Computer keeps locking, freezing, etc

C

cptnhammer

New Member
...and it's driving me absolutely insane.

Allow me to backtrack. A bit over a month ago, my video card started to show some pretty obvious signs of nearing demise. Graphical glitches in video games, random screen black-outs, and even more random total computer lock ups--but only when playing games. So, I replaced it. All was well.

Until a couple of weeks ago. Now, all I'm getting is the lock-ups. These stopped when I first replaced the card, and only recently started happening. These locks are...different, though. For starters, they happen whether I'm playing a game or not. I don't have to be doing anything even remotely graphically intensive. Just staring at my desktop after startup will occasionally freeze. That said, it happens most often while I am playing games--but a counter to that would be that most of the time I'm on my computer, I'm doing that. So it's not exactly a reliable conclusion.

Something else strange about these freezes is that...they usually come to a slow halt, rather than slamming on the breaks. It's most noticeable when I'm typing. Letters will show up a split second late and within a few seconds, the computer is a brick until I manually reboot it.

I've tried a few things. The video card is seated properly, the drivers are up to date. I cleaned out what little dust was in my computer. I defragmented. I tried to reinstall Vista...

Tried to. I pop the disk in and it does its thing for what feels like forever, only to give me an error message and revert my system back to before it started. Honestly, I didn't write the error down though I know I should have. It was dawn, and I was too busy slamming my head against my desk.

I have no idea what the problem is, but it doesn't feel like its the new card. Help? :(
 

My Computer

System One

  • CPU
    AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core Processor 6000+ (2 CPUs) 3.0GHz
    Motherboard
    Asus M2N-SLI
    Memory
    4GB G.Skill 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory 5-5-5-15
    Graphics card(s)
    XFX Nvidia GeForce 9500GT 512MB
    Sound Card
    C-Media Superior Quality Audio 7.1 chanel audio
    PSU
    Rosewill RP600V2-S-SL 600W ATX12V v2.01
This could be any number of things. My guess would be:

o Bad video card (I realize its new)
o Bad power supply (this can nuke any of your peripherals ie: video card, HD, etc.)
o Malware/Spyware, etc.
o Bad HD

I'd start by suspecting the power supply if you are on your second video card. Check the system and application logs for clues.

Others may chime in but your symptoms could be all sorts of things to be honest.

Good luck!
 

My Computer

System One

  • CPU
    a
    Motherboard
    a
    Memory
    a
    Graphics card(s)
    a
    Sound Card
    a
    Monitor(s) Displays
    a
    Screen Resolution
    a
    Hard Drives
    a
    Case
    a
    Cooling
    a
    Mouse
    a
    Keyboard
    a
    Internet Speed
    a
Seems more like a hardware issue. do a clean install and see if the problem persists. Or you may have to replace the faulty hardware, especially RAM or video card.
 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Custom Build
    CPU
    Intel Dual Core 3 GHz
    Motherboard
    Intel 945 GCL desktop motherboard
    Memory
    3 GB DDR 2 667 Mhz
    Graphics card(s)
    ATI X1550 256 MB
    Sound Card
    Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung 19"
    Hard Drives
    80 GB IDE Samsung.
    Mouse
    iBall
    Keyboard
    iBall
    Internet Speed
    2mbps
Alright, by now, the more it happens, the more I'm convinced it's my power supply. I did some research on this computer, and while I can't find an exact match on the site I bought it from, looking the most current and most similar models from the same company... well, I'm almost certain mine shipped with a pretty wimpy power supply.

Think a 600W would comfortably power an Nvidia 9500GT? :P
 

My Computer

System One

  • CPU
    AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core Processor 6000+ (2 CPUs) 3.0GHz
    Motherboard
    Asus M2N-SLI
    Memory
    4GB G.Skill 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory 5-5-5-15
    Graphics card(s)
    XFX Nvidia GeForce 9500GT 512MB
    Sound Card
    C-Media Superior Quality Audio 7.1 chanel audio
    PSU
    Rosewill RP600V2-S-SL 600W ATX12V v2.01
cptnhammer said:
Alright, by now, the more it happens, the more I'm convinced it's my power supply. I did some research on this computer, and while I can't find an exact match on the site I bought it from, looking the most current and most similar models from the same company... well, I'm almost certain mine shipped with a pretty wimpy power supply.

Think a 600W would comfortably power an Nvidia 9500GT? :P
Click to expand...

That would depend on the pwer requirements of your system. The two ways to do this would be to either add up all the watts your peripherals consume or search for some kind of online calculator to do this. I wish I had a link to such but unfortunately, I do not have such a link.

Barring that, look in your case at the old one, add more wattage, say 200w, and purchase one at that level. Or, just buy the most expensive you can afford. Do buy a good quality one that you can find some reviews on. I'd suggest newegg to get good user feedback before you make your purchase.
 

My Computer

System One

  • CPU
    a
    Motherboard
    a
    Memory
    a
    Graphics card(s)
    a
    Sound Card
    a
    Monitor(s) Displays
    a
    Screen Resolution
    a
    Hard Drives
    a
    Case
    a
    Cooling
    a
    Mouse
    a
    Keyboard
    a
    Internet Speed
    a

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Custom Built
    CPU
    Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 2.4GHz
    Motherboard
    Intel D975XBX2
    Memory
    Corsair TWIN2X4096-PC8500 (2x2GHz)
    Graphics card(s)
    ATI Radeon HD 4890 (1GHz)
    Sound Card
    X-Fi Titanium - Fatality Pro Series
    Monitor(s) Displays
    hp w2207h (22" widescreen)
    Screen Resolution
    1680 x 1050
    Hard Drives
    One 750GB, 2x500GB Western Digital Caviar Black Hard Drives (32meg)
    PSU
    Antec Neo HE 550
    Case
    Antec P182
    Cooling
    Zalman CNPS9500 AT
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Revolution
    Keyboard
    Logitech Wireless Wave
    Internet Speed
    "High" Speed DSL? Is that like low speed FIOS?
    Other Info
    Q6600 B3 Revision OC to 3.0GHz
Thanks for the link sygnus21! Great link! :D
 

My Computer

System One

  • CPU
    a
    Motherboard
    a
    Memory
    a
    Graphics card(s)
    a
    Sound Card
    a
    Monitor(s) Displays
    a
    Screen Resolution
    a
    Hard Drives
    a
    Case
    a
    Cooling
    a
    Mouse
    a
    Keyboard
    a
    Internet Speed
    a
Nice link indeed, thanks for that. And yeah, 600W is plenty for my system, heh :P Thanks for the help, all.
 

My Computer

System One

  • CPU
    AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core Processor 6000+ (2 CPUs) 3.0GHz
    Motherboard
    Asus M2N-SLI
    Memory
    4GB G.Skill 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory 5-5-5-15
    Graphics card(s)
    XFX Nvidia GeForce 9500GT 512MB
    Sound Card
    C-Media Superior Quality Audio 7.1 chanel audio
    PSU
    Rosewill RP600V2-S-SL 600W ATX12V v2.01
Okay, so...new power supply, plenty to power my system. New 4 gigs of RAM, too, cause well, who doesn't like more RAM? Computer's been running like a freakin' monster.

And it's still doing it.

I was fairly certain it was the PSU, too. Or the RAM. So unless they're both faulty within 24 hours and giving me the same exact problem I've been having... Sigh. The video card? That's past its 30 day replacement warranty, too, heh. I can't keep spending this kind of money.

I guess I'll try a fresh reinstall of Vista in the morning. But like I said before, it stopped about 70% through with an error and reverted back to before it started.
 

My Computer

System One

  • CPU
    AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core Processor 6000+ (2 CPUs) 3.0GHz
    Motherboard
    Asus M2N-SLI
    Memory
    4GB G.Skill 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory 5-5-5-15
    Graphics card(s)
    XFX Nvidia GeForce 9500GT 512MB
    Sound Card
    C-Media Superior Quality Audio 7.1 chanel audio
    PSU
    Rosewill RP600V2-S-SL 600W ATX12V v2.01
Mm. Sorry. Stressed. Forgot about that. I'll get to it.
 

My Computer

System One

  • CPU
    AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core Processor 6000+ (2 CPUs) 3.0GHz
    Motherboard
    Asus M2N-SLI
    Memory
    4GB G.Skill 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory 5-5-5-15
    Graphics card(s)
    XFX Nvidia GeForce 9500GT 512MB
    Sound Card
    C-Media Superior Quality Audio 7.1 chanel audio
    PSU
    Rosewill RP600V2-S-SL 600W ATX12V v2.01
Hard drive, off the top of my head. Ignore what's already there, hah, I accidentally hit enter and it went through.
 

My Computer

System One

  • CPU
    AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core Processor 6000+ (2 CPUs) 3.0GHz
    Motherboard
    Asus M2N-SLI
    Memory
    4GB G.Skill 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory 5-5-5-15
    Graphics card(s)
    XFX Nvidia GeForce 9500GT 512MB
    Sound Card
    C-Media Superior Quality Audio 7.1 chanel audio
    PSU
    Rosewill RP600V2-S-SL 600W ATX12V v2.01

My Computer

System One

  • CPU
    AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core Processor 6000+ (2 CPUs) 3.0GHz
    Motherboard
    Asus M2N-SLI
    Memory
    4GB G.Skill 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory 5-5-5-15
    Graphics card(s)
    XFX Nvidia GeForce 9500GT 512MB
    Sound Card
    C-Media Superior Quality Audio 7.1 chanel audio
    PSU
    Rosewill RP600V2-S-SL 600W ATX12V v2.01
Ok after doing all that you've now reduced any software issues and defragged the hard drive for better performance so we can now move onto hardware.

Open your pc case and disconnect any dvd drives and remove all but 1 stick of ram. If you have onboard graphics then remove your graphics card as well as well as your sound card. You want basically to have the minimum required to boot installed.

If all goes well you'll get to the desktop and should notice the freezes are no longer happening. Its then a case of switching of the pc and installing everything one by one. Start by switching off and installing your dvd drives and souncard then boot and see if the problem still isnt there. Then switch of and install 1 stick of ram then boot. Then repeat until all the ram is installed then go the vista start orb and type in the search bar MdSched then hit enter and Restart Now. If that goes well it should find no errors with your ram. The very last thing you should install is your graphics card.

If the system freezes on the bare minimum thats required to boot or at any stage then come back here.

NOTE: From HWmonitor all your volt readings are below where they should be (although software readings arent 100% accurate). Its not by much though so its nothing to get to worried over.
 

My Computer

System One

Ughhh. That will take a while. The lock ups are really, really random. It's impossible to just...reproduce. I could be testing each piece of hardware for days D: That'll be a pain. Particularly knowing when to judge whether or not it'll "happen any minute now" or "I guess this one's fine." Oi. But thanks so far.
 

My Computer

System One

  • CPU
    AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core Processor 6000+ (2 CPUs) 3.0GHz
    Motherboard
    Asus M2N-SLI
    Memory
    4GB G.Skill 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory 5-5-5-15
    Graphics card(s)
    XFX Nvidia GeForce 9500GT 512MB
    Sound Card
    C-Media Superior Quality Audio 7.1 chanel audio
    PSU
    Rosewill RP600V2-S-SL 600W ATX12V v2.01
Yeah it'll take a while. If you do each step and watch a video or play a game that can run on onboard graphics that will show you that your system is able to run at that level. Just test each scenario for a few hours by doing the above. After every new stick of ram is placed in you may want to run MdSched to ensure the new stick is fine.
 

My Computer

System One

Not to jinx it, but I think it's fixed. CD or DVD drive, I dunno. They're both unplugged, and frankly I'm scared to plug either back in. Only when I absolutely need 'em I guess.

I'm still incredibly paranoid it'll happen again. The slightest lag or minor freeze nearly gives me a heart attack, hahah. But, I uh... I think its done. Thank you!

Now my computer runs better than it has in ages, too >_> Mmm, RAM.
 

My Computer

System One

  • CPU
    AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core Processor 6000+ (2 CPUs) 3.0GHz
    Motherboard
    Asus M2N-SLI
    Memory
    4GB G.Skill 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory 5-5-5-15
    Graphics card(s)
    XFX Nvidia GeForce 9500GT 512MB
    Sound Card
    C-Media Superior Quality Audio 7.1 chanel audio
    PSU
    Rosewill RP600V2-S-SL 600W ATX12V v2.01
Glad you've got it working better now :) If you've got everything installed except for your CD and DVD drive and the system freezes have gone away then its definetly one of them.

You can try installing one of them and updating the drivers for it and see if the pc works as well or if it goes back to freezing.

If you dont know where to get new drivers for it then just ask and il try to help.
 

My Computer

System One

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