pacinka 0 Posted July 23, 2012 Report Share Posted July 23, 2012 Hi guys, I am having a really annoying problem with my PC right now, so I hope someone can help me. Whenever I run any sort of 3D application, whether it be FSX, DCS, or even an old game like Colin McRae Rally, my computer just instantly shuts down - no warning, no BSOD, just instantly goes dead. This all started happening after I updated a few things on my computer, including the BIOS, graphics card driver, Intel Rapid Storage Technology, and the Asus AI Suite. I did reboot in between each update, using all the correct procedures, however I didn't check if something like FSX worked! Over the course of the past 2 weeks ( ), I've tried uninstalling the new things and reverting back to the old ones, but to no avail. My latest theory was that something was wrong with DirectX, because I noticed these shut down were only occurring when I used DirectX programs (FSX, DCS, and also Windows Performance Assessment Tool). When I ran something like Furmark, which is Open CL based, everything was fine (on that note, I can also run other stress testing programs without any problems; the OCCT GPU test, however, which uses DirectX, caused the computer to shut down). But according to the DX Diagnostic Tool, everything is fine. Using the DX Runtime web installer said the same thing. So now I am completely out of ideas, and ready to smash by computer to bits. Help? Link to post Share on other sites
pacinka 0 Posted July 23, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 23, 2012 Oh, no thanks, I would need to take out my frustration personally! (although I would consider letting you do it if you pay for a new one...) I'm pretty sure it's not the temperature though, as Intel Burn Test will only get my CPU to 60 degrees (with default clocks), and Furmark maxes out my GPU at 80 degrees (it's still stable, though - I can get 30+ fps in Furmark). Looking at other temps in CPUID Hardware Monitor, everything looks fine. But as I said before, even playing a simple game like Colin McRae Rally (from 2004) would cause the computer to shut down. And this is almost as soon as I start it up, so it can't be temperatures. I also ran the Windows Memory Diagnostic Tool, and according to that, my memory is fine. Even doing a Windows recovery back to November 2011 didn't help. This leads me to think that the problem is not Windows-related. And the only thing on my computer that is not Windows-related is (I think) the BIOS. There have been reports that the latest round of Asus BIOS's for my board are buggy, but flashing back to a stable BIOS that I had before this problem did not help. I'm thinking of ordering a new BIOS chip, as they're only about $15, but I'm still not sure if that's the solution. Link to post Share on other sites
rob16584 42 Posted July 24, 2012 Report Share Posted July 24, 2012 I had the same problem with my old PC. i cleaned the dust from inside the case and all was well again Link to post Share on other sites
jaydor 345 Posted July 24, 2012 Report Share Posted July 24, 2012 Updates: Rule of thumb, if it aint broke don't fix it. I never update my system after a first install. As in the past it always corrupted my FSX. So I do not allow updates. When you do get up and running again, more than likly after a reinstall of windows. Go straight to your windows updates in control panel and knock it off to never allow updates. Then it's a full reistall of FSX by the look of things.. Always remember "Updates can Corrupt" Allow youself to be incharge of your computer not windows.. Link to post Share on other sites
jaydor 345 Posted July 24, 2012 Report Share Posted July 24, 2012 Sorry Mike, not getting hooked Ha Ha Link to post Share on other sites
Dizzy 0 Posted July 24, 2012 Report Share Posted July 24, 2012 Did you check your power supply? If your PC is dying when graphiclly intense stuff is happening it might be that you're not getting enough power around. Link to post Share on other sites
pacinka 0 Posted July 24, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 24, 2012 Hmmm... Well, I've cleaned out the dust bunnies already, and that didn't help. I think the power supply is also okay, but I will look further into that (although it is a good quality Corsair HX850, and only a year old - I think it should be providing enough power). The thing that bothers me is that everything was okay before the updates, and it's hard to imagine that they could have caused any sort of hardware-related problems. James, maybe I'll stick with your suggestion after this is all over. But to clarify, I have most programs on my computer (including Windows Update) set to either not install updates, or only notify me and let me choose. I like to have control of what goes on in my computer. Forget about BIOS updates, though, I've had enough of those. Link to post Share on other sites
jaydor 345 Posted July 24, 2012 Report Share Posted July 24, 2012 Have you tried system restore? That will put you back to before the updates.. Link to post Share on other sites
pacinka 0 Posted July 24, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 24, 2012 Yeah, tried that - didn't help either. Link to post Share on other sites
PanzerFodder 0 Posted July 24, 2012 Report Share Posted July 24, 2012 Sorry to hear about your pc problems . Like Dizzy said! check you PSU, just in case you got a bad one, I had one go bad on me once and the system used to shut down everytime I tried to start a game, (I mean a complete PC shut down, not just a CTD) Cheer's...Graham... Link to post Share on other sites
Sabre 28 Posted July 25, 2012 Report Share Posted July 25, 2012 My money is on a faulty GFX Card. I had similar problems recently and tried all kinds including PSU change (thanks Graham) but it turned out to be the GFX Card was gradually degrading causing shut downs when the card was under load. Difference is mine was intermittent initially and just gradually got worse. Eventually it gave up but not until I'd splashed lots of cash on other things! If you have access to an old GFX Card I would try that first and see if you still have the problem. Link to post Share on other sites
pacinka 0 Posted July 25, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 25, 2012 Hmm, I do have access to another graphics card, so I'll try it out. Still testing the PSU as well... Link to post Share on other sites
MartinW 0 Posted July 26, 2012 Report Share Posted July 26, 2012 Shut downs can be caused by of many things. The fact that you can thoroughly stress test your GPU without issues suggests it not the graphics card. You did thoroughly test, not just a quick temp check? Same for CPU, test thoroughly, IBT is very stressfully you can try that or Prime95 for many hours. Also check your RAM with memtest, or the built in RAM checking utility in Windows 7. I suppose you have tried the obvious, and reinstalled your graphics card driver. Download again and install, not just a roll back. Might be worth completely uinstalling the old driver from add remove programs, rather than the latest Nvidia advice to install on top of the old one. For PSU testing you can use a multimeter, but I have one of these... http://www.overclock...rodid=CA-145-AN Very good product. Easiest way to trouble shoot is to swap out components I have a cheap graphics card specifically for trouble shooting. Check all of your connections too. I had an issue with my PC randomly shutting down that took many weeks to track down. I swapped out most components but still it shut down. It turned out to be caused by scorched pins on an ATX extender. As for advice not to install updates, this depends on the updates you are referring to. For BIOS, not necessary unless the new BIOS has features or bug fixes you need. For Windows updates, very important to install the critical updates. You get vital security updates and some bug fixes. For graphics cards and sound cards, yes if they offer performance improvements or bug fixes. Link to post Share on other sites
pacinka 0 Posted August 2, 2012 Author Report Share Posted August 2, 2012 Okay, I have some interesting news here: I have not yet been able to get a second graphics card (I will this coming weekend, though), so I decided to take out my GTX 580 and enable the Intel HD 3000 graphics in my i7 2600K. And guess what? Problem solved! No more shut downs, crashes, etc. I tried all the tests that I did with the 580 (even FSX) and everything worked. The performance was, of course, awful, but it was stable. So I guess it was the graphics card. But now I need to know what to do. The card seems perfectly healthy, and upon a visual inspection, everything looked fine. A note here, though: when the 580 was still in the computer and I ran any sort of graphics test (OCCT, FSX, etc.), I heard a sort of high-pitched whining/clicking noise, which seemed to be coming from the power supply. Could it be that the GTX 580 was using too much power? This seems unlikely, as I have a good quality 850W PSU. However, I will try to get some power supply testing done. Link to post Share on other sites
PanzerFodder 0 Posted August 3, 2012 Report Share Posted August 3, 2012 Hi John. Glad that you have sort of half fixed the problem . I would still try another vid card, just to see if the problem starts again with it in your system, as I think that the "on-board graphics" is pulling a lot less power than a GTX580, if it starts crashing again I think you should investigate your PSU a bit more as I have known a few people that have had high end psu's pack up on them . Don't know what brand of video card and PSU you have but better look for the invoices ASAP if you still have some warranty left on it . Cheer's...Graham... Link to post Share on other sites
pacinka 0 Posted August 4, 2012 Author Report Share Posted August 4, 2012 Well, today I managed to try out a GTX 550 Ti in my system. The result? Everything worked fine. No shutting off whatsoever, and FSX ran perfectly well. I also tried putting my GTX 580 back in just to make sure it wasn't some sort of connection issue, and that's where tings started getting interesting. When I first booted up Windows (with no graphics drivers), I expected it to install some basic adapters/drivers automatically, as it usually does. But nothing happens. So I go into device manager and see that there is an alert by the "Standard VGA Adapter" (it din't say GTX 580). When I clicked on properties, it said there was a problem by the name of Code 19. Something along the lines of: "Windows cannot start this hardware device because its configuration information (in the registry) is incomplete or damaged. To fix this problem you should uninstall and then reinstall the hardware device. (Code 19)". I then went through Windows troubleshooting, which told me to install the device driver, which it did. After a reboot, everything was the same as before. Same problems, same symptoms... So now I have a hunch that it is the GTX 580, although I still don't really know what's wrong. Time to contact Asus? Link to post Share on other sites
pacinka 0 Posted August 27, 2012 Author Report Share Posted August 27, 2012 Great. Well I tried putting in a replacement card from Asus (same type), and the problem persists. Could be the power supply then. Although there could still be a problem with the motherboard BIOS. (remember, this whole problem started after software updates; I didn't do anything to the hardware) One thing to point out, though, is that there seems to be a high pitched whining/scratching noise coming from the PSU immediately prior to the computer shutting down. I will report back. Link to post Share on other sites
britfrog 180 Posted August 27, 2012 Report Share Posted August 27, 2012 we had this last year and it turned out to be the power supply Link to post Share on other sites
pacinka 0 Posted September 3, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 3, 2012 Yes, it indeed seems to be the power supply! I managed to switch it with a Cooler Master 650W Extreme Power Duo, and everything works. I'll attempt some further testing, but it seems that I am in for a new PSU. Thankfully Corsair has a good warranty. Now to catch up on some flight simulation! Link to post Share on other sites
pacinka 0 Posted January 5, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 5, 2013 I probably should provide an update... I've now been running with a new Corsair HX850 (RMA'd the old one) for a few months, and everything seems to be fine. Sorry for digging up an old topic, but I realized I didn't even provide a conclusion on the problem. But thanks to everyone who helped! Hopefully the machine will run properly now! Link to post Share on other sites
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