My new computer is randomly shutting down

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tunk

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My gorgeous new rig from CyberPowerPC came in the mail 2 days ago.

Kingwin 700 WATT PS
ASUS P6T SE X58 Crossfire Triple Channel DDR3
Intel i7-920 2.66GHZ 8M LGA 1366 Retail
6GB DDR3 PC3 1333
500GB SATA II 3.0GB 16MB 7200RPM
EVGA NVidia GeForce GTX 285 1GB PCI-E
Vista Home Premium 64-BIT (downloaded SP2)

I've only done a few things with the rig - mostly install some programs and surf the web but I'll make a quick list of those in case my problem is software related:

AVAST
Malwarebytes, Spybot S&D, Ad-Aware
CCleaner
IDM, BID, FFDshow, WINRAR, SetPoint, IE8, WMP11, HJSplit, Vista Updates

The computer seemed ok until I installed and played Quake Live. About 10 minutes into the game it crashed like someone pulled out the plug - then quickly restarted. I tried playing QL again and it did the same thing. I gave QL one more try and it happened again. Can a browser plugin crash my computer?

I'm not the power-user like most of the people on these forums but I do know how to google ; Possible explanations for my problem:

CPU and/or GPU overheating
generic powesupply
bad RAM

I checked the CPU temp in the BIOS aftere the last crash ... 134 degrees F but I also read that in most cases the temp in the BIOS is wrong.

I am afraid to turn the computer back on - where should I start the troubleshooting? I was going to install and play a next gen game like Crysis or Bioshock and see if it crashes but I don't want to until I get some advice.

THANKS
 
My guess is it's the power supply. Even though it says 700w it might not be netting enough power to all of the components. Did you get any paperwork with the system or just the info for the order? I'd like to see the power supply's ratings, specifically the +12v amperage rating, which is the most important factor in running high-end video cards etc.

If your CPU or GPU was overheating, the system may start to chug a bit but it wouldn't shut down and restart itself. You're not overclocking so you need not worry about the CPU unless the fan is running under spec. I would download and install RivaTuner from www.guru3d.com to monitor temps and adjust the fan speed on the graphics card, just to be safe.

To test the RAM, run a single module at a time to test the stability and then swap the others in one by one. Do you know which brand DDR3 they installed?
 
Well tunk, in my opinion the RAM should be fine.

My computer once behaved the same way and I realised that my CPU fan was damaged and it was overheating. Why don't you start your computer and enter BIOS. Follow CPU temps and see if your system shuts down due to overheating. ( No point checking temps after the crash.)

And as EXCellR8 says, it might well be the PSU.
 
guys...thanks alot for the help. I really don't want to go through the hassel of sending it back - that will be my last resort if I can't get this solved quickly. I just got the info for the order...no other paperwork. The ram is Corsair or "major brand" (whatever that means).

I just installed and played Mirrors Edge - all the settings on Max - full AA and AF etc. (god it looked beautiful and ran great) - played for about 30 minutes...then boom...crashed and restarted....UGH!

Upon restarting I went into Bios and jotted this down...don't know if it helps:

CPU: 60.0/140.0 degrees
MB: 58.0/137.0 degrees

cpu fan: 2410 rpm
cpu Q fan control: DISABLED

chassis fan 1: 1562 rpm
chassis fan 2: N/A
chassis Q fan control: DISABLED

Power Fan Speed: N/A

CPU : 1.15V
3.3V: 3.31V
5V: 5.14
12V: 12.08V

I really wish Nvidia's control panel had temperature monitoring...

Well..I've been searching the internet on this computer for hours - seems to me it crashes whenever I play a game!
 
That's interesting, then it shouldn't be the RAM.

As stated above you should probably download Riva Tuner to monitor your Graphics Card Core temp. You could also use Speedfan for the same. The system may be overheating during intensive gaming or maybe the PSU can't handle all the power requirements during gameplay. Just my 2 cents worth...

All the best. Hope you get it sorted out. Gem of a rig you've got yourself. :)
 
Nvidia's Control Panel does have a Temp Monitor/Fan Speed Adjustor.

Investigate, I think your GTX 295 is either Overheating or isn't getting enough Juice from your Power Supply.

Just my thoughts, but you never know. =)

Goodluck with solving this, I hoped I helped even just a tad bit.

Also, your Card is from EVGA you can put your own Thermal compund/Grease on it aslong at you Damage the Physically Damage the Card and still have that Lifetime Warranty. (I.E. Burn out the GPU, Gouge the PCB with a Screwdriver.)

Give that a try? I've been needing to put some Thermal Compund/Grease on my 9600GT but I haven't gotten around to it yet. (I'm running around 50-55 Celcius on Idle.)
 
Applying thermal compound isn't a big deal, but I don't think the card itself is to blame. The GTX series has fairly adequate cooling, and the heat on most models is dumped out the back of the tower. This is most-likely being caused by the power supply underpowering the card. It may be running at full load and then may fluctuate causing the system to crash. The card requires a 6-pin and an 8-pin PCI-e power connection if I remember correctly, so that's a lot of dedicated power even for a 700w unit. I would still like the know the combined total amperage on the +12v rail... should be on the side of the PSU itself.

Everything in BIOS looks fine, so don't go returning it just yet. Besides, a whole computer is going to cost a lot to ship back out; I'm not sure if the builder would cover it.
 
Isn't any changes to the harware or even opening the case going to void the warranty if it has one? Tunk is being very vague on this warranty thing
 
Depends on the builder, not sure what CyberPower's warranty looks like. I've never used one of these high-end system building companies so I can't tell whether it's okay to open the case or not, or to change the hardware around. It wouldn't surprise me if it would void warranty, but I don't think opening the case alone would on it's own. I mean people gotta clean out their towers once in a while...

If there's a number you can call... just ask them.
 
Excell...I'm on the wifes laptop looking inside the tower and powersupply....here's what I see:

700W ATX POWER SUPPLY

AC Input Voltage = 115/230v
AC Input Frequency = 50-60hz
AC Input Current = 10.7A(RMS) for 115vac input
= 6.2A(RMS) for 230vac input

MAX OUTPUT CURRENT:
+3.3v = 24A
+5v = 32A
+12v1 = 21A
+12v2 = 22A
-12v = 0.6A
+5vSB = 2.0A

MAX COMBINED WATTAGE: 700 WATTs

Also...I must be blind..where on the NVidia control panel is the temp gauges and fan speeds?

Anything else you want me to check as long as the tower is open?

I have the warranty looks like a 3 year labor one year parts
 
Sorry to respond so late, I was out of the shop for awhile.

It looks like you have a total of 43amps on the +12v rails (you have two in that PSU). That should be enough to run the card stable but the power supply needs to run all your other high-end components as well. If you picked the power supply out yourself, you might be able to return it alone in exchange for something else. I'm sure the warranty covers the unit, but they will probably just give you the same one if you return the whole system. I think your best bet is to contact them and explain what's happening. I'm sure they will help you out.

I think you can view the temps and fan speed of your graphics card by enabling "Advanced View" in the nvidia control panel. If you can't find it, just download RivaTuner... it's a bit more complex but offers better functionality.
 
thanks for the repsonse excell.

I've been doing some research about the GTX285. 700watts is plenty to power it and it's actually one of Nvidia's "cooler" cards - doesn't run as hot as some others. The powersupply I have is what CyberPower bundled.

I can't believe it's my CPU or memory because I can do other things on the rig - i've installed a bunch of programs, surfed the internet for hours, downloaded a bunch of stuff, and even installed a 7GB game.

Do you think my rig stays cool enough when I am gaming? Enough fans and airflow? Something is getting too hot - I gotta figure out how to take the temp of my gpu when I am running a game on max settings(before the rig crashes). If the crashes are caused by overheating wouldn't there be a warning either from ASUS or NVidia? Like a fail/safe program?

Or maybe it's what you suggest - maybe there are spikes in the powerrsupply that causes a shutdown. I emailed Cyberpower and calling them tomorrow - I will let you know what they say....stay tuned...
 
My brother was having similar issues to yourself with a new build. In my opinion i would look in to more case fans and better cooling. As a test, pull the case side off and put a desk fan blowing in to your pc. See how it runs.

Hope this helps.
 
Tmagic650 said:
Send it back to where you bought it... It must have some kind of warranty
Click to expand...

!!

sidenote*

if you must try to figure it out on your own recommend removing the case(only part of it if possible), blowing a fan at it, starting it up, d/ling a program like "speedfan" watch the temps, if it starts to sky rocket look at exactly the compent that is getting hot and shut it down. If it doesn't try running a differ game and see if it freaks out on you again or not.
 
Well, well, well. I took some advice from you all. I took off the side panel on my rig (btw, all the fans are running fine, cpu, gpu, etc) and ran a 12in. fan into it while playing the same game when it crashed for the first time (QuakeLive). I had a nice two and a half hour session without a crash!

Granted QL isn't going to put the most stress on my cpu/gpu, Tonight I'll try Mirrors Edge again on all settings maxed.

Can someone recommend a program that gives an accurate value for computer temps - I'd like to tell you what my rig's temp is when running a high end game.

Also, I suppose I should call the manufacturer for this answer but If I am not getting the proper cooling and it seems to run fine with a fan pointed at it will the manufacturer give me a new case/more fans/liquid cooling etc.

Stay tuned...I'll let you know how the rig runs with Mirrors Edge!
 
Well, can't he download the Windows Debug tools? Souldn't there be a Mini-Dump file or something that'll tell him what's gong on?
 
seems to have been an airfflow problem. I am such an *****. When it was crashing I had the rig sitting in a place in my computer desk where it wasn't getting any airflow. I took it out and ran it "normal" and everything was great!
 
Hi guys...so far so good with the new rig! Mirror's Edge looks and runs frickin awesome! Again, thank you for the help!
 
Good work Tunk,
who would have imagined that the airflow was blocked. I would have liked to see a picture of your desk and the computers position
 
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