Is this what a dying GPU looks like? And will replacing thermal pads/paste improve anything?

[NaClKnight]

My friend gave up on an auxiliary build he was working on, so i inherited most of his parts as a fun side project. Like trying to finish a car restoration.

 

The core of the build is a 1700x and a r9 290 attached to an ASUS prime X370 pro

 

The build, when it deigns to run instead of producing long-short-short-short beeps, produces strange graphical artifacts and behavior, or simply gives up and shows only a black screen. The Radeon software app has reported several driver crashes as well.

 

The GPU is old and probably hasn't been well maintained. 

 

Is this what a dying GPU does? Will replacing the thermal paste/pads fix this issue? Or is it a lost cause once it begins showing those errors?

 

i want to know if I'm likely wasting my time before i open up this expensive case of dust and neglect

[TukangUsapEmenq]

5 minutes ago, NaClKnight said:

Is this what a dying GPU does? Will replacing the thermal paste/pads fix this issue? Or is it a lost cause once it begins showing those errors?

Definitely yes, and artifacts like those could be fixed by placing the GPU on a oven, which is a common practice to hopefully solves the problem. Don't hope too much though, rather as well to put it on the trash bin if it doesn't work.

 

Replacing any thermal paste/pads unfortunately won't solve anything as what's coming to death is the hardware itself.

 

Although you can just simply get a decent secondhand GPU and, voila, you got a decent gaming machine.

[UnaverageVague]

Remove the GPU driver from device manager and tell it to completely delete driver files, then uninstall from the control panel. Reboot and install latest drivers and see if that fixes it.
 

Also how are your temps?

[Zando_]

1 minute ago, TukangUsapEmenq said:

Definitely yes, and artifacts like those could be fixed by placing the GPU on a oven, which is a common practice to hopefully solves the problem.

If you have a disposable oven, sure. You're not supposed to use the oven for food, ever, after baking a GPU due to the chemicals from the PCB/solder AFAIK.

 

2 minutes ago, xovague said:

Remove the GPU driver from device manager and tell it to completely delete driver files, then uninstall from the control panel. Reboot and install latest drivers and see if that fixes it.
 

Also how are your temps?

^^^ +1 for this. Also you can try downclocking the core or VRAM and see if that helps, could prolong the useful life a bit if you want to hold on to the card.

[aDoomGuy]

One long and three short may mean:

Quote

An anomaly is detected in the graphic card. If the graphic card needs an extra power supply, please ensure the power supply can provide enough wattage.

https://www.asus.com/support/FAQ/1029959/

[NaClKnight]

7 hours ago, xovague said:

Remove the GPU driver from device manager and tell it to completely delete driver files, then uninstall from the control panel. Reboot and install latest drivers and see if that fixes it.
 

Also how are your temps?

I performed the factory reset option when i installed the Radeon software, and that seems to have helped, but that was before i read your solution

 

I haven't yet stress tested it but last night GPU & VRAM were idling between 45-55C

 

 

7 hours ago, TukangUsapEmenq said:

Definitely yes, and artifacts like those could be fixed by placing the GPU on a oven, which is a common practice to hopefully solves the problem. Don't hope too much though, rather as well to put it on the trash bin if it doesn't work.

 

Replacing any thermal paste/pads unfortunately won't solve anything as what's coming to death is the hardware itself.

 

Although you can just simply get a decent secondhand GPU and, voila, you got a decent gaming machine.

Yeah, my wife and i cook a lot and I'm not trying to be the reason the oven always smells and tastes like pixels. The 290 is on the rear edge of decent gaming gpu, but more importantly it was free. I guess I'll go see if i can score a used 570 or 1060 or something. Whatever $130 buys me on the used market