General computer help

Shadow664

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May 17, 2008
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amd fx 60
2gb
bfg 8800gtx ocz2

alright so just recently i had to reinstall vistax64 ultimate, everything went well got all the updates(had to mess around cause a few would not install properly) got all my drivers etc

so heres my problem my computer will run fine, not lock up at all etc but as soon as i try and play a game it runs for a random amount of time (usually less than 10 min) and it will just lock up. Ive tried searching for a solution all my fans seem to be working my video cards fan is working i took the side off my case to make sure it was not over heating, i think it may be my secondary hard drive ( i have a 40gb with vista installed which is my primary and a 250 partitioned into a 200 and a 50(for my old xp installation) but the 250 is whats causing it because i just recently tried to install World in Conflict but the whole computer locked up during the installation so i figured it was just a one time thing so i restarted and tried again but the same thing but every time it got a bit further till it finally installed then i tried to run it(not really expecting it to work) and it failed so i installed it on my C drive(with vista installed on it) and it installed fine i installed the latest patch and tried to play and it always locks up

Can anyone help me or give me some direction?
 
Increase RAM voltage manually to 2.7-2.75v. for PC3200. Adjust timings and speed to specs manually as well. Run memtest with each DIMM individually and check for errors. Try other RAM if system remains unstable..
 

kyeana

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May 21, 2008
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If it installed vista just fine then it doesn't sound like it would be a RAM issue (unless the ram just went dead), however its probably better to run memtest86 first just to be sure. Are you installing these games on the C drive (the one the vista installation worked on)?
 
OP is vague with system specs. Power supply would matter with an 8800GTX.

My 4800X2 939 runs perfect, but has been very picky with different RAM I have tried over the many years I have owned it. Currently SLI'D 7800Gt's, OCZ PC3200 Platinum 2-3-2-5 at 2.7v., slight OC running Vista 32 beautifully. Superfetch and Readyboost enabled. Great system for the specs.
 

Lord Gornak

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^Badge knows what he's talking about it. He helped me with a similar situation with my old system, random lockups and bluescreens while gaming. Increased voltage to my memory and problem solved.
I also would like to know what PSU is in the system.

edit: grammar
 

Shadow664

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well heres detailed specs

psu Coolermaster 450w(cant see actual product name as its in my system)
asrock dual-sata2 mobo(socket 939)
amd fx60(socket939)
2gb of ram(4*512mb)
40 gb hard drive
250 seagate harddrive
8800gtx ocz2

i usually install my games on my D drive (250gb) windows is installed on C(40g) i installed the game on d with alot of failures and a corrupted install(several times) it installed fine on C but locks up and any other game locks up within the first 10 min of gameplay

the weird thing is everything was working fine i was able to play games etc then i had to reinstall vista and then now i have these problems
 
You MB is not the NF4 chipset, so disregard the chipset download link. Also, your video card's RAM may be overheating causing the system to crash. You can monitor the temps or try a different card. That 8800GTX would require at least 26A on the PSU 12v rail which is pushing a 450w unit. Try a less powerful video card and see if it helps system stability.
 

Shadow664

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the power supply doesnt make sence to me cause this set up was working fine since just before christmas(when i got the video card)
 
Your only other option to troubleshoot the hardware you have any further is to have spare parts. Like try some other RAM, try a different video card, install a new PSU, etc. See if you can isolate any hardware problem that way. Be sure to update your Mb system drivers as well as video card drivers. Your system freezes up when you run games. RAM is often the cause of system freeze ups when running software. HTH.
 

Shadow664

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COOLER MASTER Real Power RS-450-ACLX 450W ATX12V Power Supply 90~132V / 180~264V Nemko, TUV, cUL, CE, BSMI

is my psu so it does have 12v rails but i have tested my ram(its all dual channel so i took 2 out each time(i have 4 512mb) and tried it, still crashes i took out my 40gb hard drive and installed vista on my 50g partition on my 250gb drive same thing i swapped my video card for my previous 7900gs same thing

i dont know what it could be