Screen tearing not sure of cause

[Eon the Wolf]

So here's a copy pasta of almost everything I can remember I've done to test/find an issue;

So my mobo gave a beep code, according to my mobo manual, 1 beep is memory improperly seated and/or bad. However, last night after 6 hours and the night before after 12-16 (this all started last wed/thursday), both times on desktop/web browser not in a game, my screen would freeze and instantly screen tear and look like it was put together after being through a paper shredder.

I ran fur mark for nearly an hour and a half and no freezing/screen tearing/mobo beep code/problems showed, and my pc wasnt overheated/hot at all either times the tearing did happen (What I mean is some of the holes in chase near top/back get a bit warm after extended use, was freezing cold by time of both screen tears).

I tested mem test with 4 passes with no errors. Also after the first tear, it booted up normally, but after the 2nd time it took a minute or 2 for monitors to get powered up after everything else (tower/keyboard/mouse), and it went into a launch up sequence that looked like start up for XP. It went into start up restore/repair, and did system restore, and the first few times I started up after that the monitors consistently took an extra minute or 2 to start up, and the entire boot up sequence seemed to tank longer than normal. The delayed monitor boot up has ceased stop, but now every time I start up my PC, it takes 2 or 3 times as long as it used to only a few short weeks ago to fully boot up/load the desktop, let alone the start up programs (And i dont have as many as I did a few weeks ago, to avoid setting up any potential things to cause screen tear).

Both main hard drive and both video game 500 gig drives have 0% fragmentation and my 160 media drive has 4% fragmentation and a boot time scan gave no virus'.

If any other info is needed, ask me and I'll try to remember if I've tried/tested/done it, and if not I'll try to get/give answers.

Would really appreciate any help on anything else I can test or check to see if I can find a culprit. I don't really feel safe just 'carrying out n seeing if it still happens'...dont want to get anything corrupted. I also dont wanna live with the threat/risk of it occurring in future hanging over my head if it DOESN'T immediately happen when I 'try to game again'. I'll replace hardware parts to see if it still happens afterwards, but if I had a guarantee or inkling of what part(s) could be the cause, I'd feel more comfortable than just 'replace this n see if it still happens'.

As a side note before posting, if I didn't make it clear, the first time it tear was after 12-16 hours of being on, and I was going through my large number of web pages to try n clear em out, I've done it many times before and it was pretty much all just pictures from facebook. As I said, I'd done it many times before without crashing or problem (Though certainly a bit of lag until their numbers started thinning...). After the second time, I had just finished diablo 3, logged off, gone upstairs for a few minutes at most, came back down, sat in chair, 30 seconds later screen tear. That time, I had tried to open up chrome (right click for a specific page), and right click menu wouldn't open off of taskbar. Opened start menu n hovered over chrome in start menu, still nothing....tried right click on chrome again...and BAM, instant freeze + tear.

EDIT - And in case anyone was curious or had noticed my mouse thread before, it's not quite fixed, but when this issue started I started wondering if perhaps my mouse issue(s) and the screen tear both came from the same faulty bit of hardware...mobo/cpu perhaps? I was told either could be culprit. Also I noticed slight audio clipping/problems on my headset on some videos, but it's not surfaced since and it wasn't a constant problem, only clipped when voices or music raised, and it hadn't happened before, so I was wondering if perhaps my audio issue(s), mouse issue(s), and screen tearing could all be due to a faulty/failing cpu/mobo or some such...Im intending to test my headset on my bros pc for a few hours tonight and if no clipping occurs on any vids or if I cant notice anything at all, I'll rule it as either headset fixing itself (perhaps wire issues in headset) or issue being with my pc...

 

[Eon the Wolf]

I do hate to double post but it's been a few days and no one has offered help or told me if I posted in the wrong section. (If I did, I apologize. Lemme know what section I SHOULD take this to and I'll do so).

Just...kinda spazzing atm cause every day that goes by where I'm stuck worrying on whether or not the problem still persists or if it'll get worse or wondering what I can do to try n locate/fix it....I'd rather help arrives and I fix this (or at least learn what is potentially/certainly the problem) sooner rather than later....

 

[OnePostWonder]

You posted a lot of information. That isn't a bad thing, but I would say a good chunk of people coming into the thread are going to be put off by it.

What I would suggest is taking the information you have there and short-handing it. People find it more readable to go down through a list of what has occurred and what you've done about it so far.

I'm sure someone will be along to help. That your mobo threw a beep code suggesting memory, and you ran 4 passes on it (MemTest?) without any problems, maybe you're looking at a problem with the mobo.

Again, try and shorthand your post.

 

[Eon the Wolf]

I am UTTERLY TERRIBLE at short handing/summarizing, especially with problems like this where I've tried many things n had many things happen. The list would still have like 7-12 bullet points if not a few more I think....

And I was told it may be mobo, cause a friend told me either ram could be causing screen tear... or mobo north bridge controller and/or cpu....

Was mostly wondering if anyone knew of or could tell me any ways I can test cpu/mobo without replacing them to see for sure, or if replacing them is only way to know for sure...And another friend also said if mobo has gone, then don't trust CPU either which would mean I'd have to save up n buy a new quadcore cpu + new mobo...Not that big a deal, and I could use the upgrade but...I'd like to try and double check n be absolutely sure there's no other tests I can do/run before I start buying/saving up to buy parts...

 

[Xzibit]

Try scaning your HDs see if they are developing Bad Sectors.

The increase of boot time might be just that.

HDTune or HD utility from the manufacturers website.

If your getting crash dumps this tool is handy for reading Memory Dump files for helping narrow down the problem

Bluescreenview

 

[Eon the Wolf]

The only HDD with virtual ram or OS files on it is my 320...perhaps my 160 for virtual ram, but my 2 500s are both purely game and media files. No OS or windows files or anything of the sort...how would them having bad sectors affect the boot time? They shouldn't be accessed at all at boot

I'll certainly scan the HDDs for bad sectors tonight and report on it tomorrow. It's something to test, so I'm more than happy to try. Appreciate the advice xzibit.

EDIT - Not getting crash dumps. The only things relating to crash I've had was a start up repair happening after the second tear. Never had a crash dump or blue screen from this...yet :/ Course it hasn't happened since the 2nd time it did a tear, and since the 2nd tear I've not gamed or had large scale web browser use....

 

[itsakjt]

Try removing the graphics card and boot with the onboard VGA. Test the games with it and see if it causes problems. That problem might lie in the video card memory. Also check the RAM. Either or both of these two are likely the culprit(s).

 

[Eon the Wolf]

If I boot with onboard VGA, I'll be lucky to play minecraft above very minimal. It's a minimobo from like 08/09....And the problem never happened mid game, it was always right after I left game or as I started sorting through web pages...though whether I left the game(s) 'just in time' or what I dunno....

If it was a video card memory issue, I was think an hour n 20 minutes of furmark being run would've caused an issue to show itself, wouldn't it?

And I checked the RAM, as stated in my first post. 4 full passes n a half finished 5th pass with 0 errors.

 

[Fourstaff]

I would take a good look inside, sometimes you can see physical damage. Other than that, check grounding. To me it sounds like something is about to give up/not up to scratch given the intermittent problems.

 

[itsakjt]

If I boot with onboard VGA, I'll be lucky to play minecraft above very minimal. It's a minimobo from like 08/09....And the problem never happened mid game, it was always right after I left game or as I started sorting through web pages...though whether I left the game(s) 'just in time' or what I dunno....

If it was a video card memory issue, I was think an hour n 20 minutes of furmark being run would've caused an issue to show itself, wouldn't it?

And I checked the RAM, as stated in my first post. 4 full passes n a half finished 5th pass with 0 errors.

Furmark doesn't stress the video memory. It fully stresses the GPU only. If you look there, you will find that memory usage is 0%. Also verified in GPU-Z. I suspect the video memory.

 

[_Zod_]

No BSODs? Then l am going to agree with others that your video card is faulty. Most times if it's a mobo, ram or cpu issue, you WILL BSOD or be unable to boot. Video corruption is likely bad or overheating VRAM. Also could be a driver issue, update to lates or try a rollback to previous versions for testing.

 

[OnePostWonder]

Looks like you're getting some pretty valuable input here, Eon. I hope your issue is resolved soon.

 

[Eon the Wolf]

K i got HD Tune Pro trial version. Looked at health of my 4 HDDs. My 2 500s all say 'OK'.

My 320 has 'warning' for (0A) Spin Retry Count and (C7) ULtra DMA CRC Error Count. Spin up attempts after a spin up failure: 5. Interface communication errors: 27.
My 160 has 'warning' for (C7) Ultra DMA CRC Error Count. 98 Interface communication errors.

Do you want me to do this 'export log' function and post the statistics or upload them somewhere or did I give enough info?

EDIT - Now it does say that the CRC error count could be attributed to failing/faulty wire(s), so my 160 may possibly still be health n just requiring a different wire to plug into it....but I have this feeling my 320 prob doesnt have long to live as far as HDDs go :X

 

[itsakjt]

K i got HD Tune Pro trial version. Looked at health of my 4 HDDs. My 2 500s all say 'OK'.

My 320 has 'warning' for (0A) Spin Retry Count and (C7) ULtra DMA CRC Error Count. Spin up attempts after a spin up failure: 5. Interface communication errors: 27.
My 160 has 'warning' for (C7) Ultra DMA CRC Error Count. 98 Interface communication errors.

Do you want me to do this 'export log' function and post the statistics or upload them somewhere or did I give enough info?

EDIT - Now it does say that the CRC error count could be attributed to failing/faulty wire(s), so my 160 may possibly still be health n just requiring a different wire to plug into it....but I have this feeling my 320 prob doesnt have long to live as far as HDDs go :X

The spin up failure can also be caused by a loose power cable from the PSU or a defective PSU. Check it. And as for the interface errors, they are difficult to get rid off. Maybe changing the SATA cable will solve the problem but it will still be recorded in the data. Just keep an eye on those values. They SHOULD NOT increase. All the best.

 

[Eon the Wolf]

So still working with friend on a few things, had a few days of trying to relax n unfrazzle myself due to family issues.

I was just wondering...Is there any way to run something to actually test the GPU RAM?
You all said I can try changing loose/faulty power or SATA cables/wires for the HDDs (One of em, be it one of the HDDs or the DVD drive, is IDE or w/e if I remember right...just FYI) n see if that fixes it, so I'll give an update as soon as I can, and if I can't then I'll try to replace the 2 HDDs ASAP....

But what can I do to stress test the CPU? Can I? Can I test the GPU's RAM? Is it possible to check the MOBO's memory bridge or w/e without just changing the MOBO and 'hoping for the best'?

I'm just trying to figure out if there's anything else I can run as a test on the PC to try n narrow suspects or find a culprit before I have to start finding weaker parts or shelling out $$ I can't afford right now to try n replace parts bit by bit to find the problem :<

 

[BiggieShady]

Is there any way to run something to actually test the GPU RAM?

Yeah there is, try MemTestCL

 

[Eon the Wolf]

Thanks. Does this have to be installed to USB as well I take it?

In a day or two, I'll set it up and do it, let ya know how it goes. Possibly gonna be busy all day sunday n gonna be doing some stuff most of today.

 

[Eon the Wolf]

Sorry for bump/double post, but I'm confused. There's no clear indication of which one to get...you said CL, and it says CL is for AMD/ATI GPUs...but upon downloading, it gives me 2 options; 'juniper' and my CPU...GPU is not listed anywhere....
Also the menu/way in which you select options is not readily apparent/easy/simple for someone who's never used it. Anyone who can give me more info/help on getting the correct one or running it? Please?

 

[itsakjt]

Juniper is the code name for 5770. That should be the one.

 

[werez]

"So my mobo gave a beep code, according to my mobo manual, 1 beep is memory improperly seated and/or bad. However, last night after 6 hours and the night before after 12-16 (this all started last wed/thursday), both times on desktop/web browser not in a game, my screen would freeze and instantly screen tear and look like it was put together after being through a paper shredder."

To me it sounds like a chipset problem . I believe it`s the 785G ?
Remove the video card , go with onboard . Stress CPU + memory with Orthos or whatever for at least 2 hours . Any crash , freeze bsod will prolly point to a defective / desoldered chipset .
I`m saying this because memory problems can result from a defective chipset / with the same audible error code .
A slow POST with no beeps : chipset / memory .

Your video card might be faulty but from what you first experienced it`s unlikely .

Also you could install Whocrashed? and check the previous crash dumps if any and see what went wrong in the past .

 

[Eon the Wolf]

Okay, i did 2 or 3 sets of 50 iterations of memtestCL. No errors. I read on site you should do thousands, but I could not see an option of where/how to set that to do thousands or more than default 50 iteration run.

No errors in those iterations I did run...I should mention my secondary monitor, running off of a display port cord (new cord), has started having tearing/flickering on the lower 1/3 of the screen...but it could just be cord going bad or the TV dying....or maybe not...

Its a TV used as a monitor secondarily, and I do know every time I restart my PC or that tv/'monitor' goes off, when I turn it back on I have to cycle through all the inputs and go back to PC in order for it to show an input...and at first, it wouldnt display at the resolution it was supposed to go up to...

EDIT - And no, I run a A880G+ now.

 

[BiggieShady]

I should mention my secondary monitor, running off of a display port cord (new cord), has started having tearing/flickering on the lower 1/3 of the screen...

This is indicative.
Try switching the primary and secondary display in catalyst control center and see if it solves the issue.
If it does, also switch displays in Windows control panel, so the display configuration remain as it was initially.

 

[Eon the Wolf]

How would making my secondary my primary and my primary my secondary fix this flickering problem? What exactly is it indicative of? And if that DID fix it...how would flipping it back via windows stop it from just starting back up? I'm confused as to what exactly this flickering is indicative of, and how your fix would fix it...

I'll try it, but I'm just not getting why it would affect anything...

EDIT - Feel I should mention long before any other pc issues showed up beyond slight mouse inaccuracy, this monitor would occasionally flicker into black screen n back...A simple on n off reset usually fixed it, but I could never understand why it sometimes flickered with black screens or black lines for half seconds/seconds at a time every so often...now it's stopped flickering all over screen and started fizzing out/tearing/wacking out on bottom 1/3 to an obvious degree...

EDIT EDIT - To reiterate once more for anyone recatching up/reading....
I've run furmark with no problems.
I've run 3 or so sets of 50 iterations on memtestcl on my 5770 with no errors.
I've run memtest86+ on my RAM for however long I mention up top, no errors.
I've done boot time scan for virus' with nothing.
I've checked fragmentation nothing major.
I've checked HDD health n found varying numbers of interface communication errors on my 160 media drive n 320 OS/main drive, as well as 5 spin up failures on my 320 OS/main drive.

What other tests can I run/check/do, and else can you tell by the other info I've supplied? There is the monitor info in this and last post to consider as well as any other earlier mentioned tidbits of info...If I forgot any other tests/things I've done from earlier, feel free to remind me or take em into account...trying to keep track of EVERYTHING I've done/checked so far, and it's getting to be a longer list than I've usually had to go through to find a PC problem culprit...

And I will be changing/checking wires for HDDs ASAP, but so far my 2 500s remain completely healthy, and someone mentioned the 160/320 may not be issue as long as values on the issues dont increase. (I'll likely still change the 2 HDDs out ASAP just to be safe...but if they're not the culprit NOW I can't worry bout them)

 

[BiggieShady]

How would making my secondary my primary and my primary my secondary fix this flickering problem? What exactly is it indicative of? And if that DID fix it...how would flipping it back via windows stop it from just starting back up? I'm confused as to what exactly this flickering is indicative of, and how your fix would fix it...

It was discussed somewhere as 5000 series multiple display issue (http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/308478-15-screen-tearing-duplicated-screen-hd5850) and someone mentioned that as a solution, It might not be relevant in your case but you can try it.

 

[Eon the Wolf]

Okay, I'll try that if need be, but I'm sure it's not the cause of my problems. I doubt it would cause screen tear/freezing, especially since I've been using dual monitors for about a year prior to this without issue; 6 months of those 12 were with a CRT, and the other 6 with this LCD tv as a secondary LCD monitor.

So on the topic of other tests....do you or anyone else have any other suggestions/tests I can run? Or know how to run memtestCL on a larger scale? I read I should do a multi thousand iteration test of memtestCL to be accurate/reliable, but I couldn't see an option to set how many iterations it'd do, or how much memory to test like was suggested on the site