ATI and RMA's

[JE78]

I screwed up my ATI 9800 Pro trying to OC it. I'm just wondering if they usualy replace it after its been OCed or if they give you a hard time? Also how long should I expect to wait? Thanks.

 

[JE78]

anyone?

 

[Budman]

overclocking voids your warranty.

 

[DaveSimmons]

You probably popped the bubble fuse under the GPU, so they'll know you're attempting to commit mail fraud. They might decide to make an example of you which could involve a several thousand dollar fine.

Best to just throw the card away and learn from your mistake.

 

[sniperruff]

time to buy yourself a new one.

 

[JE78]

Thanks guys. I was playing a game today for over 2 hours and the card was fine. I noticed a few artifacts and the temp never got above 49c. Then my screen went black and the the system locked up. Is there a possible fix or is it done?

 

[DaveSimmons]

Try powering down, waiting and restarting. If you now get artifacts even at stock speed then you damaged the graphics processor which is not fixable.

 

[JE78]

Thanks. I'll give it a rest tonight and try it in the morning and keep my fingers crossed.

 

[w00t]

I wouldnt worry my buddy was cleaning his alienware with a vacum yes a double mistake 1st alienware 2nd clean pc with vacum he told me that he saw a huge shock come from vacum to video card and when he looked up at monitor it was black than he restarted and everything worked fine.

 

[Greenman]

ATI is great. My 9800PRO died while playing HL2, all at once and nothing first. I had my new card 3 days after ATI recived my old one. Couldn't ask for better customer service.

 

[imported_whatever]

I seriously doubt they can tell. However, if it is possible to RMA it to the retailer, they will not be able to (friend RMA'd a 9800XT with a burned core + all of the RAM chips were actually cracked and glued back on)

 

[JE78]

Thanks guys. I just tried playing BF2, was playing for 5 mins and it locked up. Hit the reset button on my computer and got the error "your ATI 9800 pro does't have the power cord plugged into it" or something along them lines. Not good.

So you think trying to RMA it would be a good idea?

 

[DaveSimmons]

That's not a moral or ethical option, but like whatever said, some people manage to commit fraud and not get caught. If you have no morals, ethics or conscience then go for it I guess.

 

[JE78]

Well I have morals and ethics but its $$ for a new card that I don't have.

 

[Ken90630]

I know you prolly don't want to hear this, but RMAing a card as defective when in fact you damaged it (by OCing it) is both dishonest and unethical. "Do unto others ...."

The 'right' thing to do would be to call ATI, honestly tell 'em what you think happened, and ask if maybe they can repair it for you for less than a new one would cost.

Not intending to come across as the morality police here -- just honestly trying to help.

EDIT: I was typing my post as Dave was posting his, so I hadn't seen it. I wasn't intending to pile on, JE78. So now you have an angel on one shoulder saying, "C'mon, you know the right thing to do," and a devil on the other shoulder saying, "C'mon, go for it! Screw ethics! They'll never know!" Quite the unenviable sitch! :laugh:

Good luck, mate.

 

[DaveSimmons]

Originally posted by: JE78
Well I have morals and ethics but its $$ for a new card that I don't have.

Then why not break into a store and steal one? It's just as ethical.

Or go out and mug someone for the cash. Hey, you might get enough to afford an upgrade.

Edit: If you truly have ethics, you don't just have them when you think you might get caught. And I realize it's not always easy. A couple of years ago I was tempted to take a false (but 100% safe) deduction on my taxes that would have saved me several hundred dollars, but I decided I'd rather be a person who does the right thing.

 

[JE78]

Well we'll see what happens. Thanks for everyones advice.

 

[RadiclDreamer]

Originally posted by: JE78
Well I have morals and ethics but its $$ for a new card that I don't have.

Then its overclocking you SHOULDNT have been doing

 

[JE78]

Well I got up this morning after letting it sit all night, turned it on and got the message that "you have not connected the power cable to your Radon 9800". So then I got to thinking. The last time unhooked and hooked up the power cable it didn't hook in to secure. So I took out the card and the power cable came out pretty easy, then I hooked it back up and really jamed that cable in it. I tured it on and it started up without the error. Could the reason for the system lockups be because that cable wasn't hooked up good enough? Its in there now and will test it with a game a little later but could that be a reason? Thanks.

 

[JE78]

Just an update for you guys that have been keeping track of this. I just got done playing BF2 for a little less than an hour and had ZERO problems. No artifacts, no lock ups, temp stayed right around 51c. I'm thinking what was happening or hoping atleast that the power cable was coming loose and it wasn't getting enough power and then locking up on me. When I OCed it, I didn't do anything extreem, I uped the core to 393. Its not like 430 like i've seem people doing. So i'm keeping my fingers crossed that its fixed and it was just the power cable issue.

 

[DaveSimmons]

That's good news, glad to hear you won't have to decide between ethics and a replacement video card.

 

[JE78]

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that its a fix. I still want to try it out on a few more games but BF2 is a good test I think.