Replacement Graphics Card - Lightning Strike Damage

[Phil.]

Last night we were hit by a lightning strike. Two Sky boxes were fried because they were connected to telephone lines. My son's gaming PC was switched off but still connected to the mains. This morning it switches on and there are signs the motherboard is working but we have no graphics i.e. no signal at either of the two monitors (one VGA and one HDMI connected).

I'm thinking we should try and replace the graphics card as the first step. The PC spec is below and was originally from Overlockers.

I'd welcome recommendations for a replacement graphics card and any other thoughts on next steps.


"Titan Wrath Duo DC" Intel Core i7 4790K @ 4.6GHz Overclocked AMD Radeon Crossfire Gaming PC

Kingston HyperX 16GB (2x8GB) PC3-19200C11 2400MHz Dual Channel Kit - Black/Red (HX24C11BRK2/16-OC)

XFX Radeon R9 290X DD Black Edition 4096MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card (R9-290X-EDBD)

Samsung 250GB SSD 840 EVO SATA 6Gb/s Basic - (MZ-7TE250BW)

Seagate Barracuda 2TB 7200RPM SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST2000DM001) HDD

OcUK 24x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM

[steveatesh]

You’ve probably already thought about this but is it not insured under your house insurance?

Mine was in a similar situation and I got the cost of a full replacement computer on the back of it.

[Phil.]

Insurance/cost is not really an issue I just want to remove the headache of him not having a PC for gaming, so the speed and reliability of the solution is more important. Happy to upgrade the graphics card to enhance his gaming experience if it's worthwhile to do so but I'm a novice when it comes to specifying a PC.

Also want to check that changing the graphics card is the best first step in this situation.

Edited to add that I had to claim for a laptop last year and this was my first claim ever. At the next renewal the insurers increased my premium significantly and there was little difference when I compared it with other insurers. They will easily get their money back over a couple of years and won't drop my premium again. If I claim for a new gaming PC my premium will just increase accordingly.

Edited by Phil. on Wednesday 24th July 16:56

[Aphex]

Can you not use the onboard graphics to check that it is indeed the card that has fried?

[Phil.]

Aphex said:

Can you not use the onboard graphics to check that it is indeed the card that has fried?

Thanks. Have just connected the two separate monitors (VGA and HDMI) to the only other VGA/HDMI connectors on what I believe is the onboard graphics and the outcome is the same i.e. no signal on either monitor.

Does this mean it's not the graphics card?

Do I have to tell the PC to use the onboard graphics rather than the graphics card?

[Aphex]

Honestly, I'm not sure. Personally, I'd just take the card out and then you know it'll be running off the board instead

[Phil.]

Thanks again. I've removed the graphics card and one of the monitors works fine with the onboard graphics. it seems the motherboard etc are fine and I only need a new graphics card, which is a relief.

So back to (part of) the original question. What is a good replacement for the following graphics card with an upgrade, if it's worth it?

XFX Radeon R9 290X DD Black Edition 4096MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card (R9-290X-EDBD)

[Phil.]

All sorted. Gone for the RX 5700 XT.

[sparkyhx]

I'd play on the safe side - if its fried the graphics it may have done something to the MB as well, you just cant see it at the moment.

[Phil.]

sparkyhx said:

I'd play on the safe side - if its fried the graphics it may have done something to the MB as well, you just cant see it at the moment.

What would you do to stay safe, replace the MB? Is there any way to test the MB?

[Jabbah]

It could be your PSU. Graphics cards require extra power directly so if the PSU was slightly damaged by the strike it may not be able to provide power on that line.

[sgrimshaw]

As a matter of interest, was your equipment connected to surge protectors?

I'm not suggesting that a surge protector can protect against lightning, but some of the surge protector warranties will cover the equipment if damaged by a strike .. for example Belkin certainly do.

[sparkyhx]

Phil. said:

What would you do to stay safe, replace the MB? Is there any way to test the MB?

sorry no idea, but I'd be speaking to the insurance. - good call on the PSU though, that's the first logical point to get hit and I find it a bit odd its only damaged the graphics card, unless the surge has come thru from the monitors.

[Phil.]

Jabbah said:

It could be your PSU. Graphics cards require extra power directly so if the PSU was slightly damaged by the strike it may not be able to provide power on that line.

Thanks. I’ll know tomorrow when new graphics card arrives and then know if I also need to fix the PSU.

[Phil.]

New graphics card installed and working. Seems the PSU is ok.

On another note I have now discovered that the lightning strike has fried 2 x Sky boxes, 2 x plasma TV's, 2 x fire sticks, a DVD player, as well as the graphics card. It also buggered up but I managed to reset and recover a printer, the home alarm system and CCTV. Definitely an insurance claim for the fried items.

[Aphex]

Good to hear the pc is up and running again but as for the rest of it

[Phil.]

Aphex said:

Good to hear the pc is up and running again but as for the rest of it

I’ll definitely be unplugging everything the next time there is thunder & lightning!

According to the insurers electrical damage is not as unlikely as you might think. They said they have had a lot of lightning related claims this week.