Voltage problem [with nVidia GeForce 7300 GT graphics card]

Hi All,

To prepare for Vista I recently installed an nVidia GeForce 7300 GT graphics card. This boosted my Vista performance ratings from 2.0 and 2.6 up to 4.3 and 4.4 but every time I boot up now I get a warning that the card is not receiving enough power and its performance has been reduced to prevent damage. The nominal 1.5v power is at 1.472v and can occasionally drop to 1.4v. I have a 400W PSU fitted.
The 1.5v must be produced by the Asus mobo, but is it possible that a more powerful PSU would boost the 1.5V line to a better value or should I complain to
Asus?

Roger

 

As one moves closer to the pinnacle in terms of equipment, including video cards, power becomes more critical and the actual tolerance range gets a lot tighter. Although I'm not familiar with your card specifically, it sounds like it isn't getting the "juice" it needs to run properly. And, while 400W might be thought of as sufficient, there could be enough variance in the actual rails to cause some problems under any kind of load (start up is a demanding time too). Add to the mix, the fact that amperage can be even more important than total wattage.

My suggestion is to shop for a new power supply and get something along the lines of an decent Antec. Just like you, I don't like that 1.4V reading either. Its very doubtful that the board is your problem.

 

Here is a power calculator:
http://www.journeysystems.com/power_supply_calculator.php
It should give you a guide as to what you will require.

Check the instructions carefully in case the card needs a 4 pin power plug connected directly to the card.

Matt

 

Thanks for the advice guys, I've ordered a 550 watt supply which should be here on Monday. I'll let you know the result.

Roger

 

Well, I installed my superb new 550W PSU, after sorting out all the new cables for SATA drives, Express cards, and a few others, but the problem is still there. I queried it with the card manufacturers, Twintech, and they say the cure is a flashing of the graphics card BIOS, and provided all the necessary files by e-mail. I also contacted Asus for info.
I may do it, and I may not. I now think that the problem is not really a problem but arises because the warning that I get says, roughly, plug in the card's power lead. There is no place for attaching a power lead to the card, so I think the warning arises because most of this generation of cards are now PCI Express, and mine is AGP. The voltages are still the same, 1.472, which is the core voltage for the CPU, which is quite happy and cool. I did think of boosting the core voltage a little in the BIOS, but there is no facility in the AV8-X BIOS for this, which is a pity.
I am getting the full Aero in Vista I think, so let sleeping dogs lie unless Asus come back with a suggestion for adjusting the core voltage.

Roger

 

Nice piece of investigative work. My counsel would be to follow the directions you were given and flash the graphics card. If it goes bust, you should be able to do an advance RMA (verify with the mfg) and ship yours back while they trans-ship one to you simultaneously. If you were in a pinch, you should be able to do it overnight for a small fee.

 

I would agree to do the firmware upgrade as well.

I got that message for my 6600GT when I had forgotten to connect the extra power connector (BTW, it is an AGP card). If it is giving a low power message and there is no place to connect an extra power lead, maybe it has the wrong firmware now.

You should probably check that you have a good (recent) set of chipset drivers. Chipset drivers have things like CPU to AGP controllers. Are the correct graphics drivers installed? If it is running the drivers for a GPU that needs additional power, that maybe why it is giving the message.

Did you remove the drivers and software for the previous graphics adapter?

It was the manufacturer's suggestion to upgrade the firmware. You have covered yourself by asking their opinion first. You have nothing to lose (apart from time if they need to replace it).

Matt

 

Thanks all,

Firmware updated OK with very good assistance from RSCOM, the French importers of these cards. The procedure was greatly complicated by the Zone Alarm habit of quarantining all .exe attachments which made it difficult to get them onto the floppy!

Roger