3dmark Vantage suggestion

Hello, I need some suggestion on how to use 3dmark vantage preset to test if my video card is dying....

I have two gtx 295

core i7 920 default clock

12gb of ram

1920x1200 monitor

should i run 3dmark vantage in "performance mode" with default resolution ( 1280x1024 ) or extreme preset which uses 1920x1200 and other default "extereme presets" ?

the last time i checked i ran performance mode fine............but just yesterday i ran extreme mode and got some artifacting after some time..............My question is, is it normal to get artifacting on 3dmark vantage at extereme settings ? and should i actually test only in performance mode?

I ask this because i am trying to isolate if my "Display driver has stopped responding and recovered" is a hardware problem or software issue..................and it happens pretty random.....Sometimes within 10 minutes of playing Just Cause 2 and other times, not happeneing at all, even for hours...............

so its really confusing....

what ive done so far

1. dusted PC ( hasnt fixed problem)

2. ran a Heat stress test for half hour at 100c ( no errors )

3. System restore ( no fix )

4. driver rollback, and driver uninstall and restore, to old and latest ( no fix )

5. Another stress test with crysis, and modded files for infinite health and grenades and spammed explosions for over half hour..... at 1920x1200 res, and insane Anti-aliasing options ( 16xQ aa ) and not one error...........

Problem Description- Randomly when playing just cause 2, and when i tested 3dmark vantage at extreme levels i got some sort of artifacting. And sometimes it does not happen......

It seems that after a system Restart the problem will happen when i load the game, and Disabling and Enabling SLI seems to fix the problem.

It is really confusing................................ It seems like a software problem? or maybe its not?

Ive had the computer for about a year now, and no problems.............

The Average temperatures when playing HIGH DEMANDING games is around 70c to 84c consistently................. As far as I know, The GTX 295 thats a normal and fine temp for playing high req games ?

Here: I uploaded a Video of the artifacting ................... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RE7P1uWrP-0

its towards the end........hopefully software problems can cause this type of artifact ? its occasional though,

That is Nvidia's micro studdering at its finest. Run Driver Sweeper and apply a fresh driver install.

As for vantage you run at its default settings to compare your score with others. I never hurts to run it at higher settings, but typical is performance mode.

Yes i watched the entire video... what was happening could have been microstuddering, artifacting etc.. Just Cause 2 isn;t a very SLI friendly game, so that could also be the issue.