busted xfx 6800 ultra

Hi guys, i bought a 6800 ultra off someone about two months ago, and it arrived on my doorstep in nothing more than a envelope with some thin bubble wrap. i paid £10 for post and it literally arrived on the doorstep, not recorded, got it when i got home.

it has never ran properly for me, though it was fine when it left his apparently, and produces tons of articfacts, on bootup, in windows and all the time, and 3dmark does not recogise any gfx card. he however maintains that it wasnt the post that did it, and yet it was fine there and not here. anyway, any ideas how i can fix it, heres some links to the artifacts.

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y57...k/IMAG0012.jpg
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y57...k/IMAG0001.jpg

and 3d mark refusing to believe there is a graphics card there
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y57...nographics.jpg

I guess theres not much you can do here, unless negotiate something with him and/or the delivery service, or see if you can contact the original retailer/manufacturer about an RMA. How exactly did you buy it?

over a forum then paypal. he is a good bloke, just he didnt pack it as he went in for a operation, which is why i havent been able to contact him, until today, hopefully he will take it back. dunno. it was only royal mail 1st so no insurance

That should have been sent Special Delivery, with the value indicated. It should be the sellers responsibility unless the buyer asks for cheap postage. Check the forum rules, a graphics card should be boxed, not just bubble wrap in an envelope.

yeah, paid £210 in total, the 10 for postage, and should have came in a box. our forum doesnt set out guidlines to that sort of thing, so cant use that, but common sense should dictate it. and he still maintains it wasnt the posting, dunno how he can

Well whatever the reason you should ask for your money back and return the card, lose the cost of postage if you have to, but get your £200 back.
I've seen these cards for sale new for £209 I think, it was on this forum and the shop was novatech.
Good luck I hope you get your money back, if as you say he's a good bloke he should take it back.

yeah, hes a decent bloke, just very hard to get hold of at the moment, the op i was talking about was to remove 3 lumps, which have turned out to be cancerous, so understandably he hasnt been online much. i am hoping to get my money back, and get a 7800gt or gtx, if anybody has no ideas on how to fix it?

very little chance of fixing it.

if the posting was inadequate his fault, as he didnt send it recorded, i.e. it wasn't insured.

do you know where he lives? do you know a contact telephone number? try and contact him and get to some resolve, it may be hard for him to accept but surely you should have questioned it as soon as you had received the card, not 2 months later.

was the gfx card in an anti-static bag?

best of luck

ian

yeh, it was his fault, and i said that it was buggered in pms which he has recieved from the first time it went in my sys. however because of his suituation, i havent been able to contact him for long. not in antistatic, just a buble wrap envelope, and i dont know his phone/ address, though i may be able to get it off of paypal.