My pc is a disaster zone.

[maestro4202]

My friend upgraded my old PC 6 months ago. He set the overclocking, not me, I'm not comfortable messing with that.

Where to begin...sigh...
My specs: Core duo oclocked to 2.9 ghz. Single Radeon 3870 card. 2 gig gskills ddr2. 500 watt volcano psu. Running XP Pro SP2, Sp3 not on there yet.

3 HDs: C: 40 gig IDE OS drive. F: My old 80 gig IDE drive. G: New 130 gig SATA drive only for games.

D: My ultra sketchy Optiarc DVD burner drive, already replaced once, first was bad. E: Older creative DVD read only drive.

Temps: Vidcard temp avgs: 80c (According to Catalyst CC) CPU Cores: 40c (according to Coretemp)

First the main problem, when I am running games, any games, the pc crashes randomly to BSOD then resets, usually to 60hz, meaning I have to reboot AGAIN for 85hz. It could take minutes, it could take hours before it happens.

White squares (artifacting) sometimes show up in 3d apps and games.

Sometimes the PC, when left on at night, will reset itself back to 60hz again, just from desktop, with no apps running.

Somtimes the screen just goes black. Alt+F4 then 'U' doesn't shutdown, you have to hit reset button.

The optiarc dvd drive won't recognize these Memorex 4.7 gb dvd-r discs (the only ones I've tried so far) to even copy files onto a DVD-R. When I put a blank in, it says its a 'CD Drive' with 0kb free and 0kb used, tho it lets me open it as a directory...but thats strange because...

...since I have no floppy drive, I had to burn a boot cd for memtest86, which the drive burned successfully on a CD-R, which I then used to check the ram. No errors found.

I have 10 gig of family photos and movies I needed to back up since Janurary and still cannot do it because it won't recognize the blank dvds.

My friend told me anti-vir will mess with your games and could be causing the crashes I was getting the second he build this machine...somehow I HIGHLY doubt thats the case.

I'm seriously wanting to atleast put the Grisoft AVG back on here to make sure theres no viruses interferring, but the Grisoft download link starts at 300kbs (45 mb file) and ends up at 10kbs, then says the file failed to transfer. Every time.

My friend is elusive like batman, here today, gone for months. So with nowhere else to turn, here I am. Any help would be great. Thanks.

 

[daveybrat]

First thing to always try is to run your system at stock cpu speeds, NOT overclocked to see if it runs ok.

If your system is still crashing at stock speeds then it sounds like your video card is bad as you should never get artifacting on a card unless you're overclocking it.

 

[GuitarDaddy]

I agree the first thing you should do is go into bios on bootup and set every thing back to default settings. Then I would download Rivatuner (or it may be on the compute already) and check to see if the video card is overclock, and set it back to stock settings if it is.

Then fully test everything with memtest,Prime95 and ATI tool for testing the video card

And you should list your complete specs including power supply, mobo and ram

 

[vanvock]

Agree with returning to stock speeds first off, especially on the vid card, that 80c looks kinda hot. Also check that the fan is actually spinning & that you have good airflow through the case.

 

[RadiclDreamer]

Artifacting is typically a video card overheat/memory issue.

 

[maestro4202]

My friend's theory was my old 80 gig was going bad. So I copied all my games over to my new drive and since then I haven't had a system reset crash, but am still getting just as many crash to desktop crashes.

Unless someone can tell me how to reset oclocking back to default it will have to wait until my friend, the one who oclocked this pc, can do it himself. He builds PCs so I don't dare mess with that unless I know exactly what I'm doing. He also said he would turn up the fan speed on the vid card, why he didn't set it higher in the first place, I'm not sure. I will again have to wait for him to return from the abyss. He doesn't return phone calls and only calls once every few months or so.

I should also mention we used a Pentium 3 case for this system, I should have just got a real case but I'm pretty strapped for cash these days. Not having access to the USB ports in front is very annoying.

**The CPU and RAM are oclocked but the HD 3870 is not, or ever was over clocked.

The PSU is a Volcano 7 500 watt dual 12v rails psu..thats about all I can say about it.

Maybe you guys can help me with another problem I have. I have this Optiarc DVD burner. It reads DVDs fine, it burns CDs fine. But when I put a blank DVD-R in it says it changes the drive name from 'DVD RAM' to 'CD Rom Drive' and the blank DVD shows up as 0k free, 0k used, and XP simply says it cannot write to the drive. This is very bad because the first thing I wanted to do with this is back up 10 gigs of family photos on DVDs.

 

[GuitarDaddy]

For the CPU o/c it should be as simple as going into bios by holding down the "del" key durring boot up, then looking for a bios option "restore default settings" then save and exit.

For the video card you will need to run Rivatuner or a similar windows overclocking app and set it to "default" or no manual overclocking

 

[maestro4202]

Ok, I decided I cannot wait any longer so I'd like to turn the overclocking OFF.. heres what the 'Cell' menu looks like in my bios:

Current CPU Freq: 2949 Mhz
Current FSB Freq: 1067 Mhz
Current DRAM Freq: 838 Mhz
===================
D.O.T. Control: Disabled
Intel EIST: Disabled
System Clock Mode: Manual

FSB Clock(Mhz): 1066
Memory Clock(Mhz): 850
Adjust Cpu Ratio: 11
==================
DRAM Memory Timings: Auto
Adjust PCI-E frequency: 100

CPU Voltage [0.0250V]
Memory Voltage [1.90]


Now, do I need to simply change 'System clock mode' to 'Auto' and do nothing else to turn o'clocking off?? Or is there something else I need to change or set in this menu?

Again, my vid card is NOT overclocked. Just the ram and cpu. Vid card is actually idling at 53c right now, which I suppose doesn't mean much when it jumps to 80's in games.


Thanks.

 

[robisbell]

okay "D.O.T. Control (Dynamic Overclocking Technology) menu" is disabled, so you're no truly overclocked. I'd enable Intel EIST and set system clock to auto or default. I'd also see what the correct memory and CPU voltage should be as well.
I'm not sure which motherboard you're using, but here's a link to one that uses apparently the same BIOS, or something similar.
http://www.neoseeker.com/Artic...si_p35_platinum/5.html

p.s. a exact make and model of all hardware next time would be more helpful.

 

[maestro4202]

Ok, here's the stuff, right from the order list:

GECUBE GC-HD3870XTG4-E3R Radeon HD 3870 512MB 256-bit GDDR4 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail

Intel Core 2 Duo E4500 Allendale 2.2GHz LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor Model BX80557E4500 - Retail

G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F2-6400CL5D-2GBNQ - Retail

MSI P6N SLI-FI LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 650i SLI ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

APEVIA ATX-CW500WP4 500W ATX Power Supply - Retail *

*sorry, I thought it was a dif one, but thats the one apparently. It's from a older order I made a few years ago, but we didn't order a new one this time around. And yes, the memory is a little overclocked too, I can turn that off too if you guys think it will help.

If I simply turn System Clock to Auto right now, then boot up XP Pro so I may begin stress testing for crashes, there be no chance of damaging anything correct? Of course, if its my vid card thats overheating, there would be no visible improvement correct? Or would a slower cpu in turn lessen the demand on the card, thus reducing heat on that as well? Won't putting it on auto set the correct cpu voltage?

 

[robisbell]

no you would need better airflow to the card to help it reduce heat, the BIOS does not control the video card, and replacing the cpu will not help, putting a slower one may make the video card work harder. I'd check out PC Wizard to monitor CPU and GPU temps as well as power. I have a feeling it may be power related, but could be airflow.

 

[maestro4202]

So for now should I leave D.O.T. off, turn Intel EIST on, and System clock to Auto right? Or should I just not touch anything and wait a few weeks until my friend can have a look at it? (He still thinks its a hard drive problem)

I think you could be right about the vid card overheating...Just going on google seems to make the heat go up from 50's to 60's C..The case as I said, is an old case made for Pentium 3, and I was seriously going to get a new one but never got around to it yet. And rebuilding this into a new case isn't something I'm comfortable with right now. I could order one though to be ready.. would this case be a good option based on the hardware I listed?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16811146025

I will also get PC Wizard to see if it can find the root of the problem in the meantime. Any other help will be greatly appreciated.

My friend also suggest I get a utility that can turn the vid card fan up to %100. He forgot the name of the utility tho.. anyone know what that might be?

 

[robisbell]

get a new case ASAP, and at least enable Intel EIST, and try to give the video card better airflow. till you can move it into a better case.

 

[maestro4202]

Yeah, will do.

Ok, so I got Rivatuner and set the fan from auto to 100% and the vid card temps went from 80-90c down to like 30c.. this seemed a bit much (and loud!) so I put it at 75%, now it's in the 40's after running HL2 Episode 2 for a good while. Does this seem reasonable? It's won't hurt anything if it runs too cool will it? CPU temps continue to remain in the 40's also.

I know cranking the vid card fan is a poor substitute for a new case, I'm going to review some potential cases with my friend and I will be ordering one tonight regardless.

 

[robisbell]

the cooler a GPU or CPU the better.

 

[maestro4202]

Soooo... With CPU/GPU temps not exceeding the 50's, the PC is still crashing in games and rebooting and still showing a few subtle artifacts now and then. Since we know it's not heat now (which I never thought it was actually) that leaves what? Voltage? Meaning maybe my PSU (model is listed in post above) is dirty, or too old or insufficient for the power to the computer?

I would like to know if I should get a new PSU... I just ordered a cool master case with 2 new fans. I would seriously consider a new PSU too but good ones are pricey..so I need to be a little careful before I go buying out Newegg...

 

[robisbell]

well, just because you've gotten the temps down doesn't mean damage wasn't done. if you want a good PSU, PC Power & Cooling makes some very dependable units. I'd find a system that is running without errors that can handle your hardware and start testing them 1 at a time.

 

[maestro4202]

I had artifacts the day I installed the vid card..so any damage was already on the card when I bought it. BTW- I'm getting a new 680 watt psu..

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16817709015

..yeah..i'm seriously gonna replace everything in this PC until the problem is resolved...money is important to me..but not as much as my sanity.

So new case, 2 more gig of ram to total 4 gig ddr2, new PSU, 2 new fans, that means dust free both 80mm and 120mm fans...and I'm not giving up even after the PC is rebuilt...I'm not leaving until the system reboot crashes are fixed...unfortunately my friend, the PC builder's time is very limited and we won't be able to test every single piece of hardware on his PC...I should have it all up and running by next weekend if all goes as planned..I'll keep ya posted...

 

[Dillybob]

I've had problems with every ATI card I've ever used. Nvidia is much more stable, and uses tried and true parts to make their cards. I am NOT a fanboy, I'm just going off of personal experience and facts.

 

[maestro4202]

While I'm waiting for the new hardware maybe you guys can tell me some answers on 2 other things:

1) When I put a blank dvd-R in the Optiarc dvd burner, it shows up at a cd-rom drive with no space available on the disc..

2) 50% of the time when I reboot windows, it boots up at 60hz, even tho its set for 85. A restart will change it back to 85hz, but anyone know why it seemingly randomly does this?

 

[Dillybob]

I don't know about the Burner, but the videocard thing could be just about anything. Windows could be resetting it (which IS probably what's happening). Go to the catalyst control center and force the refresh rate to 85hz. That's probably the best option.

 

[maestro4202]

I clicked "Force" but there was no conformation or anything that it actually did anything. ---Your post about ATI cards, no I don't think your a fanboy, really freaked me out because thats the absolute WORST thing that could happen... sheesh...do you know their policies on repairing/replacing cards? It's been 6 months now.

I guess I'm not that worried now if its the card(3870), I just noticed they went down $100 in the last few months. My friend said he'll replace it if it's fried since it was his build job.

 

[maestro4202]

Well, the new case is on, new psu all up and running. Ran some games for about 4 hours and artifacts where gone and no crashes..then I'm playing Pirate, Viking, Knights 2 hl2 mod and BOOM! ...restart and BSOD................ sigh..... back to the drawing board. At this point I'm ready to just replace the damn video card and wipe all my HD's reinstall the OS etc etc...I just don't see any other options. &*()&(*^)(*&)(&*( This is hell.

 

[robisbell]

which BSOD was it exactly? anything listed in the system event viewer?

 

[maestro4202]

Actually there was no BSOD now that I remember better, just a reboot and the error checker.


*U*P*D*A*T*E* Well... I finally managed to turn off the o'clocking...back to 2.2 ghz now, factory default. And so far, not one single crash.. in any game...2-3 more days will be required to be positive its working completely. And yeah, I am bummed I had to declock and yes its 20-30% slower in games now. I would like to next maybe up the oclock incrementally, the way it should have been done in the first place, with long hours of gaming at each increment. But I need to know the MULTIPLIER and VOLTAGE SETTINGS...I have listed my exact hardware in this post. I cannot find the manuals to cpu or mb anywhere, not online either, someone has to know what I need to set here to try this.