New video card causes computer to shut down, but.................

Hello, just yesterday, I put in a new video card and I am having issues. First of all, my computer has the following:


GIGABYTE GA-P55A-UD3 LGA 1156 Intel P55 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128412

Intel Core i5-750 Lynnfield 2.66GHz LGA 1156 95W Quad-Core Processor BX80605I5750 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115215

Antec earthwatts EA500 500W Continuous Power ATX12V v2.2 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC "Compatible with Core i7/Core i5" Power Supply http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371007

G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231277

In addition, I have a 120GB SSD and a 1TB HD and some a DVD drive, if that matters (for PSU purposes).

I used to have this cute little video card: geforce 8600 GT GeForce 8600
I installed the new Sapphire 100314-3L Radeon HD 6870 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card Amazon.com: SAPPHIRE AMD Radeon HD 6870 1GB GDDR5 PCIE Graphics Card: Electronics


Ok, so my problem is that when the computer is standing upright, it shuts off at random times (sometimes while starting up, sometimes while im doing something on the computer). There is no BSOD, even if it is fully loaded and I am using it when it just shuts off. It typically does not last more than a couple of minutes, and more often shuts down some time during start up.

I thought maybe the PSU wasn't sufficient, but I asked around those who know much more about computers and they all said it will work (500W min it says). I thought some cable might be loose, so I tightened each one of them. I got tired of laying the computer down and picking it back up so I turned it on with it on its side, with the mobo laying flat on the ground. It doesn't shut down when it's on its side! So it shuts down every time it is in its upright position, but I have not yet seen it shut down while on its side.


I thought maybe if there is something loose other than the power cables, I would get a BSOD. Am I wrong? I made sure the RAM sticks r nice and tight and the graphics card is tightly installed. I didn't touch the CPU/fan.


Why does it keep shutting down when it's standing up? You may say, "just leave it on its side," but that is not a solution for me. If you need additional info from my computer, you may need to dumb it down a little, as I don't really know your lingo~

Sounds like your shorting out. The 6870 is substantially heavier, and it could be bend/shifting the board causing a short.

Make sure all you mobo screws are in an tight.

Look for any screws or anything out of place.

Thanks for your response, Patonb. :D

When I saw how much bigger and heavier the card was, I wondered.... is this going to stay in???? Even with the screws all in there, I thought it might be too heavy.... but it was designed to be like this, right? Anyway, I double checked now and all screws are tight and there is no movement when I try to wiggle the vid card.

Hmm, check your slot, see if theres any damGE there or on the card.

You should see the bend when you Add a heatsink like a thermalright tr-2!

It could also be overheating. Depending on the fan setup, it might cool better one way or the other. Do you have the capability of monitoring the card temperature?

Is there anything that may be obstructing the fan?
Can you boot into the bios or does the computer not get that far.
When you say it shuts down, does it just turn off or shut down?
If it is shutting down I would guess a heat or power problem.
If it is switching off then it may be an electrical problem.

Ok, so I looked for visible damages, and there are none.

The temperature is around 50-55C, and fan speed is about 35%.

I tried turning the computer upright to see if any of those numbers change, but not really.

There is nothing obstructing the fans and no cables that can move enough to hit something in any orientation. I've been able to load windows completely and start opening programs before the computer turned off on its own while the tower is upright. When the computer is lying on its side, it does not shut down, ever.

I tried wiggling the cables to see if there was damage inside that may cause it to just power down when it is in a different orientation, but nothing happens.

I guess I'm not too clear about the difference between shutting down and turning off. It just looks like if I held the power button down so it just turns off. No BSOD and no freezing of any kind. Nothing unusual happens and there is no sign of the impending doom...I mean shut off. The screen just goes black and it says no signal.

I'm wondering if the software for the GPU is adjusting the fan speed appropriately. I lost two NVIDIA cards because they weren't ramping up when necessary. Your numbers look good for normal ops.

An overheating CPU will behave the same way.

Its not overheating, its not software, this is a power shorting.

Put your 8600 back in, and it up and vry gently wiggle the gpu.