When I start any game whatsoever, I get random flickering on my screen, then computer freezes. If I press Ctr+Alt+Del I can get to the Task Manager, but I still see the "holes" in my screen. After that the computer inevitably goes to a blue screen of death and I am forced to restart.

I updated my drivers, ran all the antiviruses I could, physically cleaned the case's insides (first I thought it might be dust that's causing this), but nothing seemed to help. My computer's almost 5 years old, so that may be part of it.

Specs:

ATI Radeon HD 2900 XT
Intel Core 2 DUO CPU E6750 @ 2.66GHz
3,00 GB RAM
32-bit Windows 7 OS

Thoughts? Suggestions? Thanks in advance!

The video card is probably dead.

That's possible... Any way I can test if that's the case you think? Also, it does play whatever game I'm trying to launch for 20-30 seconds prior to crashing, and I had no issues with other applications (eg., Fireworks, VLC, etc).

Any way you could borrow someones video card to test?
I would be trying your video card in a different machine and trying a different card in yours

Agreed. It really sounds like a vid card death.

Thanks guys. If that's indeed the case, then considering the RAM and the processor, which video card do you think I should get? Or should I just invest in a brand new build all together since the rig is so old? In all honesty I wouldn't want to spend more than $500 at this point. If a completely new build, then max $1000, I guess...

Well luckily you have a PCI express card slot, so you can actually go ahead and get a fancy new gaming card now. Then if you want to upgrade your PC to a new set of hardware, you can do that later and just move your card over to it.

A 5770, anything else would be wasted by the rest of the hardware, plus they are excellent value and you can invest in a whole new system.

Thanks, Matty. I was thinking along the same lines, was just wondering if my CPU / RAM / old motherboard would be up for it. But at this point I suppose it doesn't really matter -- its seems that I'm going to need a new GPU either way.



I bought my 2900 XT for $473 back when it was a top of the line product. I'm guessing Radeon HD 5770 > Radeon HD 2900 XT. Heck, it's got twice as much RAM, and that's got to count for something. Thanks for the advice, Tibby!

Actually, having spoken with a colleague, Radeon HD 6770 seems like the better option for the money. But thanks for stirring me in the right direction!

Yeah, don't listen to Tibby. If you plan on upgrading this computer anytime in the next 6-12 months, just get the fastest card you feel comfortable buying. Being "held back" by the rest of the computer doesn't mean jack if you're going to be upgrading the rest of the computer as well later.