It is unlikely that a fan of modern computer games can please anything more than a new discrete graphics card with high processing power. The reason for this is that game developers are releasing applications that are increasingly demanding on the resources of the graphics adapter, thereby fueling interest in products from NVidia and AMD (formerly ATI), which offer powerful video cards. However, this information is unlikely to surprise anyone: the shelves of computer shops are simply "littered" with various models of solutions from AMD and NVidia - as they say, for every taste and budget.
If you mentally take a trip through time ten years ago and ask a computer game lover how to choose the optimal video card for his gaming system, then the answer will indicate the corresponding tests and reviews on the Internet. The number of conveyors, manufacturing process, cooling, noise level and some other characteristics mattered. And at that time there would appear an assertion that in 1-2 years after the purchase, perhaps, you would need to fry the video card - no one would believe it, considering such words as a joke. Alas, as often happens, reality has surpassed the wildest assumptions. Now roasting a video card is a way familiar to many to restore the device’s performance ... But let's talk about everything in order.
A key element of any video adapter is the graphics processor. This is a large microcircuit with a high degree of integration of its electronic components. Usually there is a metal radiator with a fan on it or just a radiator with heat pipes (in case of passive cooling). However, the entire chip is not a processor yet. Its main part, the so-called core, is concentrated in a small black square-crystal, placed on a textolite basis. It is with him that the radiator comes into contact. The crystal is a microcircuit with many legs-conclusions, soldered to the seats on the site of the textolite base. There are so many of these contacts that soldering has long been performed on automated conveyor lines. A solder ball is placed on each contact, which, when melted, connects the leg of the microcircuit and the pad. But how is roasting a video card related to all of the above? Direct communication.
In early 2005, many owners of NVidia graphics cards began to complain that the cards stopped working for no apparent reason. Symptoms were very diverse: stripes or squares on the screen; inability to install the driver; inoperability in 3D mode, etc. Then there were reports of similar problems with AMD products, although the "leadership", nevertheless, belonged to NVidia. It was not always possible to write off everything to the “hot temper” of devices, so it was suggested that the whole thing was the poor-quality soldering of the entire chip to the video card's board. However, in 2008, NVidia recognized low-quality soldering ... in the gap between the chip and the base of the chip, that is, an internal defect. At some contacts, the solder ball could be completely absent, therefore, due to natural oxidation, the resistance at these points increased, which led to known problems. On others, the soldering was of poor quality due to insufficient solder.
Frying a video card is one way to try to bring a failed card back to life. It is necessary to carefully remove the entire cooling system, and wrap the plastic elements, connectors and electrolytic capacitors with foil. Place the video card in the oven on the dielectric base with the chip facing up. Turn on heating to 200-230 degrees. In this mode, warm up the card for 20 seconds. Turn off the oven, slightly (!) Open the door to arrange a gradual cooling.
After such an operation, the video card can earn. Its service life after this is from several days to 2-3 years.