Restarting during games

[lokni]

I have begun having a problem with my computer and I don't know what is causing it. I am currently running an XP 3000 with 1gb of memory (512 Corsair XMS PC3000 and 512 Kingston Hyperx PC4000 all @ 333mhz) . The cpu is cooled with a Thermalright SLK-900a. The video card isa Radeon 9700 Pro. About the only game I play is BF1942: Desert Combat. Within about 15 minutes of starting the game, my computer will all of a sudden restart. I have tried lowering memory settings, blowing any dust out of my case and off HSF, and underclocking the VPU. Nothing works. Any ideas on what might be causing the restarts?

 

[RussianSoldier]

what brand and wattage power supply? You may be under-powering your system, or your power supply might be failing...

 

[yadda]

What temperature are you at now for the CPU???

Y

 

[1sikbITCH]

Check your videocard fan.

 

[blodhi74]

Originally posted by: yadda
What temperature are you at now for the CPU???

Y

Had same issue with far Cry .... My CPU temps were way out of control due to an open case and no exhaust ..... installed the side panel and an 80 mm fan for exhaust and havent had the issue since .... also what PSU are U running ?

 

[lokni]

The powersupply is an Austin 450w power supply. Hmm... I remember when I bought the case I read a review about the PSU that said it was OK. When you mentioned that RS, I went and checked some reviews and found many that said it was crap. Do you guys think a 350 Enermax Whisperlight is enough to power an Abit NF7-S w/ Xp3000, gig of ram, 9700Pro, 3 HDs, and an Audigy card?

The CPU is usually up around 59-60 C under full load.

The video card fan is spinning and is clean of most dust. I have an Arctic-Cooling VGA silencer sitting here waiting to be installed, do you guys think the VC overheating could be the culprit? How could I tell?

 

[lokni]

.

 

[myocardia]

Originally posted by: lokni
The powersupply is an Austin 450w power supply. Hmm... I remember when I bought the case I read a review about the PSU that said it was OK. When you mentioned that RS, I went and checked some reviews and found many that said it was crap. Do you guys think a 350 Enermax Whisperlight is enough to power an Abit NF7-S w/ Xp3000, gig of ram, 9700Pro, 3 HDs, and an Audigy card?

The CPU is usually up around 59-60 C under full load.

The video card fan is spinning and is clean of most dust. I have an Arctic-Cooling VGA silencer sitting here waiting to be installed, do you guys think the VC overheating could be the culprit? How could I tell?

You can tell by checking your voltages under load. If your +12v rail is sagging badly under 100% load (below 11.7v or so), then it's your psu. If your +12v rail (11.85 would be okay), then it's your videocard overheating.

 

[8ballcoupe]

If the PSU and temps check out OK you might want to consider the possibility of a driver conflict. Which OS are you running? If Windows 2000 or XP, and if you haven't unchecked the option to automatically reboot on system failure in the Startup and Recovery dialog under the System Properties dialog, you should try that to see if you are getting a blue screen error. The exact contents of that error could indicate the problem for you.

I figure you probably already did this but thought I'd mention it just in case. If you've set the machine not to automatically reboot and it still does it, then it's definitely a hardware problem.

Ernie.

 

[Regs]

I'm leaning towards 8 ballcoupe's synopsis. I started running a program called powerstrip that forced features in my drivers. During game play I would get random crashes. I didn't realize powerstrip was the cause because I always left these features off. But just goes to show little things like that could cause conflicts.Sometimes bad enough where it freezes in gameplay and my system comes to crashing halt.

First step would be to download Driver Cleaner.

Run it and delete anything that says Nvidia.

2. Remove and Reinstall Video card Drivers.

3. Check Add/Remove programs to see if you installed anything that would come in conflict with video settings.

 

[high]

i had that problem due to a bad driver installation

 

[1sikbITCH]

Originally posted by: lokni
The video card fan is spinning and is clean of most dust. I have an Arctic-Cooling VGA silencer sitting here waiting to be installed, do you guys think the VC overheating could be the culprit? How could I tell?

If the only time the pc crashes is during 3D applications, it indeed could be your videocard heating up too much since your case is already hot. Only way to tell is to lower your case temps, or try a different videocard.

60C won't fry your cpu, but it could make things unstable.

 

[howdyduty]

Sounds like Temps to me. Cool that case and see. Open the side and blow a fan into it. If it does not crash when cooled well, its heat. If it does crash, keep thinking. Let us know how it goes.

 

[lokni]

Well, after pointing a 16" oscillating fan into my case and it still restarted, I pulled out the slower Corsair XMS memory chip and left the Kingston HyperX chip in. I started up my computer and ran Desert Combat. After playing for 2 hours last night, I think I can safely say that the problem is with having the 2 types of memory. Its amazing the difference in game play and map load time in Desert Combat with 1 gig of memory over 512. Its a very dramatic difference. Well, I guess its time to run to Circuit City and pick up another 512 of Kingston HyperX. And the best part is I can finally run my CPU w a 400 mhz FSB that it was built with rather than underclocking it. Oh yeah!

Thanks for all of the help!