Random Crashes

[Cheex]

I am have some random crashes on my system.
Mostly it happens while i'm playing games.
It just crashes out to the desktop or it crashes the machine and reboots.
I was browsing just a while ago and it crashed and rebooted.
I just changed my video card from a 6600GT to the X850XT.
That's not the problem though because it was happening with the old card also.

So...

I figure it must be something else, maybe mobo, cpu, ram or hard drive.
I've had this setup for only 2 weeks now.
The video card for just a few days.
Any idea what it could be? HELP!!

 

[crspyjohn]

I'm no pro but the following can be the problem heat or ram. I personally think it is the heat.

 

[Cheex]

My processor is running at about 50*C under load and it idles at about 46*C.
My video card idles at 44*C (with fan at 50%) and under load goes up to 60-70*C.

 

[Furen]

I had similar problems... and then my PSU died. Check the 12v ratings on your power supply, if they're less than ~30A then I'd point to that as the problem. Low-quality PSUs also tend to overheat quite a bit so pointing a fan at the PSU could help.

 

[Kromis]

I got my old PSU replaced and it stopped doing that.

 

[Cheex]

Originally posted by: Furen
I had similar problems... and then my PSU died. Check the 12v ratings on your power supply, if they're less than ~30A then I'd point to that as the problem. Low-quality PSUs also tend to overheat quite a bit so pointing a fan at the PSU could help.

How do i check those?

PS: Its a new PSU i got with my case - Omega 525W

 

[Brunnis]

Originally posted by: Cheex
How do i check those?

PS: Its a new PSU i got with my case - Omega 525W

They're usually on a sticker on the PSU itself.

Anyway, in my experience it's much more common for RAM to cause this. RAM quality seems to be pretty crappy these days and I've lost count on how many times I've had to send memory back...

 

[Furen]

Originally posted by: Brunnis

Originally posted by: Cheex
How do i check those?

PS: Its a new PSU i got with my case - Omega 525W

They're usually on a sticker on the PSU itself.

Anyway, in my experience it's much more common for RAM to cause this. RAM quality seems to be pretty crappy these days and I've lost count on how many times I've had to send memory back...

Really? I've never had any trouble with RAM, do I do tend to buy crucial ram pretty much exclusively. I've had two systems with give me problems due to the PSUs though.

to OP: You'll see the voltage ratings followed by a max current (in amps). If you multiply the voltage by the max current you'll get the max wattage that rail can supply. Lots of PSUs are rated rather generously (the cheaper ones, for the most part), so I wouldn't recommend getting even close to the upper boundry of a PSU's rail.

 

[NoStateofMind]

Originally posted by: Cheex

Originally posted by: Furen
I had similar problems... and then my PSU died. Check the 12v ratings on your power supply, if they're less than ~30A then I'd point to that as the problem. Low-quality PSUs also tend to overheat quite a bit so pointing a fan at the PSU could help.

How do i check those?

PS: Its a new PSU i got with my case - Omega 525W

Yeah I almost got pulled into the "OMFG ITS 3000W!!!" thing. Watts mean nothing in reality, its the 12v rails that do the doing. Also as another has mentioned, some PSU manufacturers rate thier PSU's higher than they actually are in real world temps. Too high of temps will make your PSU perform much worse. So they kinda "fudge" the performance of them by running the PSU in a cooler atmosphere and therefore giving you the BS ratings.

 

[BoboKatt]

To this day I have finally diagnosed my random crashes to my wireless network card -- Dlink 530 A/G and the Dlink wireless control app that runs. I had my computer set to NOT reboot upon errors and when it would bluescreen it I was able to track the bastage of an app that was doing this. For some freaking reason, every so often (a few months) it starts to do it. I just uninstall the current Dlink drivers and app and re-install it. All goes away -- no problems. Check to see if you at the very least get a blue screen and what message or offending dll or whatnot is causing it.

 

[Cheex]

Okay...To narrow it all down.
It's either my PSU or my RAM.
More likely to be the PSU.
So if it is indeed the PSU, I will have to change it right?
If so...any recommendations?

To BoboKatt: I don't use anything wireless.

 

[Cheex]

EUREKA!!
I've got it....its my PSU.

Whenever my comp is under any kind of load it crashes because...
12V 1 = 14A
12V 2 = 15A

525W PSU (came with the case) but its lame....gotta change that.

Any suggestions?

 

[zodiak]

I prefer Silverstone PSU's. It really comes down to personal preference.

Other good PSU brands:

Seasonic
Enermax
OCZ

Make sure to check your 12v rail. When shopping for PSU's I usually get one that exceeds what my current rig needs, simply because it leaves room for upgrades. It's always nice to know that spending the extra $50 now, will save you from spending another $120 later.

 

[imported_inspire]

Ugh. I vote for RAM. Check to find your memory's stock speed and timings and manually lock those numbers into your mobo's BIOS - sometimes the mobo's 'Auto' feature can be wrong.

Also, you should enable the BSOD on your compy so your can actually see the error message when your compy reboots. Right-click on 'My Computer' and go to 'Properties', then go to the 'Advanced' tab and under 'Startup and Recovery', click on the 'Settings' Button. Now find the box titled 'Automatically Restart' and uncheck it. Now, when your system hangs, the BSOD will be left on until you manually power down the system. This way you can see the error message, which should give some more information that may help diagnose your problem.

Side Note - You may want to turn off any power saving features / screensavers for your monitor - it would suck to do all this and have your system hang, but not be able to wake the monitor to see the error message.

Either way, good luck, and keep us updated!

EDIT: Ugh. Sorry, I started the reply and got halfway through it when my boss came in and crashed my lunch break. Sorry for the late response, and glad to hear you figured it out!

 

[myocardia]

This one is downright awesome: OCZ 700 watt GameXtream, this one is almost as good: OCZ 600 watt GameXtream, as is this one: OCZ 520 watt PowerStream All of these would more than likely give you more than enough power as well: Enermax 500 watt Liberty, Enermax 620 watt Liberty, Enermax 485 watt Noisetaker, and lastly, the 580 watt Hiper.

There are others, from good companies, that are rated 500 watts or more, that would also work just fine. None of them are better deals than the ones that I linked to, though.

 

[Cheex]

I, again, did my research...and have come up with a good PSU i think.
I like the silver one better than the black (its cheaper too).

Black
Silver

Tell me what you think.

 

[YoungGun21]

Rosewill is not very good. Go with Enermax or OCZ or Sparkle

 

[Cheex]

The reviews on this weren't that bad. Seems like a bargain to me.
Any other thoughts, comments, recommendations....??

 

[Conky]

Originally posted by: Cheex
The reviews on this weren't that bad. Seems like a bargain to me.
Any other thoughts, comments, recommendations....??

Bro, you want the best power supply bar none?

Click here and check out all the available ones. They don't do anything but power supplies and they don't have reps viral marketing their marginal crap on this website.

 

[Cheex]

Originally posted by: Beachboy

Originally posted by: Cheex
The reviews on this weren't that bad. Seems like a bargain to me.
Any other thoughts, comments, recommendations....??

Bro, you want the best power supply bar none?

Click here and check out all the available ones. They don't do anything but power supplies and they don't have reps viral marketing their marginal crap on this website.

Those are extremely expensive. No doubt you get your money's worth but those are WAY out of my league.
What are your comments on the ones I showed above?

 

[zodiak]

When I built a PC for my little brother two years ago I got a Rosewill case for him since its all he'd need. Within three months the PSU crapped out on me. I don't trust them, to be honest. I only go with Silverstone, as its my preference.

 

[Cheex]

Hmm...interesting. Fact is, I want something that will last and last but won't cost me an arm and a leg.
Any suggestion for a PSU under $75?