Bought a used gpu that should have been an upgrade, everything seems worse now

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Troubleshooting a GPU Upgrade Gone Wrong: My RTX 3070 Experience

Upgrading hardware can be an exciting venture, especially when you’re aiming for improved gaming performance. However, as I recently discovered, this process can sometimes lead to unexpected challenges. Allow me to share my experience with a recent graphics card upgrade that turned out to be quite perplexing.

My Setup

Before the upgrade, my PC was equipped with:

  • CPU: Intel i7-9700F
  • Motherboard: Asus Z730-A
  • RAM: 32 GB DDR4
  • Power Supply: 750W (brand not specified)
  • Original GPU: RTX 2060 6 GB

With this setup, everything was running smoothly, and I was satisfied with the gaming performance. So, when the opportunity arose to purchase a used RTX 3070 from EVGA, I jumped at the chance, expecting a significant boost in performance.

The Upgrade Experience

After installing the new graphics card, I anticipated an elevated gaming experience. Instead, I encountered a series of issues: games that previously ran seamlessly became choppy, and overall system performance deteriorated significantly. Confused by these setbacks, I took several troubleshooting steps to identify the problem:

  1. Driver Cleanup and Reinstallation: I used Display Driver Uninstaller (DDU) to thoroughly remove all previous Nvidia drivers and installed the latest versions.
  2. Correct PCIe Slot Usage: I ensured that the RTX 3070 was seated in the primary PCIe slot.
  3. Dual PCIe Power Connections: I verified that I was using two separate PCIe power cables to connect the GPU to my PSU.
  4. BIOS Update: I updated the system BIOS, hoping it might solve any compatibility issues.

Despite these efforts, the RTX 3070 continues to underperform compared to the RTX 2060.

Seeking Advice

To add to my confusion, the seller provided multiple video proofs of the card functioning well in his setup before the sale. This left me wondering: is there something fundamental that I might be missing here?

I’m reaching out to the community for insights and advice on potential fixes. Have you experienced a similar issue after upgrading your GPU? Any recommendations on steps I should take next? Your thoughts would be greatly appreciated as I look to resolve this frustrating situation and finally enjoy the benefits of my new graphics card.

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One Comment

  1. It sounds like you’ve taken some solid initial troubleshooting steps, but there are still a few additional diagnostic measures you might consider:

    • Check for Thermal Performance issues: Ensure the GPU is properly cooling. Overheating can cause throttling and performance drops.
    • Verify Power Delivery: Confirm that your PSU and cables are providing stable and adequate power for the RTX 3070, especially if the used card might have been used extensively.
    • Monitor Driver Conflicts: Use tools like NVIDIA Control Panel or MSI Afterburner to monitor GPU utilization and temperatures during gameplay or benchmarking.
    • Test the GPU in another system: If possible, testing the RTX 3070 in a different compatible system can help determine if the issue is with the card itself or your current setup.
    • Review Event Viewer logs: Check Windows Event Viewer for any hardware or driver related errors that might indicate underlying issues.
    • Reset BIOS Settings: Sometimes, resetting BIOS to default or adjusting specific settings related to PCIe slots can resolve compatibility or performance problems.

    If the card still underperforms after these steps, it’s worth considering whether the card might be faulty or has underlying performance issues from previous usage. Since it’s used, requesting a detailed warranty or testing history from the seller might also provide

    Reply

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