Video card issues (UPDATED)

Halfmex

So, it looks like I might have an overheating video card on my hands, but being that I'm one of those people who just knows enough about computers to be dangerous around them, I'm not entirely certain. First, my machine's specs:

Model: HP Pavillion Media Center m8327c
Processor: AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual-Core 6000+ 3.010GHz
RAM: 3GB
Video Card: GeForce 8400GS
Power Supply: 300W
OS: Vista 32

A little about this machine: I've owned it for about a year. It's a refurbished unit (bought it at Fry's electronics), but up until now it's not given me any trouble whatsoever.

Here's the issue: since Saturday evening, I've been getting some artifacts on my screen, and shortly thereafter everything locks up entirely, forcing a hard reboot. I first noticed this with WoW (the only game I play on this machine), and that was pretty much immediate. I got the artifacts and then about five seconds later everything locked up. At first I thought that it was a driver issue, so I updated everything, and still encountered the issue. Then I started getting it just while browsing the internet, so I ran a SpeedFan check to double-check the fan status/temps in the machine. I also opened the case just to ensure that it wasn't an issue of too much dust. There wasn't much there at all, but what was there I removed with some compressed air. I've got a screenshot below that shows the artifacts as well as that SpeedFan report:

So, to my questions:

1. Does this appear to be an issue caused by an overheating video card?
2. If so, does anyone have any experience upgrading the video card for this machine? Obviously upgrading to anything reasonably more powerful means I'll have to upgrade my power supply; 300 watts likely won't cut it.
3. If it is not a video card issue, any ideas as to what it could be?

Thanks in advance for any help you folks can offer.

Okay, so here's the progression from that spoilered situation: I went out and purchased what I thought was a functionally identical card to what I had before.

What I had:
-Asus GeForce 8400GS 256MB PCI-E

What I bought:
-BFG GeForce 8400GS 512MB PCI-E

Should be pretty much the same card, yes? No?

So I get everything hooked up, sans one wired two-pronged connector (female) coming from the motherboard that went into the old card, for which there is no male prong that I can see on the new card. Still, things seem to be fine visually. The resolution's a little wonky, but I hadn't installed any drivers yet (though I shouldn't really have needed to). Then I begin to get some intermittent popping noises from the HDTV (32" Dynex LCD HDTV, which I'm using as a monitor) itself. This never happened with the old card, and has continued since I've installed the new one. I cannot determine a cause for this.

I finish installing the new drivers just for the sake of doing so, and I'm noticing that even though my HDTV's native resolution is 1360x768 60Hz, the same resolution that my previous card ran without a hitch, I'm no longer able to display that resolution properly. The picture is bleeding beyond the edges of the screen (forgive my lack of proper terminology here, I'm doing my best), and despite my every effort to select other widescreen resolutions, I'm getting more or less the same result every time I select any resolution. I've had to set the resolution to 1176x664 60Hz and use the 'stretch image' option in the nVidia Control Panel (an option that, naturally, doesn't appear with the desired 1360x768 resolution), and even that doesn't last beyond a logout.

So, my questions:

-Should this be happening?
-Where did I go wrong?
-Is this a bad card?
-Am I correct in assuming that this new card and the old one are functionally identical? Should this new card not be producing the same results as the old one?

Any help would be greatly appreciated. I am going crazy over this thing.

Halfmex

Loathe as I am to bump my own topic, I've updated the original post with a new issue. Any help would be super appreciated.

Apogee

Sounds like you need to update the drivers for the new card - resolution changes not working is a classic symptom. And why on earth would you buy that card again? It's woefully underpowered.

Your PSU is also suspect; 300W is enough with a nice name brand PSU, but if its generic, I'd try to get a 500W if you're gonna use a dedicated video card. If you can, return the card, grab a nice 9600GT at the very least, and get a better PSU.

Halfmex

I've actually done that, which is part of the maddening thing. I've updated the drivers for the card, and it's perplexing to me that it's not working just as the other card was.

As to why I went with this card, it's pretty much because I'm lacking the funds for a better one at the moment and I need my machine up and running now, AND because I wanted something that I wouldn't have to worry about switching out a new PSU for.

As to why I haven't bought a new PSU, well this PC is a Media Center PC, so as you can imagine, the inside of the case looks like Optimus Prime ejaculated his central nervous system into a metal box. In short, it looks like it would be an enormous pain in the ass to get what I'd much prefer, which would be a 500W PSU and an 8800GT card. But I do plan to do that, when I have more money and time.

For now, though, I'm just struggling to figure out why what seems to be the exact same card as I had before refuses to operate at the same resolution as the other card did.

Apogee

Oh, I missed that bit about a two-pronged connector not being hooked up. Might that in fact be a pwoer connector? Could be, but I doubt it, a 9400 isn't sucking THAT much juice.

OOOOOH. I remember now that TVs are often a complete bitch to get to work. Are you using a VGA or DVI cable? An adapter? If the computer can't recognise what the display is, it often fucks up the resolutions. See if it just 'default monitor' in the display settings.

I'm honestly not sure what the answer is in this case; there might be drivers for the TV out there, or maybe you can force windows/nVidia control panel to recognise it. I'm not an expert on that stuff in particular though.

Halfmex

Yeah, I'm using a DVI HDMI adapter, and the TV is basically being recognized as a 'Generic PnP monitor' which is quite probably what is goofing things up, but I can't find a way to make it do otherwise, and I just don't get why the old card which was more or less identical to this one could recognize it but this newer one can't. Agh. Oh well.

I do appreciate the effort nonetheless.

Apogee

Well, I'd scour the net looking for a way to force detection - telling it what is ont he other end, not letting the computer trying and figure it out. Not something I've done before, I'm afraid. That's probably your issue right there.

Adapter cables, in my experience, muck up monitor detection. No way to have it just take DVI, I take it.

Halfmex

Unfortunately not. The TV's got HDMI, VGA, S-Video and composite inputs unfortunately.

I'll see what I can come up with in terms of forcing detection. Thanks again.

Frem

So, with monitors, if the video output is too large for the screen, you adjust the monitor until the image fits. Is that not possible with TVs?

Apogee

Not with modern TVs, which means anything but CRTs. And a hi-def TV isn't gonna be a tube. Gotta get that detection somehow.. Check the nvidia/card brand web site, see if they have any specialized tools for this.

Elimination

the 8400 is an awful card. Why would you buy another one of the same card but with double the ram to start with? That seems like a waste of money to me. If i were you i'd invest in a 9600GS or something if you want to go on the cheap, and stick with Nvidia. It's a good card for its cost and leagues better than 8400GS.