tried to install Catalyst but somehow it isnt working either. I can install it but its not possible to run it like a Graphics driver. bye Eg Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
fredf Posted August 5, 2011 The 2 possible damaged components are the monitor or graphics card from what you described. Check the monitor by plugging it into your laptop (or bring up the on-screen menu and see if the artefacts disappear). Assuming the monitor is fine, I would buy another graphics card (or borrow one) as its not likely to be the motherboard or anything else based on the symptoms. What happens when you go into the BIOS (press F1,escape,F10 at boot depending on system) are there still strange lines? Also, if the fan that you found not working is attached to the GFX card itself, then this could definitely be the cause of failure - graphics cards with fans do eventually fail without them. I don't believe there would be any software-based way to diagnose or fix the card.. generally components just fail completely so I am surprised you are seeing anything at all! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Evil Genius Posted August 5, 2011 Thanks a lot for the fast reply, fredf. I hope i´ve read you name right because i have great problems recognizing the letters on my monitor. I just tried to connect the laptop with the monitor and it did work till a certain point. Everything was visible on the monitor and it seemed that everything was alright. However, at the windows login, the monitor went blackscreen and shut down. But the laptop was still running normally but i wasnt able to see it on the big screen. Is that normal? It seems, the longer the pc is working, the better it gets. If i read your post right, i think its probably really the graphics adapter. I´ll open up the tower later today....maybe i can see some visible damage. bye Eg Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
santiago Posted August 5, 2011 the basin http://scholar.google.com.au/scholar?q=venezuela+basin+lightning&hl=en&as_sdt=0&as_vis=1&oi=scholart Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dollarjuice Posted August 6, 2011 EG does your motherboard have any in-built graphics? IE: on the back of the tower is there a place to plug in the monitor cable that isn't the video card, and looks like it goes directly into the motherboard? If so try to plug the monitor into that and see what happens, don't worry if the graphics are considerably worse as this is expected, you're mostly looking to see if the black spots go away. Off the top of my head I'd say it would most likely be the monitor, because any power surge would have to go through either your PC's motherboard and/or powersupply first before hitting the video card, and it would definatley fry one of those 2 before anything else. And usually what you see with a power-surge anyway is the powersupply gets burnt up and most if not everything else is ok. Unless you just got unlucky and your videocard died coincidentally at the same time. Just curiously, did you have either the monitor or the PC power going through a surge protector or a surge protecting powerboard at all? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Sheather Posted August 6, 2011 A similar thing happened to my little brother, but when he opened up the tower there were big black streaks over the motherboard. Understandably, he needed a new one, and a new power supply too unfortunately. Afraid I don't know what could help bar looking for physical damage and/or if you have spare parts testing new ones (Graphics card, motherboard) in the tower to see if the artefacts disappear... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Evil Genius Posted August 6, 2011 (edited) Alright guys, thanks for your help! Im getting closer! Yesterday i decided to unplug every single cable and tried to boot. After that, i found out that its considerably worse after i plug in the USB Canles on the back. It even seems like the cables are suddenly interfering with the graphics though this never was an issue. The Cables in Question are the Printer,and the microphone. And then theres the input for the soundcard. Not sure what the problem is and i almost broke the whole motherboard while trying to reset the jumper. Or at least thats what i thought i´d do. Nevertheless, its still there. Picture very related. Its how my screen looks like. Ah, i need to post the pic later because i just realized that the pc cant find my USb Card Reader amymore. Its a built in device on the front. So the problem seems definately to be USB Related. I am really confused now. What if the graphic adapter is fine but somehow the USB got fucked up and interferes with everything? Is that even possible and can i somehow test if the US Ports are fine?`The system shows me no problems in the device control panel but a multi media controller that isnt alright. The graphic adapter however doesnt seem to have any conflicts. I think about getting me a new grapics adapter. What should i go for? The Cheaper the better but i dont want crap either so i think i need to find a solid lower class graphic adapter. Are there any technical limitations or can i just buy any other card? Edited August 6, 2011 by Evil Genius Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mac Posted August 6, 2011 hard to say without doing a few tests, sounds like it could be the motherboard if your having other problems do you have home insurance if so give them a call & find out if its covered for a power surge & if its worth paying the excess to get it replaced otherwise you may replace one component & find its not the problem Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dollarjuice Posted August 6, 2011 At this point you only really have 2 or 3 viable options. Take the computer to a repairs shop, as they have the ability to interchange parts easily and figure out exactly where the problem is (I wouldn't recommend this as they over-charge like crazy) Buy a new computer. Probably the most expensive option, but definitely the most hassle free and quickest fix in this position. Begin buying and installing new parts to diagnose and fix the problem. After what you've said about the USB ports it makes me think its the motherboard. So you might want to start with that first, or if that's too much hassle at this stage I'd move on to the PSU. As mac said call up your insurer if you have any and see if they cover electrical surges (probably won't as most class this as 'an act of god') The whole new PC really would be the easiest way to go right now, especially if your system is 4+ years old. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mac Posted August 6, 2011 (edited) whats the specs of your system EG, CPU intel/AMD socket 775, socket A/ AM2-3 ? what memory ddr ddr2 ddr3 , onboard or dedicated video etc ATI / Nvidia ? might be best to cut your losses & put the $ towards the latest system Edited August 6, 2011 by mac Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Evil Genius Posted August 6, 2011 (edited) Alright, somethings is very likely broken. Now i need to find out what. Have sisoft sandra running but i dont really have a clue about the values. Any tips on what to look for in order to find out which part i need to buy? Those are the symptoms: 1. None of the USB Drive works. I had a card reader which isnt working either. 2. Installations dont work anymore. It starts but then it suddenly freezes. 3. Floppy Disc is dead too. 4. Not possible to start from the win cd. It starts but freezes as soon as windows is loading. 5. Both harddrives are checked and ok. 6. Only problems in the device manager are "multimedia controllers". 7 Everything takes forever to loadSome Apps work, some dont. And i constantly have blockings and the monitor looks like shit. 8. At a certain point in the win loging process, theres a pattern visible. Like a large circle on the upper left of the monitor. It looks always the same. This would indicate its burnt into the monitor somehow but there are times when its working perfectly normal so i dont think its the monitor. It also worked perfectly with the laptop till the loging window came. What could it be? Is there something i can rule out? Thanks for your input. I love my PC. :-) Besides i cant afford buying a new one. Picture shows how my screen looks like. Got a little bit too big but i dont have the necessary appz on the laptop right now. Edited August 6, 2011 by Evil Genius Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dollarjuice Posted August 7, 2011 Everything you've listed are symptoms of motherboard failure. Unfortunately with problems this bad there isn't much you can rule out, but the fact that all your USB's are dead/dying means it has to mobo related. Same thing with the cd drives and floppy drives failing, mostly likely due to the connections on the motherboard, or the surge hitting them aswell. Did you have the system or monitor running through a surge protector or surge protecting power board at all? When you came back in from the garden initially and discovered it, could you smell any burning or funny odour at all? But yeah I'd definitely start with the motherboard, but potentially the rest of your computer is bricked too when things like this happen. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Evil Genius Posted August 7, 2011 Sounds Great. But thanks a lot dollarjuice and the rest of you! You really help me to rule out things. My PC and me have been through a lot. Shortly after the "impact", the whole room smellt burnt. But there was no visible damage on the board. Ill give you some technical specs of the system later. Atm i unplugged it because my room looked like a computer graveyard. I dont really know how to install a surge protector. The last impact was 15 years + before and i assumed im safe because there are trees that kinda cover my house with their branches. It wasnt even a direct hit i think. Maybe the lighting created some kind of electromagnetic field which caused an indirect hit. DOnt know if thats even possible but it felt like that. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dollarjuice Posted August 7, 2011 I dont really know how to install a surge protector. You can generally pick up a power board with an in-built surge protector for not too much. From any local electrical/gadget store. You just plug that into the wall and then your electronics into that. It's not 100% guaranteed but it's better than nothing right! Hope it all works out for you EG Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
