Help me troubleshoot my BSOD's plz

[grimdeath]

Ok, so here's my system:

amd a64 3000+ venice cpu
evga nf4 sli motherboard
albatron pcx 5750 (temp card till i get a evga 7800gt this week)
2x512(1gb) OCZ platinum(not rev 2) 3200 - 400 (defaults at 2T setting w/mobo, more stable then 1T)
80+120gb WD hard drives IDE drives
Fortron 450w psu
lite-on dvd/cdrw
SB Live 24bit soundcard
windows xp pro w/sp2

Im running the lates mobo bios, latest videocard/soundcard/motherboard drivers and latest windows updates and sp2. Bios is running default settings other then boot order and onboard sound being disabled. Im trying to figure out how to get memtest86 installed(ive done it b4, sheesh) to test the ram. Basically im getting alot of bugginess. I get random BSOD's(flash on and disappear too fast to read!) that seem more frequent when running games, though occasionally while just doing simple things like surfing the web. ive even had a couple times that im booting up, then the desktop loads, then BOOM blue screen...

My gut feeling is that its the videocard. the ram, hd's and soundcard all came from my previous build(and ran FINE) but the videocard was bought on the fs/ft forums here on anandtech. i dont wanna knock the trade forums i LOVE em and the seller was really nice...im just afraid the card may be a faulty or w/e as i occasionally notice the screen looking a bit wavy(seen it once or twice in the last couple weeks). its not a BIG deal if its the videocard because im buying my 7800gt as soon as tommorow on newegg. im actually praying that's what it is so my new card will fix it!

My only other worry is the cpu. when building the system it was my 2nd time to do it, 1st time alone. im really scared that i pressed down a bit too hard when installing the HSF for the cpu as i was trying to figure out the latching parts on the sides(i felt soo dumb when i looked at the instructions for it again) i didnt press down super hard, just a bit of pressure where i probably didnt need near as much.

im open to running and checking anything to single out one part over another. LMK if you can help me in any way.

Thanks alot!

 

[imported_Phil]

Firstly, if you damaged your CPU then your computer wouldn't be running at all, so chill

Secondly, do this:

Right-click My Computer -> Properties. Advanced -> Startup & Recovery -> Settings. System Failure -> turn off "Automatically Restart".

Then, when you next get a bluescreen, post the contents of the screen here. Don't worry, we don't need all the gumpf from Microsoft about updating your BIOS, nor do we need all the hex codes (e.g. A4 F0 B1 etc etc). What we're really after is the cause of the bluescreen, which is usually shown at the top of the screen, something like "PAGE_FAULT_IN_NON_PAGED_AREA". Maybe a module name, which is down the bottom above all the hex codes, which is usually a DLL - "nvdisp.dll" for example.

 

[Jiggz]

In addition to what Phil mentioned, you can also try reducing the number of peripherals connected in the system. This is like an elimination process. You can start removing the sound card and one of the hdd's and see if the BSOD's goes away.

 

[grimdeath]

ill try that today, ill let you know what i find out, thanks!

 

[grimdeath]

just so im straight, should i completely remove drivers and pull the sound card out, or is there a way i can just disable it? (its the only pci device i use)

 

[grimdeath]

got a bsod, says "bad_pool_header" while i was surfing here on anandtech. I also forgot to mention one of the reasons im worried about my videocard is because occasionsally when i power on the computer the video signal doesnt pick up, my monitor stays black and the led flashes as if its not receiving a signal. then i have to power off with the case button and turn it back on and the video cames back. could be 2 seperate problems i guess....i ordered that nvidia 7800gt today...im hoping to narrow down whats the cause of my problems before i get it so i can get back into some hard gaming

*update*
2nd bsod:
"computer tried to execute non-executable memory" i was tinkering with some vitual memory settings to get a game to work last night, ill set them back to default

 

[grimdeath]

er...bump

 

[tyborg]

I've done some mild googling, and it seems like either a hardware failure or an incompatibility with drivers. Update all soundcard and video card, along with motherboard chipset drivers. See if that helps at all.

 

[grimdeath]

all 3 ARE up to date....hmm....should i just wait to see if the new videocard improves the situation?

 

[Jiggz]

You need to physically remove the peripherals to eliminate them. By removing them you actually shoot two birds in one stone, i.e. lowering the power requirement and at the same time unloading the drivers. LMK

 

[dclive]

Originally posted by: grimdeath
Ok, so here's my system:

amd a64 3000+ venice cpu
evga nf4 sli motherboard
albatron pcx 5750 (temp card till i get a evga 7800gt this week)
2x512(1gb) OCZ platinum(not rev 2) 3200 - 400 (defaults at 2T setting w/mobo, more stable then 1T)
80+120gb WD hard drives IDE drives
Fortron 450w psu
lite-on dvd/cdrw
SB Live 24bit soundcard
windows xp pro w/sp2

Im running the lates mobo bios, latest videocard/soundcard/motherboard drivers and latest windows updates and sp2. Bios is running default settings other then boot order and onboard sound being disabled. Im trying to figure out how to get memtest86 installed(ive done it b4, sheesh) to test the ram. Basically im getting alot of bugginess. I get random BSOD's(flash on and disappear too fast to read!) that seem more frequent when running games, though occasionally while just doing simple things like surfing the web. ive even had a couple times that im booting up, then the desktop loads, then BOOM blue screen...

My gut feeling is that its the videocard. the ram, hd's and soundcard all came from my previous build(and ran FINE) but the videocard was bought on the fs/ft forums here on anandtech. i dont wanna knock the trade forums i LOVE em and the seller was really nice...im just afraid the card may be a faulty or w/e as i occasionally notice the screen looking a bit wavy(seen it once or twice in the last couple weeks). its not a BIG deal if its the videocard because im buying my 7800gt as soon as tommorow on newegg. im actually praying that's what it is so my new card will fix it!

My only other worry is the cpu. when building the system it was my 2nd time to do it, 1st time alone. im really scared that i pressed down a bit too hard when installing the HSF for the cpu as i was trying to figure out the latching parts on the sides(i felt soo dumb when i looked at the instructions for it again) i didnt press down super hard, just a bit of pressure where i probably didnt need near as much.

im open to running and checking anything to single out one part over another. LMK if you can help me in any way.

Thanks alot!

Send me the minidumps found in c:\windows\minidump
Run MPS Reports and send me the resulting .cab file
Follow the info/directions in my .sig.

The dumps will tell us what went wrong.