Freezing due to hardware problem overheating?

Status
Not open for further replies.

ingsoczero

Beta member
Messages
2
Hi, I got a gaming computer that I have built exactly one year ago, and having troubles where my computer freezes and have to be manually restarted. the freezing happens mostly during games but it also happens while i surf the web.

about few weeks ago i upgraded from XP to 7 and the problem is occurring more than before (sometimes 3, 4 times in 6 hours). Totally sucks when i am playing WoW:very_angry:

Currently I am thinking overheating of my graphics cards might be the problem ( which felt hot after freeze up), since everything else feels pretty cool to touch besides my sound card which is jammed up between my graphics cards.

Any hints on how to pinpoint the exact cause of freezing? Or has anyone had the same kind problem that can help me fix my machine.

Thanks.

Here is my specs:
Corsair HX 1000W power supply (changed after the first one failed)
XFX nForce 790i Ultra
Intel Core 2 Quad Q9400 2.66Ghz 6MB 1333FSB
(with Thermaltake liquid cooling kit for CPU)
4GB of Corsair DDR3 1600MHz RAM
500GB + 750GB Seagate 7200/32Mb hard drives no RAID
2x XFX GeForce 9800GTX+ SLI config
Creative Soundblaster Xsomething sound card
 
my sound card which is jammed up between my graphics cards.
That may be a big part of your problem right there. If your sound card uses a PCI Express x1 slot, it should be placed in the top one, not between the cards. Between the cards it is blocking air to the top card and putting out its own heat as well. if it won't fit in the top one, pull it out and use the onboard sound.

You could also get so compressed air and blow your GFX cards' coolers out good as dust could have built up in there. Dust blocks airflow and acts as insulation too.

Also, make sure your drivers are all up to date, especially your graphics drivers and chipset drivers.

You could run something like EVGA Precision to monitor your GFX temps. It can also be used to overclock your cards, but you need to solve this issue first. ;)
 
Do you have Hardware Monitor?
http://www.cpuid.com/download/hwmoni..._115_setup.exe
Do you have Furmark?
FurMark: Graphics Card Stability and Stress Test, OpenGL Benchmark and GPU Temperature | oZone3D.Net

Download and install both of them. Start Hardware Monitor and then start Furmark. In Furmark select the Stability Test and run it. After waiting at least 1 minute (if it doesn't crash) capture a screenshot of Hardware Monitor. Stop Furmark. Post your screenshot.

It could also be your Video Drivers. A lot of people are having problems with the new 190 series. I've been using the 186.18 drivers myself.
 
Thanks for the replies, I opened up my case last night and it lasted for 5 hours without freezing, until shut down. But it froze just 15 mins ago when i turned on my computer for less than 10 mins (only with chrome open) and I had to manual restart :very_angry:

So here is a few pics:
HWScreenshot-after.jpg


I found out with HWmonitor that my bottom card is actually hotter than the one on top while idle. here are few of the problems with my set up:

HWScreenshot-after-1.jpg


Here is my HWmonitor reading after 1min of FurMark stability test. Both of my cards temps when up to around 80C in furmark, is that too high? also i noticed that when i run the test in 1280x1024 with no AA the temp goes up to around 80, but in 1680x1050 and AA at 4x it only goes up to mid-low 70s.

I am thinking of getting a good case fan since I don't have one yet, just the CPU liquid cooling radiator fan that pumps air in and it's warm air :doh:

also I have been having my radiator fan at max speed, how does that effect my CPU? I mean it can't be too cold right? since my PC never froze when I idle and room temp is the coolest its gonna get.
 
Your cards are running fairly hot. But Furmark will heat them up more than most games. You should try adjusting your fan speed with EVGA Precision.
EVGA Precision 1.9.1 download from Guru3D.com

I still think you maybe having a problem with the newer Nvidia Drivers. My system crashes a lot when I enable SLI with any of the new 190 series drivers. With the 186.18's it works perfectly all day, everyday.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top Bottom