My Nvidia 8800 GT (Mac Pro 1st Gen) does not work anymore

uelef

macrumors member

Original poster

Aug 7, 2004

58

1

Germany, Wuerzburg

• Apr 11, 2010

• #1

I got a problem. Yesterday I was working on my Mac Pro (1st generation) - about 2 years ago I bought the Nvidia 8800 GT from the AppleStore to update the graphic card. But yesterday (I did not do something special) the screen colors went crazy (all black was green etc.) and the Mac froze. I had to make a hard reboot, but the Mac Pro did not boot anymore.

After trying out a lot of things I recognized that the 8800 GT caused the problem. I replaced it with the older Nvidia 7300 GT - and everything (besides slow graphics) was fine again.

I also tried to boot Windows XP via Bootcamp - but only a generic graphic driver was loaded (not the one of the 8800 GT). So graphics were slow and the maximum screen resolution on XP was 1600 x 1200.

I guess my Nvidia 8800 GT is out of order. Or does anyone have an idea what is wrong? I put the 8800 GT into another PCIe slot but that did not help.

Ulf

 

Cindori

macrumors 68040

Jan 17, 2008

3,533

380

Sweden

• Apr 11, 2010

• #2

hi ulf

search up the other 8800 thread a few pages back.

good luck

 

uelef

macrumors member

Original poster

Aug 7, 2004

58

1

Germany, Wuerzburg

• Apr 11, 2010

• #3

You mean I should bake my 8800 GT with 200° C? Hm, if no-one else will give me a better hint I will give it a try*…

 

Mackilroy

macrumors 601

Jun 29, 2006

4,152

1,313

• Apr 11, 2010

• #4

That's what I did to my 8800 – and it worked. Color me amazed, but it worked. Definitely try it out.

 

bozz2006

macrumors 68030

Aug 24, 2007

2,530

0

Minnesota

• Apr 11, 2010

• #5

that is pretty much the consensus. If that doesn't fix it, nothing will. Very weird, but very cool!

 

Cindori

macrumors 68040

Jan 17, 2008

3,533

380

Sweden

• Apr 11, 2010

• #6

i've heard about 15 success stories and 0 fail ones. def worth trying.

 

uelef

macrumors member

Original poster

Aug 7, 2004

58

1

Germany, Wuerzburg

• Apr 11, 2010

• #7

Ok, I will try it when the temperatures outside become higher so I can open all windows of my kitchen.

 

uelef

macrumors member

Original poster

Aug 7, 2004

58

1

Germany, Wuerzburg

• Apr 23, 2010

• #8

I'll gave it a try today - the weather was fine. After baking my 8800 GT now it works again. Great! Thanks for your hints! And it did not smell as bad as I expected (an open window is nevertheless a good option).

I made a video of it - you can watch it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0yWa4u93Rvg

Unfortunately it's in German. But for Germans who want to know how to bake a Nvidia Geforce 8800 GT - everything is explained.

(in German: Wer wissen will, wie man seine Nvidia Geforce 8800 GT backt, um sie zu reparieren: In dem Video wird das Wichtigsten erklärt.)

Ulf

 

Mackilroy

macrumors 601

Jun 29, 2006

4,152

1,313

• Apr 23, 2010

• #9

Congrats! Glad to hear it worked for you.

 

A

andyman404

macrumors newbie

May 12, 2010

1

0

• May 12, 2010

• #10

I had the same problem. The baking actually fixed my dead Nvidia 8800GT.

I first detached the big black heatsink/fan, and cleaned off all the thermal paste and dust with q-tips and rubbing alcohol. I baked it for 10 minutes at 385 degrees F (preheated), and then let it cool for 30 minutes. Then reapplied thermal paste, and reattached the heatsink/fan, and reinstalled it in my 1st gen Mac Pro. To my total astonishment, it worked. The card looked the same before and after the baking.