What can be causing these problems? PSU - RAM - HDD - MOBO etc

SLIMAN7 · Oct 25, 2015

Hi, This is my first post on here so please be gentle with me.

I've been having these random glitches on my Desktop PC recently and just wanted some of your valued opinions before I spend cash.

My MOBO has told me a couple of times now upon booting, that I need to swap two of the RAM sticks, I think it was the same two. I have four sticks of 4gb DDR3 1600 CL8 1.5v. I ran MEMTEST on all of them with NO ERRORS.

Then I've had both HDD's give a squeaking sound and moments later the PC crashes. On these occasions I've been accessing a different HDD. One has games on and the other is used for storage and backup. The OS (Win7) is installed on a SSD. Both HDDs are WD so I ran the WD Diagnostics Tools on them and they came back fine also.

I checked the PSU with a voltage tester and got the following results:

-12v - 11.7v
+12v2 - 12.0-12.1v
5vSB - 5.0v
PG 8Pin - 290ms
PG 4Pin - 320ms (Cable not used but tested anyway)
+5v - 5.0v
+12v1 - 12.1v
+3.3v - 3.3v

Could the top value be the problem? The PSU is a Coolermaster 850w RealPower Modular RS-850-ESBA and is nearly 8 years old.

My full system specs are:

PSU - Coolermaster 850w RealPower Modular RS-850-ESBA
RAM - Crucial Ballistix Tactical Tracer (4x4gb DDR3 1600 CL8 1.5v - BLT2CP4G3D1608DT2TX0BCEU)
CPU - AMD FX8350 4.0GHz
GFX - EVGA GTX580
MOBO - Gigabyte GA-990FXA-UD3 Rev1.2 BIOS FE
SSD - Crucial CT250BX100 - OS Windows 7 SP1
HDDs - WD 1tb for Storage/BackUp + WD 750gb for Games
Plus Card Reader, Blu-Ray Drive, Fan Controller, 6 Case Fans

This is the second time I've typed this out as the PC just crashed as I was nearly finished. Any help really appreciated. If you need more info, just ask and I will try and answer. Thank you.

The Grox Empire · Oct 25, 2015

SLIMAN7 :

Hi, This is my first post on here so please be gentle with me.

I've been having these random glitches on my Desktop PC recently and just wanted some of your valued opinions before I spend cash.

My MOBO has told me a couple of times now upon booting, that I need to swap two of the RAM sticks, I think it was the same two. I have four sticks of 4gb DDR3 1600 CL8 1.5v. I ran MEMTEST on all of them with NO ERRORS.

Then I've had both HDD's give a squeaking sound and moments later the PC crashes. On these occasions I've been accessing a different HDD. One has games on and the other is used for storage and backup. The OS (Win7) is installed on a SSD. Both HDDs are WD so I ran the WD Diagnostics Tools on them and they came back fine also.

I checked the PSU with a voltage tester and got the following results:

-12v - 11.7v
+12v2 - 12.0-12.1v
5vSB - 5.0v
PG 8Pin - 290ms
PG 4Pin - 320ms (Cable not used but tested anyway)
+5v - 5.0v
+12v1 - 12.1v
+3.3v - 3.3v

Could the top value be the problem? The PSU is a Coolermaster 850w RealPower Modular RS-850-ESBA and is nearly 8 years old.

My full system specs are:

PSU - Coolermaster 850w RealPower Modular RS-850-ESBA
RAM - Crucial Ballistix Tactical Tracer (4x4gb DDR3 1600 CL8 1.5v - BLT2CP4G3D1608DT2TX0BCEU)
CPU - AMD FX8350 4.0GHz
GFX - EVGA GTX580
MOBO - Gigabyte GA-990FXA-UD3 Rev1.2 BIOS FE
SSD - Crucial CT250BX100 - OS Windows 7 SP1
HDDs - WD 1tb for Storage/BackUp + WD 750gb for Games
Plus Card Reader, Blu-Ray Drive, Fan Controller, 6 Case Fans

This is the second time I've typed this out as the PC just crashed as I was nearly finished. Any help really appreciated. If you need more info, just ask and I will try and answer. Thank you.

Could be your PSU capacitor aging. 8 years for that psu are too old. HDD always make sound when operating. if you are experiencing blue screen please include the error code and the error code description

MarkW · Oct 25, 2015

Most Power Supplies will die before their 8th year. So feel lucky to have gotten a good unit that has lasted this long.

You may have a capacitor failing that is intermittently sending less power (or no power for very brief periods) to the motherboard and other devices, which can cause random errors, BSOD or even randomly reboot your PC.

But this could also be your motherboard, a device on the motherboard, or any of a hundred other things as well. But at 8 years old, the power supply has to be suspect number 1 for now.

SLIMAN7 · Oct 25, 2015

I thought it was more likely the PSU. I had read that most PSUs should be replaced after 5 years. Not had any BSODs yet, just random programs crashing and closing. The last one was worse, the whole of the OS just stopped and froze up. Had to force a power off. Will start to look for a replacement, any suggestions?

Darthutos · Oct 25, 2015

This does not mean that a bad PSU did not destroy other parts (MOBO and HDDs). But yes replace PSU first.
As for suggestions I recommend Seasonic or any Seasonic OEMs (e.g. Corsair AXs). Someone has been recommending Powerflower? Anyway read articles from Jonnyguru. Restrain the idea to buy PSU without reviews. Buy PSU from reviews from reputable sites such as techreport, tomshardware, etc.

MarkW · Oct 25, 2015

I prefer Seasonic power supplies. It is the only power supply brand that I will buy anymore.

But there are quite a few good ones, and boatloads of bad ones. There is a Power Supply List maintained here on Toms by users. Users that donate their time into keeping the list updated. This list is broken down into Tier 1 through Tier 5. The best is at the top, Tier 1 and 2. Those are the ones we recommend that people buy. By the time you get to Tier 4, we no longer recommend that they be used in any gaming system, and Tier 5 units are so bad, we recommend you never power them up.

I am going to link some 750-850 watt units for you. The power supplies linked below are listed at pcpartpicker.com, which checks over a dozen online companies and compares pricing to find you the lowest price. Prices can and do change daily. And I am in the middle of moving, so I have not checked these prices in a week. Click any link that you want to see the current price on.

EVGA 110-B2-0750-VR 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply $79.99

EVGA 220-G2-0750-XR 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply $103.86

XFX Core Edition 850W 80+ Bronze Certified Non-Modular ATX Power Supply $109.99 - $30.00 Mail in Rebate + $5.99 Shipping = $85.98

EVGA 110-B2-0850-V1 850W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply $99.99 - $20.00 Mail in Rebate + $0.99 = $80.98

XFX P1-750S-NLB9 750W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply $74.99

SeaSonic M12II 850W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply $104.99

SeaSonic S12G-750 750W 80+ Gold Certified Non-Modular ATX Power Supply $104.99 - $10.00 mail in rebate + $3.99 shipping = $98.98

EVGA 220-G2-0750-XR 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply $103.86

SLIMAN7 · Oct 27, 2015

Update: Just bought new PSU. I got a Seasonic X-1050 in the end for future upgrade of GFX card, maybe even SLI. Tested the new PSU before installing and got the following results:

-12v - 11.8v
+12v2 - 12.0v
5vSB - 5.0v
PG 8Pin - 260ms
+5v - 5.0v
+12v1 - 12.0v
+3.3v - 3.3v

Now installed, booted up fine. Seemed quicker but possibly imagining it lol. Time will tell if problem is still there as intermittent fault. Will keep you posted. Thanks.

MarkW · Oct 27, 2015

Well, that should keep your hardware happy for a good number of years, maybe even 8 years.

If the problems you were having show up, post to this thread, and I will see it and work with you to try to isolate down where the problem is at.

Hopefully, its fixed, and you can just enjoy your system.

Search

What can be causing these problems? PSU - RAM - HDD - MOBO etc

SLIMAN7

Reputable

The Grox Empire

Reputable

MarkW

Judicious

SLIMAN7

Reputable

Darthutos

Reputable

MarkW

Judicious

SLIMAN7

Reputable

MarkW

Judicious

TRENDING THREADS

Latest posts

Moderators online

Share this page