Strange problem, not OC related ??

[Markfw]

OK, I have a S3 motherboard with a 6300@ 475x7 (3325). So it goes for sometimes a week, sometimes 2 week at that 24/7 both core full load. Then I get a blue screen. Upon reboot, it won't even boot at stock !!!!! So I turn it off for overnight, maybe even a day, then try it again @475x7, and its fine ! This has happened 3 times now. Any ideas ???

The other 6 computers in the house are fine (including the two quads) so its not abient temp, or outside power, and the PSU is an Antec 550. Remember that it goes for days to weeks before it acts up.

Capacitors on the motherboard ? and they fix themselves ???? Just a wild guess.

 

[Acanthus]

Are you able to restart normally at 475x7?

You could be overheating the memory slowly over time, is the memory similar to all of the other machines? Does it have heat spreaders?

 

[Markfw]

Yes, it restarts easily after sitting. I have a 120 mm fan blowing wight below the HSF straight at the NB which I would think goes over the memory. But the strange part is, even if that was so, PC 8000 memory that runs at 475 for days or weeks won;t run at 266 to even do anything but post ??? Very odd. They do have heatspreaders. Same memory as many other machines. Right now its crucial PC 8000 5-5-5-15 and 2 PC 6400 4-4-4-12 (tested at 475) all running at 5-5-5-15 +.4 vdimm. But I also had the same problem with 2x512 gskill PC-8000 @ 475.

 

[Acanthus]

Very odd, like you i think id blame the mobo... but really thats a crapshoot.

 

[CTho9305]

Have you actually tried not overclocking it for a couple weeks, or is it just "not OC related" because you don't want it to be?

 

[Markfw]

If its not OC'ed then I might as well not turn it on... For F@H I need it OC'ed, or I might as well just turn on my old X2's.

 

[CurseTheSky]

I had a somewhat similar problem with the system in my signature at first. It started out randomly (BSOD, shutdown, and wouldn't turn back on for 1-30 minutes), then became more and more common. Because of the "won't turn on" delay, I was absolutely sure it was a heat issue. About two weeks into it, it just stopped turning on.

I sent back the power supply, and I haven't had problems since.

 

[MarcVenice]

Curse might be on to something. When OC-ed you need your PSU to deliver clean current, if there is to much ripple, or vdroop etc, then it might cause your rig to crash. You have several pc's, try swapping the PSU with one of your other rigs, and see what happens.

 

[Markfw]

but UN-OC'ed it won't even post when this happens, thats the wierd part. PSU is a possibility, but I got it from Duvie, and its been very dependable for him and me (until this)

 

[genec57]

If not DOB all Psu's are dependable until they are not . Electrolytic capacitors degrade over time. Over fourteen years of working on PCs I have replaced more power supplies than all other components combined.

 

[CurseTheSky]

There's really a hundred factors that can play into it. I even tested my PSU with a voltmeter before finally deciding to "guess" and send it back - the voltages seemed fine until RIGHT up to the end (12v rails were putting out 11.70ish and degrading fast). After looking at the Newegg user reviews, I found 1/5th to 1/10th of the users received PSUs that were DOA, or died within a couple of weeks.

I put two and two together, but did one more test to finally confirm it - I ran another computer's PSU (still in the other case) to power my system. It ran fine for over an hour... and the 500 watt *ASPIRE* PSU had no problem running the fabled power-hungry 8800GTX (though not under load).

If you have another power supply sitting around, give it a shot. If it runs fine, you have your answer.