Very confused by my computer problem

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smackbuddy

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I've been having trouble with my computer for a month now. It started when my CPU usage was suspiciously high and my system ran as if it were bogged down by some unseen force. So, I opened it up and gave it a good cleaning with some compressed air. The thing ran fine after this for about a day, and then I started getting all kinds of BSODs. These blue screens have given me half a dozen different STOP messages, sighting all kinds of drivers (audio, video, usb, etc.) as the problem, and have included such messages as "PAGE_FAULT_IN_NONPAGED_AREA," "{FATAL SYSTEM ERROR}," and "IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL." Sometimes I can't even log on without getting a BSOD. I have been able to replace all of the drivers that were said to be a problem, but I'm still getting BSODs with random STOP messages (and no driver or file to blame).

Some things I've noticed:
-The fan on the CPU heatsink (which is the stock one, by the way) seems to speed up and slow down sporadically
-The CPU usage jumps up and down in a steady rhythm from 1% to about 50% while the system is idle

My setup (custom built a number of years back):
Windows XP Home Edition (with Service Pack 2)
AMD Athlon XP 1900+
NVIDIA GeForce 4 Ti 4600
Sound Blaster Audigy Platinum Ex
768 MB DDR RAM (512 stick of Nanya, 256 stick of Crucial)

These are the most recent stop messages I've seen:
0x000000A
0x000007F
0x000008E (win32k.sys was mentioned as the problem)
0x00000D1 (I've seen ha10kx2k.sys and usbport.sys on this one at different times)
0x0000024 (ntfs.sys for this)
 
sounds like your cpu or ram is bad, try running memtest86.

what are your temperatures like?
 
I ran MemTest and it "crashed" after 10 min or so. All the characters on the screen were turned to solid white blocks and I couldn't go anywhere from there. I pulled out my 256 stick to test the 512 alone, and MemTest ran for over an hour, but then it just froze. It didn't show any errors up to that point, but it wasn't finished testing.

According to motherboard monitor my CPU might be in danger. The default CPU temp alarm went off immediately. The temp was at 161 F (around 75 C) which was beyond the default 158 F (70 C) alarm.
I dont know if it means anything, but I noticed that my fan speeds were 1679 RPM and 3183.

Also, a few times now the system has turned itself back on for no reason. It'll crash and I'll hold down the power button until its off, but sometimes it'll come back on a few minutes later without me touching anything. The thing is off; the fans aren't moving, nor is anything else internal, and the light on my monitor is red. Which makes me think something could be wrong with the power supply...

I'm pretty noob when it comes to hardware, but it seems like somethings wrong with the power supply and/or the CPU fan+heatsink. The only reason I haven't tried replacing them is because I don't have a lot of money to throw around. :dead:
 
if u ask me, kinda sounds like my old problem. my temps were way outa range and the pc was actin all krazy, but a quick trip down to best buy to get me a new cpu fixed all of my problems. and about the random powerups, check your bios, and disable the option that turns ur pc back on after a power loss.
 
Hmm...

I don't have the option of testing my ram in another machine.
The problems I'm having seem to be things the power supply could be blamed for... I think I'll go buy a new one tomorrow. Any suggestions on what I should get?
 
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