Do not know if my PSU is sufficient for my new gaming rig (crashing on certain games)

LaptopiusMalfoy · Aug 23, 2015

Hi, I recently built a new gaming computer. I have been playing borderlands 2 and league of legends without any problems whatsoever. Yesterday/today I started playing more intensive games: Divinity original sin and Witcher 3, after playing for around 30 minutes of these games on ultra settings my computer just powers off and reboots by itself taking me to an Asus anti-surge protector screen sayingit was caused due to unstable PSU.

I started troubleshooting, I kept trying to replicate this error on Divinity Original Sin and yes, my pc powered off every single time I was on ultra settings on this game after about 20-30 minutes. I changed to a different wall outlet just to be sure the issue was not the outlet and I was still able to replicate the crash.

I then proceeded to cap the FPS of Divinity Original Sin as well as lowering the shadow effects and I was able to play for 2 hours+ without it crashing. So I am starting to think that my PSU cannot handle the load.

I do not know if it is relevant to mention but the GPU temps when the PC crashed were 81 degrees Celsius for Divinity and 84 degrees Celsius for the Witcher 3. Also, when I was building my computer I ran the components on several power consumption calculators and it indicated that under load the system would run at 438 W, my PSU is a 650 W one.

I would really appreciate it if anyone had any insight before I blindly go ahead and buy an 800+ W power supply to replace the one I currently have.

These are my components (Taken from pcpartpicker):

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/CdRLTW

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($327.99 @ NCIX US)

CPU Cooler: CRYORIG H7 49.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($34.50 @ Newegg)

Thermal Compound: Gelid Solutions GC-Extreme 3.5g Thermal Paste ($12.88 @ OutletPC)

Motherboard: Asus Z97 PRO GAMER ATX LGA1150 Motherboard

Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-2133 Memory ($89.89 @ OutletPC)

Storage: Western Digital BLACK SERIES 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($70.89 @
OutletPC)

Video Card: MSI Radeon R9 390X 8GB Video Card ($429.98 @ SuperBiiz)

Case: Cooler Master Storm Stryker (White) ATX Full Tower Case ($149.99 @ Newegg)

Power Supply: Corsair 650M 80+ Gold Power Supply

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Pro OEM (64-bit) ($138.89 @ OutletPC)

Wireless Network Adapter: Asus PCE-AC68 802.11a/b/g/n/ac PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter ($84.29 @ SuperBiiz)

Monitor: Asus MG279Q 144Hz 27.0" Monitor ($579.00 @ Amazon)
Total: $1918.30

Archaic59 · Aug 23, 2015

Power requirements for your rig are 700 watts with two 6+2-pin PCIe connectors to power the GPU. What model Corsair are you using? You have a high end build and should be using a PSU to match. If you're using Corsair CX / CS / VS power supply then you should consider getting something of much better quality.

LaptopiusMalfoy · Aug 23, 2015

Thank you very much for your very prompt and informative reply.
Yes, indeed I am using a Corsair CS 650 M. I was not able to list it on pcpartpicker because I did not get the option to select that unit.
May I ask what do you mean by two 6 + 2-pin PCIe connectors? I believe I only hooked up my MSI R9 390x to one PCIe slot. Where could I calculate the power requirement as accurately as you did?

Archaic59 · Aug 23, 2015

The PCIe power connectors go from the back corner of the video card directly to the power supply. They supplement the power coming from the PCIe slot.
Click the link in this reply box for 'GPU power requirements' for reference.

LaptopiusMalfoy · Aug 23, 2015

Thanks a lot, I know how to proceed now! I tagged your first reply as the solution for this problem.

DonkeyOatie · Aug 23, 2015

Here's our thinking on PSUs. http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/id-2547993/psu-tier-list.html you need a Tier 1 or Tier 2 unit for this system. AFAIK, all 650W Gold PSUs made buy Corsair, are lower then tier 2. So, no matter what we discover, I would be replacing your PSU with something like the EVGA B2 750 VR for about $50.

Power recommendations are quite conservative, to allow for shoddy PSUs. Although the stated TDP for this card is 275W, demand peaks can exceed 500W. Combine that with a 100W CPU (I assume it is overclocked) and the rest of your system, that's all the PSU gone. In addition, that PSU may not deliver all 650W on the 12V rail(s) Does it supply 55A on 12V rail? This means that any extra power demands come from the main capacitors, and the ones in that PSU are likely to be lower performance than you need.

That does not mean that the problem is your PSU, although it is very likely. There may be GPU heat issues too. I would upgrade the PSU. You need to do this no matter what. If the problem persists, we can look at your GPU or even memory.

Archaic59 · Aug 23, 2015

DonkeyOatie :

Here's our thinking on PSUs. http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/id-2547993/psu-tier-list.html you need a Tier 1 or Tier 2 unit for this system. AFAIK, all 650W Gold PSUs made buy Corsair, are lower then tier 2. So, no matter what we discover, I would be replacing your PSU with something like the EVGA B2 750 VR for about $50.

Power recommendations are quite conservative, to allow for shoddy PSUs. Although the stated TDP for this card is 275W, demand peaks can exceed 500W. Combine that with a 100W CPU (I assume it is overclocked) and the rest of your system, that's all the PSU gone. In addition, that PSU may not deliver all 650W on the 12V rail(s) Does it supply 55A on 12V rail? This means that any extra power demands come from the main capacitors, and the ones in that PSU are likely to be lower performance than you need.

That does not mean that the problem is your PSU, although it is very likely. There may be GPU heat issues too. I would upgrade the PSU. You need to do this no matter what. If the problem persists, we can look at your GPU or even memory.

I think he just forgot to hook up the PCIe cables.

LaptopiusMalfoy · Aug 23, 2015

DonkeyOatie :

Thanks for the recommendation. I will be looking into a new PSU tomorrow probably over 800 W for future proofing (or should I look into 1 kW for better future proofing?). I only overclocked the CPU by 80 MHz for now, you did assume correctly and looking to OC more in the future.
About the GPU having heat problems, my first impression is that it does not. I basically had to reduce the fan speed to 50% of the total in order to get it to 80 degrees Celsius+ while playing the Witcher 3 on ultra everything (Nvidia hairworks off). Normally it was running at around 75 degrees Celsius with the fan at 100%. On idle it runs at around 39 degrees Celsius. The air temperature nowadays where I am from is currently 25 to 30 degrees Celsius so it is quite hot. However I could be wrong as I am no expert on the topic and it could have problems that I am not aware of.
What would you say is a safe temperature for memory? I am currently using HWinfo but I cannot find any temperatures on the memory.
Again thank you for your informative reply.

@Archaic59: I did plug in the PCIe cables, I followed the manual so I didn't overlook the step. I guess I really did not think/understand about what I was doing but they are connected to the card since day 1

Also, I am using the new rig now, is it safe to use until I get the new PSU assuming I don't push it to its limits?

Archaic59 · Aug 23, 2015

Should be fine. I recommend EVGA G2 series power supplies as some of the best available.

DonkeyOatie · Aug 23, 2015

The EVGA G2 850 is a fantastic PSU.

I do not think that card would get as far as 'on' without the PCI-e cables. It could get only about 65W from PCI-e and that would barely turn the fans on

LaptopiusMalfoy · Aug 23, 2015

Thanks a lot guys, appreciate the help. I will make sure my next purchase is an EVGA G2 series.

westom · Aug 24, 2015

Is your computer so hot as to also toast bread? Of course not. Most computer assemblers have no idea how much power a computer really consumes. And how to select a power supply. Supplies are selected by engineers using current numbers for each voltage. Therefore, properly designed computer by engineers rarely have more than 300 watts.

To keep help lines free - to not teach computer assemblers basic electrical concepts - then a GPU that only consumers 250 watts peak - we tell you it is a 500 watt GPU.

This 'more power' joke is obvious. Your computer cannot toast bread.

Even selecting by Tier says nothing about your intermittent - says nothing about your unique system. Informed techs start by using a digital meter, some requested instruction, and minutes of labor. Those resulting numbers mean a fewer who really know this stuff can say what is suspect and what in that power 'system' is exonerated. And yes, a power 'system' is more than just a PSU.

Another myth is a fear of heat. Operate that computer in a 100 degree F room (or selectively heat with a hair dryer on high). Heat is a diagnostic tool. Those temperatures never cause semiconductor damage (except in myths). A completely defective semiconductor can work in a 70 degree room and fail in a 100 degree room. The naïve then blame heat. Worse, a computer that does not work in a 100 degree F room can then continue to degrade so as to also fail in 70 degrees maybe six months later. Heat is a diagnostic tool to find defective parts.

Until numbers exonerate or identify a defect in the power 'system', then anything else can act defective.'

Search

Do not know if my PSU is sufficient for my new gaming rig (crashing on certain games)

LaptopiusMalfoy

Reputable

Archaic59

Archaic59

Polypheme

LaptopiusMalfoy

Reputable

Archaic59

Polypheme

LaptopiusMalfoy

Reputable

DonkeyOatie

Champion

Archaic59

Polypheme

LaptopiusMalfoy

Reputable

Archaic59

Polypheme

DonkeyOatie

Champion

LaptopiusMalfoy

Reputable

westom

Distinguished

TRENDING THREADS

Latest posts

Moderators online

Share this page