Help troubleshooting kernel-power 41 system lock-ups

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samhickman

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May 5, 2006
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Hi Guys, I've been experiencing total system lock ups for several months now and have run out of things to try. I'd rather not continue to throw money at my computer as nothing seems to have worked as yet. I am now on my third pair of RAM modules and second PSU. The build was put together in August and worked flawlessly for several months, however I now experience these lockups almost daily, sometimes several times, sometimes none, irrespective of how the computer is used.

I was hoping someone might be able to help diagnose the problem from any data dumps or reports or anything I can try.

Cheers!
 
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samhickman

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May 5, 2006
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hardware lockup (caps lock does nothing). memtested all the RAM, RMA'ed it to corsair, same problem with the replacement RAM. At this point i'm thinking it could be something to do with the motherboard, but I don't want to buy a new one to find out!
 
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The_IT_Guy

The_IT_Guy

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May 29, 2013
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Two more tests:

1- Since you replaced the RAM and PSU already then start Windows in Safemode. Ether run a CPU, HDD or RAM test to push the system. If it still locks up then try test #2 If it doesn't, then there is a problem with a third party program or driver that is causing this.

2- To remove a possible bad OS out of the picture, boot an OS from a CD like Hiren and run the hardware tests. Download: http://www.hirensbootcd.org/download/

If it locks up from there, yes i would point to the motherboard as being the issue.
 
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samhickman

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May 5, 2006
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The latest development was that the computer failed to power on at all! I swapped the PSU back out and that seemed to help for a very short period before total power failure again. Swapped the PSU out once again and this time was greeted with nothing displaying on the monitor, but the windows chime still played as the computer booted into windows. I swapped out the 7970 for an old 8800GS and the system (touch wood!) seems to work fine again. No crashes or lockups for a couple of days. Is it possible that a bad GPU has been causing these issues? My one concern now is that the weaker card isn't putting the same strain on the system and so not causing the lockups. I have however experienced the same issues with both an 800W Hiper PSU and a brand new 650W XFX PSU with the 7970.
 
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The_IT_Guy

The_IT_Guy

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Yes, it is possible to have a bad video card. Did you make a CD from the Hiren link i gave above? Even with your older video card in, you can still use that to push your system on a specific level; only pushing the hard drives, then only pushing the ram, etc.
 
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samhickman

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May 5, 2006
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Right, time for an update. I ran the machine perfectly with the older 8800GS in for over 3 weeks without a single kernel power 41 lock up or any other issues. My RMA'd 7970 came back yesterday and I've been given a brand new sealed card (I checked the serial numbers!). I swapped out the old card and put in the new one, wiped away the nvidia drivers and installed the latest 13.12 catalyst drivers. Started up Torchlight 2 (hardly a resource hog) and literally within 2 minutes I had an error 41 lockup. I have immediately swapped the cards around again to prevent damage to the 7970 (which I now suspect happened to the original card) and have reinstalled the GeForce drivers. So far, so good. I have just ordered a new 970 pro3 r2.0 as I'm running out of patience. Hopefully this will help! Does anyone have any thoughts? Cheers.
 
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