Can a faulty graphics card damage other PC parts?

[GrumpyGamer123]

I have found myself in the somewhat undesirable position of needing a graphics card with the current market of extreme demand, shortage and gross price gouging on the used market. I can't find any reasonably priced new ones and refuse to accept the scalper prices on the used market, so instead have managed to get some reasonable (though no doubt still more than they would have been) prices on some untested graphics cards, one of these I was promised does display (at least in Windows), but the working condition of the other is unknown other than the physical condition being good. I am looking at a third GPU too, that is suspected faulty, but may be able to be replaced under manufacturer warranty, as it is a new(ish) model.

I would like to test all three in my PC, as even on the third one there is a slim chance it was an installation error or inadequate PSU, rather than faulty card. The thing is I’m not sure how safe it is inserting a GPU with unknown history (and possible faults) into the PCI Express slot on my at least reasonably powerful gaming PC? Does the PCI Express slot standard offer any protection to the rest of the PC, in case the graphics card tries to do something unexpected or has a short etc? Or could a bad component on the graphics card scupper the entire PC?

Thankfully, I do have a second, very old PC, that is of minimal value I could use in a pinch, but I would rather not unless it is absolutely essential, since it’s chassis is too small to fit a GPU and it’s PSU too weak, so I would have to set it up outside the case with the PSU borrowed from my main PC for testing, so basically quite a bit of a hassle, but one I will accept if there is a real danger of damage from a faulty graphics card.

 

[qubit]

Yes, unfortunately, a used card of unknown provenance could damage your PC. It's not that likely, but I wouldn't be happy to try it.

I think it's worth you setting up that very old PC with your current PSU and see how that goes. Note that if it's that old, then BIOS issues can also cause problems.

 

[GrumpyGamer123]

Thanks for the quick reply. I haven't been on it for a while as I just keep it for a spare, but I believe the CPU is Sandy Bridge kind of age, so probably a good decade old by now. I know it only has the old style BIOS, no EUFI, but that shouldn't stop a GPU from posting should it?

One more thing, does an older PCI Express standard matter? I'm pretty sure the old PC won't have PCI Express 3 like my main PC does, I think it is only 2.0.

 

[LFaWolf]

I had this happened to me before. I had a dead gtx 1080, unbeknownst to me that was dead. I plugged it into my $400 motherboard and it killed the board as well. From that point on I kept a test bench and use it to verify working condition before trying it in my pc.

 

[xrobwx71]

Most are backward compatible but they will run at the lowest platform it's plugged into.

 

[qubit]

Thanks for the quick reply. I haven't been on it for a while as I just keep it for a spare, but I believe the CPU is Sandy Bridge kind of age, so probably a good decade old by now. I know it only has the old style BIOS, no EUFI, but that shouldn't stop a GPU from posting should it?

One more thing, does an older PCI Express standard matter? I'm pretty sure the old PC won't have PCI Express 3 like my main PC does, I think it is only 2.0.

If you look at my specs, you'll see that I'm running an ancient 2700K with a 2080 SUPER. Hence, don't worry about trying a card with the same gen CPU. It will work, just not with maximum performance, that's all.

 

[GrumpyGamer123]

Just a little update.

I received and tested a 980TI I had purchased that looks immaculate, not even any dust. At first it was going great, displayed fine, installed drivers was running quiet and cool according to GPU Z, hadn't gotten to testing in games or benchmarks, but seemed really promising, but then I lost the display (screen just went black and said no signal) computer seemed to be running normally though, didn't shut down or anything. I pressed the power button and it shut down normally, so I think windows was still running, just with no display. Really disappointing as I thought I'd got a bargain with that one.

Is there anything simple I could have missed that would cause the display to drop like that, or is it likely a knackered card?

 

[R-T-B]

Yes, unfortunately, a used card of unknown provenance could damage your PC. It's not that likely, but I wouldn't be happy to try it.

I think it's worth you setting up that very old PC with your current PSU and see how that goes. Note that if it's that old, then BIOS issues can also cause problems.

EVGA sent me a card years ago that fried every PCIe slot I plopped it in. Was a horrific experience even though they eventually admitted fault and gave me nearly a grand in store credit.

 

[joemama]

A bad card with a mobo that doesn't limit the PCIE slot power draw could make the card draw excessive power from the PCIE slot and fry it.

 

[qubit]

EVGA sent me a card years ago that fried every PCIe slot I plopped it in. Was a horrific experience even though they eventually admitted fault and gave me nearly a grand in store credit.

I'll bet that was awful and from a top brand, too. At least you got some decent compensation for it.

 

[jboydgolfer]

I would highly recommend you avoid purchasing cards that are being sold as defective, faulty or, condition unknown. When it comes to video cards you don’t want a fixer-upper, Because you’re putting yourself in a position where if the card functions as intended it’s a good sign, and that should be a given not a hope.

when it comes to used video cards, I only purchase from someone who I know has a decent history of honest behavior. If you keep your eye open here on TPU, you’re bound to see a secondhand video card come up for sale once or twice a week

 

[HarshanaLeel]

I had one but it fired. MB works well still. I'll attach picture.

 

[Saintz]

Yes.

Because you don't know the problem of the card, i would say that an already damaged card wouldn't cause any problems (don't quote me on that) but a GPU that is on the verge of burning out for example will lead to a cascading effect on the rest of your hardware.