PC Recently shutting down due to power surges

Rex_Za_Fox · Jul 17, 2017

So, lately my computer has been shutting down due to the detection of power surges (3 times in the last week), I suspect that it might be because of my psu but I can't be sure so here are my specs.

Motherboard: H81M-E
https://www.asus.com/Motherboards/H81ME/

Graphics Card: MSI armour GTX 960
https://www.msi.com/Graphics-card/GTX-960-2GD5T-OC.html#hero-overview

CPU: Intel I7-4790K at 4.2Ghz
http://ark.intel.com/products/80807/Intel-Core-i7-4790K-Processor-8M-Cache-up-to-4_40-GHz

Ram: 12 GB
3x HHD'S ( I also believe all the HDD's might be part of the problem)
1x SSD

PSU: Nox Urano SX 500Watts
http://www.nox-xtreme.com/en/product/urano-sx-500w/54/

Also... I'll attach a print screen of HWM monitor's indications on all the hardware

PS: Why does it look like my cpu is always at 100% of usage? Clock speed wise

Thank you in advance

ahnilated · Jul 17, 2017

Your voltages are looking a bit low at 8% usage. You shouldn't see 11.7v on a 12v line. It will only get worse with more load.

Rex_Za_Fox · Jul 17, 2017

ahnilated :

How could I fix it?
I have the option to remove one of the HDD's if necessary.

atljsf · Jul 17, 2017

from the left image, the voltages readings form the mainboard, 2 are low, 3.3 and 12v, are very low

do you have a ups?

can you test a new psu, also try to run your pc on a ups, so you avoid surprise power loses to really detect any psu problem and not sudden power loses or spikes causing sudden restarts or shutdowns

Sedivy · Jul 17, 2017

My first suspicion would be your psu as well. Don't wait until it kills your components to try to replace it. I don't know if you have warranty on yours or not, but here's a nice list if you're looking for replacement:
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/id-2547993/psu-tier-list.html
That being said, I once lived in an old house with a very bad wiring, and constant power surges. A surge protector should be must on any computer, at the very least as it costs very little, and without it, you can end up replacing your whole rig.
Surge protector won't save you from a bad psu though, so i would still check yours by a professional, or just try another one from a different computer, to see if you're getting the same thing (provided wattage is sufficient).

Rex_Za_Fox · Jul 17, 2017

atljsf :

I do not have a ups and I do not have any other psu's to swap out and test again.

Rex_Za_Fox · Jul 17, 2017

Sedivy :

Yeah thank you... I wish to not have the need to replace it since as of now I don't have much money for an upgrade.
And I never had problems like these... Until I added a new HDD... Not sure if that might be the issue.

Sedivy · Jul 17, 2017

If you PSU is not great quality, adding additional load, even a small one like hdd can make it unstable. Get someone to check your psu for you. Also, get a surge protector in case it's your in-house wiring. If you're not high on money at the moment, do not use your rig. Continued use with these signs can result in a power surge that may fry your rig completely, your shiny expensive cpu, gpu and motherboard. Don't risk it, it'll cost you way more than psu or surge protector alone.

atljsf · Jul 17, 2017

this is not a upgrade, this would be a necessity, lower voltages can end up damaging the mainboard and also will not let you play games really, once load is applied the gpu will not deliver and can cause restarts, not to mention the psu itself just dying and leaving you with a black screen, untill you get the new psu, hopefully just the psu

is a new psu? old without warranty?

Rex_Za_Fox · Jul 17, 2017

atljsf :

I'm running a cpu stress test to check on the voltages... the psu is around 1 maybe 2 years old, I can't know for sure.

Rex_Za_Fox · Jul 17, 2017

https://puu.sh/wLXiA/b410c18835.PNG

After running a stress test on the cpu... these are the updated voltage readings

atljsf · Jul 17, 2017

3.3 is even lower

that psu is, to me, saying good bye

if is only 1 year old, consider checking if is under warranty

Rex_Za_Fox · Jul 17, 2017

Alright... thank you to everyone who replied... I'll look into buying a new PSU, a 7500watts one from a decent brand if I manage to get the money.

atljsf · Jul 17, 2017

i don't know of any 7500 watts psu, max i have hears is 1500 or 2000 watts psu and that is around 4 times what most people needs

for your parts, you can do well with a 550 watts psu and there will be plenty of power

try to find one modular, installing one is so simple, you just use the cables you need, don't need to hide the ones you don use behind the mainboard

ahnilated · Jul 17, 2017

Yes, a 750 watt unit will work fine for you and give you quite a bit of headroom for the future. You really need a new PSU as the voltages are very scary at your usage point shown.

Rex_Za_Fox · Jul 17, 2017

atljsf :

I meant 750... sorry about that.

turkey3_scratch · Jul 17, 2017

You can't really trust software readings for voltages. They're actually not even read from the PSU they're read from the CPU VRM somewhere, it's not really accurate ever and I've often see numbers so far off. For your parts, all you need is a decent 450W PSU. Anything more is going to be overkill and unnecessarily spending more money than you need.

Sometimes Asus anti-surge has been known to go off over faulty readings, some people have disabled it in the BIOS and had no problems. But NOX PSUs are indeed stinky.

Rex_Za_Fox · Jul 17, 2017

ahnilated :

Do you think I should NOT run my computer with voltages like the ones in the pictures?

Rex_Za_Fox · Jul 17, 2017

turkey3_scratch :

No you think it's safe to run the computer as it sits?

turkey3_scratch · Jul 17, 2017

Rex_Za_Fox :

All the voltages in the image are within the ATX specification. But like I said, voltage readings from software aren't inaccurate. The only way to really know the voltage is with a digital multimeter device.

Rex_Za_Fox · Jul 17, 2017

turkey3_scratch :

Rex_Za_Fox :

All the voltages in the image are within the ATX specification. But like I said, voltage readings from software aren't inaccurate. The only way to really know the voltage is with a digital multimeter device.

Something that I do not own... If I buy a better psu, it should all be fixed right?

turkey3_scratch · Jul 17, 2017

Rex_Za_Fox :

turkey3_scratch :

Something that I do not own... If I buy a better psu, it should all be fixed right?

Yes I'm quite confident it'll be fixed. And if it still shows the surge message I would just disable the anti-surge thing in the BIOS and be done with it.

Rex_Za_Fox · Jul 17, 2017

turkey3_scratch :

Rex_Za_Fox :

Yes I'm quite confident it'll be fixed. And if it still shows the surge message I would just disable the anti-surge thing in the BIOS and be done with it.

My issue is just that I'm afraid that it might damage my pc.

atljsf · Jul 17, 2017

yes, often those readings are not perfect, but usually when you see bad readings both the psu and mainboard are in trouble, i have seen both, psus doing that and mainboards with psus doing the problem, the psu change doesn't help, sometimes mainboard does keep delivering bad readings, but when i have seen it, always a bad psu was involved

ahnilated · Jul 17, 2017

Rex_Za_Fox :

That is always a toss up. IF the power supply goes down it could take out other components. If you are going to buy one soon I wouldn't worry to much as long as you don't load up your PC and cause it to crash more. You have to remember the PSU in a computer is the most important bar none.

PC Recently shutting down due to power surges

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