Help - Unstable system!

-Exocet-

-Exocet-

-Exocet-

Associate
Joined
21 Oct 2009
Posts
5
Hello all!

I'm hoping some of you guys will be able to help me pinpoint my problems, and find a solution to them.

My PC seems to be very unstable whilst playing high demand games. It'll be fine for around ten minutes, and then it'll freeze up.

I assumed heat was the issue, but upon measuring GPU core temps etc, these never reach more than about 80C, with the GPU fans never reaching over about 50% usage, so I've ruled that out.

It's an Antec case (the entire system is from Overclockers, no changes to their spec except for adding an additional case fan), it has 6 120 mm case fans, and 1 200mm case fan.

I have a pair of GTX280 cards running in SLI configuration.

1000W PSU
i7 965 running at 3474.5 Mhz
12 gig of DDR3 RAM
ASUS P6T Deluxe motherboard.

I have a dual boot system, and the problem occurs on both XP and Vista, though seemingly more so on Vista.

I'm at a loss, I really don't know where to look. Any ideas would be much appreciated. Any more info you may need, don't hesitate to ask.

Thanks all :)
 
With 12 gig of ram I would be looking at that first, maybe try changing the memory divider to lower the speed or even remove 6 gig just to pin the problem down.

Also how did you measure the gpu temps? Try upping the fan speed to 70% but check memory first.
 
Another vote for Memtest.

But it could also be your graphics card.

Does it reboot a little while after freezing? If so, try turning off "Automatically restart" after System Failure.

In Windows 7/Vista: Right-click My Computer -> Properties -> Advanced system settings -> Advanced tab -> Startup and Recovery Settings button.

That way you might get to see the blue-screen error message. If the message refers to the graphics driver it could be a hardware fault on the graphics card.
 
Thank you for your replies :)

The system is overclocked, but this was done by OCuK themselves, and it's supposed to be stable.

The PSU is a Corsair HX1000W.

GPU temps and fan speeds were checked using GPU-Z, is there a method to overide the fan speed on GTX280 cards?

I'll certainly have a look at the memory, this is one area I have not checked.

Unfortunately, I never get to see a bluescreen, the system freezes and continuously displays the last rendered frame in the game.

I'm experiencing other symptoms that -may- be unrelated - When rebooting, sometimes the monitor stops receiving signal - suggesting graphics cards again, but if you switch the base unit off for ten or so seconds, and switch it on, the signal usually returns.

Never had a problem when cold booting.
 
Memory cant be run at full speed with 12gb... you're looking at runnign 1333Mhz or possibly lower if its 1600Mhz rated. Try 1066Mhz and see if it becomes stable.
 
OC didn't ship pre overclocked bundles with 12gb did they? I thought they only came with 6gb? Appologies if I'm wrong...

But if they overclocked it with 6gb and you added another 6 they I don't believe you can leave the settings as they were. As someone else said, you would have to change the ram timings etc.

To rule out the overclock I'd flip the bios back to stock speeds and try it. At least you will know where you stand then.
 
Yeah, this system came with 6gb, we added an extra 6 gb.

It is 1600 Mhz rated, G-skill Ram modules.

We've tried running 12gig at 1333Mhz, but the problem was still occurring, so we've removed 6 gig, currently still running at 1333Mhz, the problem is still occurring. The system is exactly as it came from OCUK at the moment, bar the addition of a few HDDs.

What's next? 6 gig at 1066? Swap the current 6 gig for the other 6 gig, to make sure we don't have any duff modules?
 
-Exocet- said:
:)

The system is overclocked
Click to expand...

I have seen a lot of overclocked systems experiancing crashes & freezing. Components are designed to go at a certain speed and by stressing the system in overclocking can cause problems so don't be suprised... personally if I want faster I buy faster components. Stay clear of free MHz by overclocking and enjoy trouble free computing.
 
Last edited:
I know exactly what you are saying - But as the system was overclocked by OCUK themselves, and it was stated that it ran in a stable manner, I had no reason not to trust them.

Am now trying 6 gig at 1066 to see if that makes any difference.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom