Alternative to 7800xt GPU (and monitor recommendation)

Mark Hamill

I got a new PC just before christmas, but have had to return the GPU, an AMD 7800 XT as it was faulty.

I was just going to get a replacement of the same, but it seems like they are hard to source now (and the prices for what is left have gone up), so what would be a good alternative card, in a similar price range (~€500-550). The CPU I have is an AMD Ryzen 7 7700X, if that makes a difference.

Also, what would be a good monitor to go with these, in the €250-300 range?

It would be for gaming and hopefully 27-32 inches. From what I understand googling about monitors, I would probably be best going for something 1440p and higher refresh rate, rather than 4k and lower refresh rate?

K.O.Kiki

Your GPU price range is literally just

RTX 4060 Ti 16GB

RTX 4070 12GB

Yes, go for 1440p above 165Hz

minitrue

Or a 7800XT ;) I didn't go looking at any others when this was the first I checked (cheapest) and coming from Amazon themselves (it's a little more but still in budget from the UK by my math).

https://www.amazon.de/dp/B0CGRMJF6C

Nate--IRL--

Might be worth hanging on to see what AMD do with their new cards? That said, the wet fart that is the 5080 will probably not pressure the 9070 to come down to your budget.

Nate

cornholio509

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058392215/alternative-to-7800xt-gpu-and-monitor-recommendation

I would wait for few weeks before committing to buying another GPU . THat is if you can wait . The nvidia GPUs are looking to fall flat on their face going by the reviews of the 590 and 5080 . AMD will be lifting review embargos in a couple of weeks . Even if the GPU's are only a couple of % better we could see last gen price drops . You could get a better gpu for less .

Mark Hamill

Thanks for the suggestions but unfortunately I have another problem now. The shop I returned the GPU to (caseking) cannot replicate the issue I had. They are saying it has passed all their load tests and is free of defects and they can either return it to me or send it onto the manufacturer, where it could take 4-6 weeks of testing and I may be liable for repair bill.

Has anyone had this issue with a GPU that wasn't the GPU causing it:

Code 43 error in device manager and the GPU not running properly (the fans/lights run but not turning on/recognised in windows). At first I would need to restart the device in device manager, then I would need to reboot the PC and after a week or two the display would crash immediately after logging in.

I have reseated the GPU, ran "sfc scannow" (no errors found), rolled back drivers, completely uninstalled the drivers with DDU and reinstalled same and still the issue happens.

Since sending it back to the shop I bought it from a few weeks ago I have used the PC without a GPU and there are no issues, and this week I got a lend of an older GPU (GTX 1070) and it has been running with no issues.

Coyler

This is a rough one. Could be few things in my mind: Windows Update forcing a bad driver, the PCIe slot is damaged or a bad PSU. Could be a bad card but getting the crash right after logging in doesn't point in that direction.

List your full build there and what BIOS you're mobo is on.

Mark Hamill

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123127816#Comment_123127816

Build:

https://ie.pcpartpicker.com/list/2Gjsnp

BIOS Version/Date American Megatrends International, LLC. 3.10, 24/10/2024

Coyler

Hmm, can also be the CPU. Let see if the 1070 causes an issue.

https://www.reddit.com/r/buildapc/comments/1ckzsiu/gpu_error_43/

Another thing that can cause issues is the installation of the cooler. Maybe re-seat and reinstall your CPU and cooler but don't over tighten it. A lot of people have found out that they can effect their AM5 CPU in odd ways by doing that. Quirk of the system.

That is a 650 mobo. Can you confirm a BIOS? CPUz is the easiest.

And asking the really obvious question but you installed the chipset drivers?

Hyzepher

That code 43 is normally pushed from the graphics driver to windows - driver thinks the card isn't working. Since caseking can't find an issue, I'd say it's a motherboard issue or bad drivers. Unlikely it's a PSU issue.

Was it working at any point?

Mark Hamill

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123129018#Comment_123129018

Here is the CPUz result:

THEBOX.txt

The 1070 has been working fine since i put it in about 10 days ago, absolutely no issues. I haven't done much gaming (only ran Jedi Survivor for a little while a few days ago to check it was working under load and it ran fine) but I have been using the PC on both the monitor through the display port and my TV through the HDMI without issue.

I have installed the chipset drivers and it did not fix anything.

I had seen some reddit posts mention the CPU being the issue, so I had already taken it out and checked for damage and reseated it. No improvement after doing so, and as I said, the 1070 has worked without issue without me doing anything to the CPU.

Mark Hamill

When I first put everything together, just before Christmas, it ran fine for a few days. Then it would turn on and log in, but device manager would sometimes show a code 43 and the GPU (while lights on and fans running) wasn't recognised. I have HWiNFO in the task bar showing temperatures and I could tell when the issue would appear if the GPU temp did not appear.

At first I could get it to turn back just through Device Manager by restarting the driver, but after a week or so, that stopped working and I would have to reset the PC and it would work upon reload.

Another week or two of doing that (bringing me to New Years) and the display would crash (just freeze and remain non-responsive) upon turning on, after getting to the log in screen. I could move the HDMI cable to the port on I/O panel and then log in/use the computer, but Device Manager would still show code 43 and restarting the driver/resetting would not fix it.

Since sending it back, I have gotten a lend of a GTX 1070 and it has worked without issue (with the same port and PCIe cables).

Coyler

Move the HDMI to the I/O panel? You mean you plugged in the iGPU on the CPU/Motherboard?

Did you make sure your BIOS was defaulting to PEG and not IGD for your default GPU?

Also, change the title of the thread. More eyes on always help.

Mark Hamill

Move the HDMI to the I/O panel? You mean you plugged in the iGPU on the CPU/Motherboard?

Yes, that's what I mean.

Did you make sure your BIOS was defaulting to PEG and not IGD for your default GPU?

Yes, I saw this recommended in some reddit posts when I searched this issue before. Disabling the iGPU in the BIOS (and afterwards changing it back) didn't make a difference.

Also, change the title of the thread. More eyes on always help.

Can I do that? Does it not need to be a mod?

If so, can a mod change it please?

Coyler

My worry is it's the motherboard or CPU, to be honest. Bad pins in the PCIe slot. I wonder does the 1070 that runs at 3.0 max need all the pins in a 4.0 PCIe slot. This is an awful situation to find yourself. You might have to ask for the GPU back and your friend to drive it for a couple of weeks and see if he gets the error. At that point you'll have your answer.

I mean, maybe a full OS wipe and start again could fix it as well. Thats the last easy thing I'd do before moving onto swapping parts.

Not that this helps but this is one of those situations with building where having another system to swap parts around with helps. Easier to isolate the issue.

K.O.Kiki

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123140801#Comment_123140801

Your 1070 runs at PCIe 3.0x16 meaning it uses all pins from the slot.

However, what you should be doing is going back to CaseKing customer service and tell them NO.

https://europa.eu/youreurope/citizens/consumers/shopping/guarantees-returns/index_en.htm

Under EU rules, if the goods you buy turn out to be faulty or do not look or work as advertised, the seller must repair or replace them at no cost. If this is impossible or the seller cannot do it within a reasonable time and without significant inconvenience to you, you are entitled to a full or partial refund. You always have the right to a minimum 2-year guarantee from the moment you received the goods. However, national rules in your country may give you extra protection.

[…]

If a defect becomes apparent within 1 year of delivery, you don't have to prove it existed at the time of delivery. It is assumed that it did unless the seller can prove otherwise. In some EU countries, this period of “reversed burden of proof” is 2 years.

4-6 weeks is not a reasonable time-frame & inconvenient to you.
Telling you that you may be liable for repair costs is illegal.

Request a full refund or replacement.

Coyler

Thanks @K.O.Kiki I assumed it was just the 14 day cooling off period. That’s the answer 100%. Push back.

Mark Hamill

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123143045#Comment_123143045

If they acknowledged an issue with the GPU then I would have pushed back on the 4 weeks and only accepted a refund or replacement. The issue is they are claiming they cannot find anything wrong with it.

This is the reply I got from them:

We have received your item ‘ASRock Radeon RX 7800 XT Steel Legend 16GO, 16384 MB GDDR6’ and are sorry to inform you that the fault you have reported cannot be reproduced despite intensive, multiple checks. The goods are free of defects. We therefore reject your claim for subsequent fulfilment within the scope of liability for material defects (§ 439 BGB).
 
The card is running perfectly here on site and has passed all load tests without any problems. The fault is most probably caused by another component in your system. Unfortunately, we cannot tell you from a distance what the problem described is. Remote diagnoses are generally very difficult. We apologise for this.
 
If you wish, we can forward your goods to the manufacturer for warranty testing.
 
This examination is expected to take between 4 and 6 weeks. Please note that in this case we only act as an intermediary for the inspection. We can neither speed up the result nor influence it in any other way.
 
There is no legal entitlement to this service from us or to testing by the manufacturer. If the test shows that there is a defect and that it is a manufacturing defect, we will of course take this as proof of a claim for rectification, provided that the deadlines for this have been met.
 
We must also draw your attention to the fact that repair costs may be incurred by the manufacturer. If the manufacturer estimates costs, we will inform you immediately by e-mail so that you can decide whether a repair is worthwhile in this case.
 
Please note that we cannot enforce a premature return of the goods from the manufacturer. If you agree to the above conditions, we will be happy to forward your goods to the manufacturer. Please give us your written consent within 7 days in response.

K.O.Kiki

Request the proof of their testing first.

Mark Hamill

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123145258#Comment_123145258

I asked them and they replied:

Your graphics card was tested here on site for a total of 16 hours under continuous load. 8 hours 3DMark Port Royal standard settings in a loop, 4 hours Furmark2 standard settings and 4 hours Tomb Raider benchmarks in a loop. 
The card did not have a single crash or graphics error during the entire time. 
Error 43 is therefore most likely caused by a faulty graphics card driver. 

They then suggested using DDU to uninstall drivers and reinstall newest drivers, which I had already done with no success.

Mark Hamill

Update on this:

I received the card back, put in my new Windows 11 machine and it appeared to work the first time I loaded it up. I ran some programmes and games (3dMark demo on Steam, Jedi Survivor, Minecraft and Dishonoured Death of the Outsider) and it continuously ran them all for a few hours. The next day I tried to turn on the computer and the same Code 43 appeared and kept appearing every time after.

I then took swapped the GPU for the old 1070 again and that works fine in my new PC. I then took the new AMD GPU and put it in the old Windows 10 machine the 1070 came from and again, code 43 there. Sometimes, if I rebooted it the machine it would run, but it would usually crash. I took a video of this, put it on youtube and sent to the shop (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PQTwsSzut00). They sent me shipping label to send it back to them, which I did yesterday.

I pointed out to them that it appeared to work the first load, so they may need to run it a few times over a few days. They claimed that they had ran it on two different machines with multiple restarts and that implies a windows update issue. I pointed out that the card working sometimes, on my two different Windows OS's implies the fault is with the card (if a windows update broke something, it would just be broken, it would not sometimes work, and Windows 10 and 11 do not get exactly the same updates). Now they want to send it back to manufacturer for testing, so presumably expect me to wait 4-6 weeks for that.

What are my rights in this case? They can offer a repair, is there anything to say how long I can reasonably be expected to wait? They are a German shop, if that makes a difference.

Coyler

Take evidence of the fault on both machines and insist that Caseking give your money back. The chances that this is not the card is vanishingly small and at this point it's something on the card PCB that requires some heat to cause the fault. Bad solder or capacitor is my guess. Either way, gather your evidence (logs, photos, video, the more the merrier) and get onto them and tell them that if you don't get a refund then unfortunately you will be forced to raise a case with your local European Consumer Centre (ECC).

Link below has a section where you can raise a complaint but no harm asking questions of the ECC to make sure you follow the correct process.

https://www.eccireland.ie/contact-us/

This is the overarching website for the ECC if you want to read

https://www.eccnet.eu/

But long story short, these guys can take the trader to whatever version of small claims exists in Germany.

So, between the evidence that you will now show them and revealing you know how to exercise your rights I suspect you'll get a better outcome.

Be nice about it, I can see how some over worked lad in Caseking is pushing back but you'll have to be a little firm about this at the same time. If you go in guns blazing you might cause someone to get defensive but the facts are on your side here and let them do most of the talking.

Good luck dude. One of those one in a million issues that we all get hit with. You'll get it sorted as you have proof now but don't envy the hassle.