Help repair a PC

[Brownstone]

Hey, i could use a little input to help me repair my cousins PC
Here's the deal

Intel Dual Core 5200
Asus cheap mobo onboard video
2gb supertalent
generic 450w

She came with her PC that wouldn't turn on...
Fine, PSU is dead, so i replaced it... and PC turned on fine

She calls me the next day telling me that the PC is artifacting... shit i think (the power grid in her area is a fuck up)
So, must be the motherboard with its onboard video dying

I replaced the board, i cleaned the PC ... the cpu cooler had a thick 5mm sheet of dust that prevented most airflow from the fan to the heatsink

PC works fine for at least 15 hrs... then artifacts again

Im puzzled here, did my cleaning give the pc more time ? could it be artifacting cause of the cpu ? My next instinct would be replace the CPU, would i need another system wipe ?

I checked the cpu's temps now, they r in check, 35°c, cant check the onboard video's temps, its an intel 4500

 

[Deleted member 88227]

In order for us to fully help you fix your cousins computer, we're gonna need pictures of said cousin. I know it seems weird, but it'll help us. Trust me.

 

[Brownstone]

Internet pick ups, works 60% of the time, everytime

 

[Dangman]

Im puzzled here, did my cleaning give the pc more time ? could it be artifacting cause of the cpu ? My next instinct would be replace the CPU, would i need another system wipe ?

You won't need another system wipe with a CPU change.

Ok so the motherboard and PSU have been replaced. But what were those replacement parts? Also, swap out the RAM if you can. Also, stick a fan over the onboard GPU chip just to rule out a temperature issue.

 

[Brownstone]

I replaced the PSU for a 400w Sentey (cheap, but should do the trick)
And the motherboard is now a Gigabyte GA-G41M-ES2L

I very much doubt its the motherboard gpu... if it helps, the cpu is behaving excentric
I was using teamviewer to help her setup some stuff, and the cpu frequency wouldn't go full speed, it kept at 1.6ghz...

I dnno if it means something, but using remote desktop i didn't see the artifacts and she did

 

[Brownstone]

Btw memory could cause this ? i rather not buy unless i must

 

[Deleted member 88227]

That pretty much means it's a GPU/monitor issue then.

 

[DDigital]

Rather than willy nilly replacing parts that you THINK might be the problem, why not run tests first to at least give you an idea... especially if you don't have test parts just laying around (and a PSU tester is a great investment by the way, only a couple bucks). Run Memtest to check the ram (remember, one stick at a time, and also test each slot with a known good stick), PC Check for the Motherboard (including all onboards) and DFT for the hard drive. That should give you a good idea of what is wrong. Also check for bulging capacitors on the MB. If she has sketchy power like you said and took a surge since you replaced the MB, it might have been damaged (which can cause intermittent issues like what you are seeing). Lastly, make sure she has a good surge protector... just because it'd be stupid not to lol.