Lockups :( zomg why?

[Tsuchi]

Ok, so I recently built a new computer, and the specs are as follows:

Mobo: ASUS P5E3 PREMIUM/WIFI-AP @n LGA 775 DDR3 Intel X48 ATX Intel Motherboard
CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E8500 Wolfdale 3.16GHz LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor
RAM: OCZ Platinum 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800)
GPU: XFX PVT98FYDBU GeForce 9800 GTX Black Edition 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16
PSU: Ultra X3 ULT40064 1000-Watt Power Supply
OS: Vista 64 bit SP1


My problem is that when i do something graphically intensive, such as certain games, its locks up. When I open up a youtube video or newgrounds vid, it locks up after a lil bit. I've tried switching ram slots, PCIE slots, changing graphics drivers (175.19, 174.74, 179.39 so far) and the PSU was just upgraded...

I have absolutely no idea whats wrong. In theory.. it should be working fine. Any1 have any thoughts? I'm about to just lose it. *Angry face*

Any help would be much... MUCH appreciated...

Thanks,
Tsuchi

 

[Tsuchi]

zomg, I think it has something to do with the ram... I took a stick out, and it didn't crash at a preloader it always does. Thoughts?

Another thing i remembered.. when i initially built the computer, i had to do the same thing for it to run.. yea..

 

[wanderer27]

What slots are your RAM sticks in?

The reason I ask is if your MB supports dual channel (not familiar with your MB) some MBs need slots 1 & 3 or 2 & 4 populated, otherwise you may get weird issues.

You may want to check your Manual on that.

Otherwise I suggest running Memtest.

 

[Tsuchi]

For my mobo, i need to pop slots 2/4 or 1/3, I have them in the right spots, but I still have the problem.


So I just had a thought outta nowhere. The timings on my ram are supposed to be 7-7-7-24, in the bios it was set auto at 7-7-7-20... could that be enough to cause it?

 

[faxon]

yea possibly. one thing i would do is update your bios. asus boards are known for having hardware problems until after a few bios revisions, and the X48 chipset is still fairly reicent. if setting your ram to its default latency doesnt fix it, a bios update doesnt fix it, run memtest and see if it finds any errors on either stick. if it finds them, swap the slots and run it again. this will weed out the possibility that the slot on the board, or the DDR3 controller are bad. if none of that fixes the problem i would try ripping out everything you absolutely dont need, and add stuff back till you recreate the problem. if THAT doesnt fix it, then i would swap the graphics card out, and finally, get a new mobo. cant recommend anything beyond that without more information, but that should cover a good days work if it takes that long

 

[Tsuchi]

New trend I just found out. If I only have 1 stick in, it'll survive all the stress tests that I put it through. Once I put both sticks in, I do the same tests, and it locks up. I can have it in the 1/3 slots or the 2/4 slots, and it'll do the same thing. Something about using dual channel ram is making it angry.

 

[Old Hippie]

Once I put both sticks in, I do the same tests, and it locks up.

How about checking the voltage on your RAM?

You might wanna crank it up to meet manfgs. specs or just to run with more than 1 stick.

The timings on my ram are supposed to be 7-7-7-24, in the bios it was set auto at 7-7-7-20... could that be enough to cause it?

Could be. Set it to manfs. specs. and check the voltage.

 

[degibson]

Sounds like a job for memtest86. Try both sticks in isolation, in all slots. That may lead you to either a single stick failure or a single slot failure. Otherwise listen to that old hippie and check the voltage level (Asus MBs...)

 

[Tsuchi]

About the voltage, its supposed to be at 1.9, and I've set it at that before and still had the same problem. If I have more than one stick, should I change the voltage to anything else? And I ran memtest for 6 hours last night, but that was with both sticks in, still, it came up with no problems. Should I run one stick at a time?

 

[jaythespacehound]

You'll need to run memtest for 20+ hours.

 

[daveybrat]

Try bumping up the ram voltage to 2.0V and see how it runs. Sometimes adding just a notch of voltage to high end ram will help out.

 

[Ausm]

Sounds heat related to me.

1)If it is overclocked,set it back to factory specs

2)Check the thermoconductivity of your heatsink to the CPU making sure it is heat greased properly and seated correctly.

3)Make sure you have good airflow in the case

4)Make sure you video card is cooling properly too


Oh did you do a clean install when you set this box up?

Ausm

 

[Tsuchi]

I dont think its heat related. All my temps are in the safe ranges or below. Nothing is overclocked either, its all stock settings at the moment. And is it safe to put the voltage to 2.0?

 

[Ausm]

Did you do a clean install of the OS on this new box?

Ausm

 

[Tsuchi]

Yes I did.. and ok. I just found this out while checking settings with Memset. It shows my ram as being PC3-10600, which is a 1333 mhz ram, and my mobo is only compatible with 1600/1800/2000... The thing is, the item I bought was PC3-12800, which is 1600. The sticker on the ram also says 12800. Is the sticker wrong or is it possible that its not PC3-12800? I bought it from newegg... so I wouldn't expect an error like this. Is it the identifying program thats messing up? The manf timings for the 10600 are 7-7-7-20... which is what my auto detect was putting it at... please tell me its possible its a detection error...

 

[robisbell]

I'd RMA the ram to the manufacturer, sounds like QA slipped up somewhere.

 

[Dillybob]

Originally posted by: Tsuchi
Yes I did.. and ok. I just found this out while checking settings with Memset. It shows my ram as being PC3-10600, which is a 1333 mhz ram, and my mobo is only compatible with 1600/1800/2000... The thing is, the item I bought was PC3-12800, which is 1600. The sticker on the ram also says 12800. Is the sticker wrong or is it possible that its not PC3-12800? I bought it from newegg... so I wouldn't expect an error like this. Is it the identifying program thats messing up? The manf timings for the 10600 are 7-7-7-20... which is what my auto detect was putting it at... please tell me its possible its a detection error...

RAM Is ALWAYS (at least I'm pretty sure....) able to run at lower speeds at the stock (or lower) voltage....and the motherboard should be able to, as well, so that shouldn't affect anything. You will need to set the timings, voltage, and speed manually in the BIOS, and to do that, I would visit the CPU and Overclocking forums, and/or consult your mobo's manual. If, at advertised settings, you still can't get it to run right, THEN you've got a defective part, and should RMA it. But try to manually set it first.

Hope everything turns out all right!