2008 iMac 24" video card replacement

[Bk13]

My early 2008 iMac 24" model MB325LL/A A1225 video card has gone bad. It has the ATI Radeon HD 2600 PRO with 256MB installed.
What has your experience been with with replacement or repair?
Has any one used a repair service where you send the video card to be resoldered?
I found a few video cards on the net with a wild variation in price.
Could I use the Nvidia card instead or are there other alternatives?

Thanks,

Chris

 

[Intell]

The video cards in that model iMac, like most Intell based iMacs, is a slotted card. No soldering needed for replacement. The ATI 2600 is the middle tier of the three GPUs for that iMac. The Nvidia one is the most powerful, but is prone to the 8X00 GPU failure. The ATI models work well, but can be plagued by the GPU crash bug that came about with 10.6.3 or 10.6.7, depending on which version the card is. Other than those three cards, there are no others that will work in a 2007/2008 iMac.

 

[Bk13]

Hers is a pic of the screen

 

[Intell]

Nifty colours. Does it do that in Safe Boot as well?

 

[Bk13]

Nifty colours. Does it do that in Safe Boot as well?

Why thank you!
Yes, it does it in every mode there is
As soon as the display lights there are bars through the boot process, the Apple logo is centered with white ghosts on either side of the screen. When I mentioned resoldered what I meant was sending the card out to be "reflowed". I found at least 2 companies that do this for around $90. They offer a 90 day warranty and a wonderful list of disclaimers lol.

 

[Intell]

I don't think a reflow will fix that card. That could also be a bad video cable or LCD, but very unlikely.

 

[Bk13]

I guess I'll work up the nerve and start tearing her down tonight, looking for easy fixes along the way... It would be nice if I would find a loose cable or something.

 

[michaeld4500]

Other than ebay where else can you purchase the card and has anyone tried reflowing ? Mine has a no video at boot and the 4th led doesn't light.

 

[Intell]

Other than ebay where else can you purchase the card and has anyone tried reflowing ? Mine has a no video at boot and the 4th led doesn't light.

Some places like iFixit or WeLoveMacs may have one, but their prices can be much higher than eBay prices. In some cases, it may be cheaper to buy a whole iMac than just the video card.