lock up issues

[ssbn743]

I have been having issues with a computer that I recently built and I was hoping I could get you guys to give me hand.

I built an ASUS P5WD2 3.4 GHz with 2048 MB DDR2 667 MHz RAM (2 1024 Sticks), and a Geforce 6800 GS PCI-E Video Card.

I have had lock up issues since the day that I built this box. The computer will just freeze. It will only freeze when running some big appliation though, for instance, I'm typing this on the computer right now and it's working just fine, however, especially when gaming it might work for sometimes as long as 20 minutes before it will just lock up.

This box runs hotter than any I have ever builty (145F) according to the mobo temp sensor. Spec for the P4 is 152 F. Orignally I could watch the temp go over 152 F and sometime soon thereafter the box would lock up. I naturally assumed it to be a heat issue, and went ahead and upgraded to a water cooling system, and I went all out, water cooling everything, even the chipset. The processor now runs 5 F above ambient temp (97 F) which I think is just awesome. It's not a heat issue anymore and I am still having the same kinds of problems and I am not even overclocking.

I have recently thought this may be a memory issue, and have done all the troubleshooting I can think on that, no joy. My memory is 667 MHz CL-5 which is fully supported and listed on the mobo's QVL. I have adjusted the memory timing in the BIOS manually instead of leaving it on AUTO. Which seemed to help for a while, but after further analysis just proved to be a fluke. I have re-seated the memory tried different slots and tried to run on each memory stick by themselves, all with the same issues.

Then on to the video card (which by the way is kind of the way I am leaning) the temp sensors say the temp is good and everything in the BIOS is set up to run it correctly. I have 2 PCI-E slots on the mobo, 1 is just the standard PCI-E x16 slot and is listed to support the video card and the other is a universal drive that runs at different timing modes. I have tried to move the video card down to the universal and ran it on all three modes (AUTO, X4, X2) no joy again. I unfortunalty don't have another PCI-E video card lying around, or I would try to swap cards and see if that's the issue.

Recently I have ran multiple benchmarks on the sytem to hopefully help me issolate the issue. All of the Proc, memory, DMA, and Cahce benchamrks check out with flying colors. One thing that didn't do so well is the read write to the hard drive, but that's because I am just using standard IDE (For my LINUX system) I dual boot and use an older version of the Linux kernal that doesn't support EIDE. I thought maybe my swap file was casuing this issue, as you know windows will only allow a swap file size of 4096 MB, which I have set, but the llinux o/s has it's own swap partition that is over 5GB, same issues on both systems. Could the sub par access time being causing the box to lock up? Personally I don't think so, might run slower but not lock up. The last benchmark that I ran is a VGA tester. I think it works the video card out really well and will cause the system to lock up, I have had several successful benchmarks of the video card, but it has also locked the sytem up more times than not during the benchmarks, and naturally when that happens the log file doesn't get written so I don't get any help there.

If there is any help you can offer it would be greatly appreciated, I hate to go out and buy another PCI-E card just to find out if that's the problem, so any troubleshooting tips or anything could only help. I am really leaning towards a faulty video card. I am at the point where I am going to have to start buying and swapping cards, and I also haven't rulled out a bad mobo either. What do you think?

Thanks for the help, feel free to contact me via E-mail also.

Josh
number62@hotmail.com

 

[compguy91]

When your system freezes, does your monitor loose picture or anything? that might dictate some sort of problem. Does the computer ONLY freeze when doing games? or other big stuff too? Sounds to me like something with the graphics card isn't right but I don't know. I'm fairly new at this stuff so I can't offer you as much help as alot of other people can here. Do you ever get a BSOD? I've heard a BSOD means a memory error. You said your memory sticks are fine so we know it's not that. Have you checked your computer for any malware? that might be what's causing the freezing. Also what program(s) does it freeze in? maybe you're running those programs at settings too high for the system but I could be wrong.

Sorry I can't help more,
Troy

P.S. welcome to CF!

 

[Kage]

Welcome first of all

You seem to have alot of knowledge.

POWER SUPPLY ISSUE?

The freezing in that case can't be a temperature issue, but, how much of a power supply in terms of wattage have you got?

MEMORY

Plus, though its very unlikely, could be both memory chips faulty, but since you have two, and they are both going wrong, that is very very very unlikely.

The first question though could be relevant.

Hope I can help

 

[r_moore04]

hey, iv got an asus motherboard aswell and there is a hot prop with my montherboard i used 2 get lock up all the time i always thought it was my mem and could still be i dont no, i dont no why it used to lock up, did it out of the blue for example just chattin on msn or playin a game, it wasnt over heating at all.

its always a gd idea to go on the asus website and on the forums for your motherboard, some people might have the same problem as you on there

 

[ssbn743]

Hey thanks guys, yeah it only freezes when doing hi graphic stuff. Not even that high, really. I'm not a big gamer but one of the games I was using was Star wars jedi knight 2, which was released on 2002, shouldn't be a problem but it is. I have tried a couple of newer games as well with the same result.

One of my friends actually suggested the power supply issue that you did. I bought the power supply new, and If I remember correctly it was 540 Watts, the ASUS board requires a lot of juice, and I made sure it meet the minimum spec req before I bought it, but I really don't remeber exactly how much power it was rated for. I may explore that option though, I have another power supply that will power the board, so I'll swap 'em and see.

I am water cooling my system but I did leave several fans in there and I think that all of the connectors are used for one thing or another so the power supply could defintly be getting overloaded, but like I told my friend if it was the power supply would my problems be limited to high graphic applications alone, or wouldn't I be having problems just trying to read my E-mail or even boot up the computer?

Oh and and when the computer freezes, most of the time it just locks, I DO NOT lose video and occassionally a sound that was being played at the time of lock up will just play continuosly over the speakers, I origanlly thought that was a BIOS beep code, but it was being produced by the sound card not the BIOS. Sometimes and only sometimes it will restart itself, which would support the power supply idea, and I do run the computer off of an UPS that I monitor, so it's not a power quality issue, unless of course that UPS is bad, but I don't think it is.

I haven't recieved any kind of error from the BIOS or otherwise, just lock ups and reboots. I've been around computers for a while now and this problem has me stumped. The closest thing that I have every experienced was a bad monitor was shorting out one of the VGA pins and that was causing a simalar issue on that system. I am sure that my monitor is fine, it works on all of my other systems. Thanks your guys very much for your help, most of the people I know aren't technicaly competent, so I really appreciate it. I think I'm going to start over again, and focus on that power supply first, that would certanly be the cheapest way to go. Anyway thanks again for your help


Josh
number62@hotmail.com

 

[Gamingfreak]

well it is most deffinately an overheating problem, when u built it are u sure u put the heatsink on right? even if u think so try taking it off, cleaning it all up with some rubbing alcohol then put a very think layer of artic silver 5 thermal paste on and put the heatsink back on and make sure its tightly on there, one more thing u dont have to use AS5 its just the best IMO but any other thermal paste will do

 

[Kage]

The temperatures on that water cooling system up there though seem very good, so i doubt it is overheating.

I still suggest a power issue.

Just try doing a swap, and tell me if you get the same results.

Then we can rule out other possible soloutions, but its best to get rid of the hardware problems first.

 

[ssbn743]

Hey thanks for the help everyone......I have solved the problem, you guys that suggested the power supply were right? I bought a new power supply not really caring about anything except what wattage it was rated to handle, and apparntly the is an incompatability issue, with 2.2 Power supplies. I bought a new PS that is 2.0 compliant and it works like a champ, I can do anything and the machine never locks up. Kind of funny that I could not find and still can't find any documentation on this and that's a little disturbing since I can't be the only one having these problems. So thanks for the help and keep this one in the memory banks (I know I will) somebody else is bound to have the same problem.

Josh

 

[Kage]

Wow...weird...

Didn't know there was a 2.0/2.2 compliance standard thing...

Glad you got it working though