Computer Freezing

A

alkit

Geek Trainee
Hi All,

I am having a problem. I just ordered and assembled the following configuration from NewEgg.

AMD Phenom II X4 940 Deneb AM2+ 125W Black Edition
GIGABYTE GA-MA790X-UD4P AM3/AM2+/AM2 AMD 790X ATX
SAPPHIRE Radeon HD 4830 512MB 256-bit GDDR3
G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500)
WD Caviar Black 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s
LG 22X DVD±R DVD Burner LightScribe SATA
ENCORE ENLWI-G(2) PCI 2.0 Wireless Adapter
Rosewill R512BS ATX Mid Tower with 500W 20+4Pin & 4SATA Connectors

Initially I even had a problem installing OS on the machine. I installed Ubuntu first, and it installed fine, but then Vista would not accept the partition table created by ubuntu. So i had to delete everything and start afresh and the OS installed (Vista Business, 32bit).

Most of the time it seems to be working fine. I have been able to play COD4, X3 Terran Conflict and FIFA09 on it. However, every once in a while the computer just freezes. It froze during one of the video tests on 3D Mark09. It froze once while playing a video file from an external hard disk. It also froze once while I was playing the FIFA 09 demo. I thought it was the hard disk, but the SMART status is fine and HDTune benchmarks finished fine and it didnt find any error on the hard disk.

I dont know how to diagnose this further, any help would be highly appreciated.

Thanks,
Ankit
 
Are you overclocking at all? If so, try clocking it down a few hundred megahertz and see if it helps stability. Also, could it be overheating? Finally, what make/model is the PSU?
 
Hi,

No I am not overclocking right now, Also I don't think it is overheating, however I was not able to check the temps when the computer did freeze. The PSU is the one that came with the case, Rosewill R512BS ATX Mid Tower with 500W 20+4Pin & 4SATA Connectors.

I have been wondering if the PSU is a little under-powered, so that when it comes to high loads, it fails to provide enough power. Do you think so? If yes, how can I make sure?

Thanks
 
Rosewill does make "iffy" quality power supplies. I'm not sure what to say about yours except that, generally speaking, PSU's that ship with chassis are worthless. The next thing I'd try is to update the BIOS and all of the hardware drivers to their latest revisions, and make sure Windows is thoroughly scanned for malware.

You might also want to consider Vista itself as a possible vector of your instability. Why not try running a live Linux CD (see my siggy for links) for a while ? If it runs for a long time with no crashes, it's possible that Vista is the whole problem.
 
Does it freeze with normal use, Or just playing games ? It sounds like the Video card to me..But Anti-trend is right about that power supply,,I would get a good brand one..
 
how could i check if it's the video card that is the problem?

I think I have ruled out the CPU, RAM and the HDD as not being the problem, that leaves out the motherboard/VideoCard/PSU

Any more suggestions?
 
alkit said:
how could i check if it's the video card that is the problem?
Click to expand...
You could run a shader-heavy graphics test in a loop, be it a game demo or benchmark software. If it crashes, well, it could be the video card. It could also be a saggy 12v+ rail, or a weak cap on the mobo, or even a bad PCI card.

alkit said:
I think I have ruled out the CPU, RAM and the HDD as not being the problem, that leaves out the motherboard/VideoCard/PSU
Click to expand...
The northbridge is probably just fine, since it passes a memtest. I'd give the mobo and video card a good once over, see if any of the caps are leaking. In fact, might want to do it to all the caps you can see. That PCI card might be your culprit.

As for the PSU, I'd actually replace that on general principle. Seasonic, PC Power & Cooling, Enermax, or Corsair are all safe bets right now. Antec or Thermaltake are OK if you're on a budget, but a PSU isn't really something you should skimp on.

alkit said:
Any more suggestions?
Click to expand...
Yes, I'd suggest you do as I suggested earlier and try running a live Linux CD for a while. Actually, if you run eLive or Sabayon, they should have working 3D out of the box, so you can troubleshoot that as well.
 
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