PC hanging - do you think this is PSU related?

SwedishChef

SwedishChef

SwedishChef

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6 Jan 2006
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137
Recently I built a new i7 and Windows 7 based PC for the missus but it's not totally stable. It tends to hang randomly - but not BSOD - the screen just freezes and only a hard reboot will resolve it. I originally thought it might be temperature related but it's also rebooted itself and the Windows Event log mentioned an unexpected loss of power. My next thought is the PSU. It's a great quality PSU that I've used for three years but maybe it isn't quite up to the job. I'm still a bit skeptical since the hanging doesn't necessarily happen under much load but I'd like your opinion before I shell out for a higher wattage PSU. Is it likely to be power related with that spec and the PSU, and is there a way to definitely test the PSU?

PC spec is as follows:

Intel Core i7 920 2.66Ghz running @ stock
Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD3R Intel X58 Motherboard
Nvidia 9600GS graphics card
6GB DDR3 Patriot Viper (3x2GB)
Corsair H50 cooler
3 x 7200rpm WD Hard Drives
Sony Optiarc optical drive
Case cooled with 4 x 120mm Apache and Coolermaster fans
Creative Labs SB 5.1 sound card

and the PSU:
Seasonic S12 500W - which is split into 30A on the 3.3V and 5V rails, with two 12V rails producing 17A for 12V1 and 16A for 12V2

Thanks in advance!
 
Some great info there, thanks. I have a multimeter so I'll get testing.

I can't actually remember if I installed up-to-date mobo drivers so I'll check that. I'll also try removing a few devices and seeing what happens.

I tried the PSU calculator linked from one of the sites you suggested and total wattage needed came to 361w so quite a bit under 500w. Will check the rail outputs though of course as you suggest.

Thanks for the advice.
 
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