• Random computer turn off's - please help.
    9 replies, posted
[b]Hello Facepunch[/b] I'm here yet again on much the same mission as last time - but now I have some more stuff done and information. Right, so here we go. --- My friends build of about a year now has been experiencing random turn off's, no prompts - just an immediate turn off at seemingly random points (anywhere from a few seconds after pushing the on button to hours of use). He first noticed this problem a short while after installing an XFX HD Radeon 6850 1GB GDDR5 in his system. He uses a MicroATX board. The case didn't fit the graphics card, so in place of screws it was secured with blu-tac. Functional. --- His specs are as follows: - Asus M4N68T-M LE V2 Motherboard - AMD Phenom II x4 840 @ 3.2GHz - 4GB DDR3 RAM @ 1333MHz (Single channel) - XFX HD Radeon 6850 - Seagate Barracuda 500GB - OCZ ZS 550W PSU - Generic SATA DVD Drive - Fairly cheap Mid-tower ATX case - 'Tenda' Wireless Adapter --- Prior to the problems, he was using an Arctic Power 450W and a 5570 graphics card. [b]Things we have tried:[/b] -- [b]Swapping out the PSU[/b] Obviously it looked a bit like a power supply issue at first, since we had just swapped it out (for a Corsair CX500) for the 6850 (450W wasn't enough according to AMD specification). After believing that had failed we pursued an RMA. eBuyer were a dodgy here, no RMA. We then swapped it out for an OCZ ZS 550W. It seemed to work for a while, but the issue soon returned. [b]Updating Windows[/b] Doing a Windows update did very little. Was worth a shot. [b]Checked Windows Event Viewer[/b] Pretty generic stuff, a Kernal Power Issue shows it had recognized it had lost power, and little else. It showed the power button was not the cause of turn off. [b]Disabling AMD HD Audio on the 6850[/b] Seemed to work for a while, was actually placebo as it did it again in about a week. [b]Checking temperatures[/b] The temperatures that we observed are fine pretty much. The CPU and GPU never seem to get over 60C tops, and the HDD was running a fair bit hotter than most other HDD's, both of its type and not (45C after a good bit of use). There are no other sensors detected by HWMonitor. [b]Checking voltages[/b] The voltages are all easily within 5% of their specified values, suggesting that the PSU is actually fine. This is assuming that HWMonitor is correct here, if it may not be the case, suggest a better way of checking? [b]Assuming software fault[/b] First we assumed it was Minecraft, but it doesn't seem to discriminate in turn off positions. It's done it in everything from Skype to Company of Heroes Worldbuilder. [b]Virus scan[/b] No viruses detected by neither Avast! or MalwareBytes Anti-Malware. Both are entirely updated. [b]Driver updates[/b] All hardware drivers are now up to date. No change. [b]Stress tests[/b] * We ran Prime95 for a short period of time on the default settings - "Blend" I believe it was. * We ran MSI Afterburner for a short time on default settings. The card didn't get unusually hot and it remained stable. * We ran a short diagnostic on the hard-drive using Seagate's "SeaTools" software. It reported the drive was OK. The drive doesn't appear to have any SMART functions. [b]Other things to note[/b] *He runs the case on it's side (with the components laying flat and facing upwards) with the case lid on. This is because he's unsure of the versatility of his blue-tac solution. *His case has no case fans, and very few vents. *On the AMD site, the 'AMD Phenom II x4 840' has a Max TDP of 95W. HWMonitor shows the wattage of the processor occasionally hitting the low 130's. *Nothing appears to be overheating nearby to the shutdown, and there is nothing intensive that should be triggering it. *In comparison to the 5570, the 6850 is massive. He noted that the 6850 was almost entirely covering a small blue box on the board, marked 'ASUS' - we presume this is the integrated graphics. They aren't turned on we presume - we see no way of checking. *There doesn't appear to be any blown capacitors anywhere. *We don't have many parts to swap in and out. He still has the 5570. So, Facepunch. Any ideas? We're kind of running out now... Thanks in advance :)
[quote]The case didn't fit the graphics card, so in place of screws it was secured with blu-tac. [/quote] Sounds like the problem to be honest. [editline]21st February 2012[/editline] Try taking out the 6850 again and putting in the 5570.
[QUOTE=SataniX;34803953]Sounds like the problem to be honest. [editline]21st February 2012[/editline] Try taking out the 6850 again and putting in the 5570.[/QUOTE] We'll try that, thanks. Also would it really matter that it was secured with blu-tac. I mean the bit where it 'screws in' (lack of a better word) to the case doesn't touch any of the circuitry, so its not like its affecting the card?
It should not affect anything. Tried pushing the GPU more in just in case? Maybe it did not go in properly? There is also a possibily that his houses wiring is so old that the power gets a little jump and turns off the PC.
Also make sure you are using the chipset drivers for the tenda wireless driver. The tenda ones are really buggy.
[QUOTE=tratzzz;34805291]It should not affect anything. Tried pushing the GPU more in just in case? Maybe it did not go in properly? There is also a possibily that his houses wiring is so old that the power gets a little jump and turns off the PC.[/QUOTE] How old is 'so old'? [editline]21st February 2012[/editline] [QUOTE=Ooops: 404;34805508]Also make sure you are using the chipset drivers for the tenda wireless driver. The tenda ones are really buggy.[/QUOTE] OK, thanks for the info. Would this be related to the turn off issue?
So old that is unstable. You can not give an exact year with it, some houses have worse power lines than others do.
I see, thanks for the info.
So is his computer working again? I'm just curious.
Oh damn I forgot to update the thread. I do apologise. Yes, we've got it working by putting his old graphics card in. All seems to be running fine now, so we're putting the 6850 into my PC (it has an 850w PSU instead of a 550w PSU) to see if it's turning off because there's not enough power, and to see if it works in any other computer. If it doesn't, we'll send the GPU back. If it does, we'll try and claim off the warranty of the PSU and get a better one. I'm not sure though. The card should perform fine, but works with the old one for now. Will keep you updated this time :smile:
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