Anybody have an idea which of the 2 might be going? I have a late 2006 24" White iMac C2D. The graphic card (Nvidia 7300GT) died probably a year ago under Applecare and they replaced it. Something is dying again, but not sure. The attached pics happen maybe once a day or 5 times a day. It just started about a week ago and I don't have any heavy programs open when it happens. Also, when my card died the first time, all the pics were of the tearing kind people post. These pics are always the same but the overall color varies. Sometimes its red, purple, green, blue or orange. The dark square is the cursor which will still move. Thanks!!
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Graphic Card or Logic Board?
- Thread starter rfrankl
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It wouldn't matter, since in the Apple world it would be the same repair: logic board replacement. The GPU is attached to the logic board. When the GPU in my 2006 20" iMac died, Apple had to replace the logic board. There is no "slot" in the traditional sense even though the cards use the PCI Express bus.
Did Apple say they replaced only the GPU for you the last time? Was it under warranty or do you know the cost? In my experience they replace the entire logic board to repair the GPU.
Did Apple say they replaced only the GPU for you the last time? Was it under warranty or do you know the cost? In my experience they replace the entire logic board to repair the GPU.
The 24" is different than the 20". The GPU is seperate in the 24" and that is all they replaced the first time. It was under warranty then so that saved about $335 or so. Now its out of warranty. If I knew 100% it was the graphics card, I would buy one offline, actually the better model 7600GT, and try and put it in myself.
Thanks for setting me straight on that.
I suppose you could send it in to Apple for an estimate and then just tell them to send it back. Out of warranty that's about $50 here in Japan, including shipping. Do you have that option by you? I suppose it depends how much the machine's worth to you.
Thanks for setting me straight on that.
I suppose you could send it in to Apple for an estimate and then just tell them to send it back. Out of warranty that's about $50 here in Japan, including shipping. Do you have that option by you? I suppose it depends how much the machine's worth to you.
They gave me a quote with labor of about $260 for the card I currently have (7300GT) or about $320 for the better card (7600GT) if that is the problem. I didn't get a quote for the logic board, but obviously that will be higher. As I mentioned, if I knew for sure it was the graphic card again, I would buy the better one off the net and put it in myself. The pictures it produces now are different than the first time the card went bad so that makes me unsure if that is the only problem.
So they didn't actually look at the machine? I would think they could estimate the repairs for a small fee, tell you exactly what's wrong and give you the option to go ahead or cancel. It might add $40 or $50 to your repair costs but then at least you'd know exactly what the problem is.