Please help with new system build problems :S

[wesbuck]

Hi i have recently built a new computer and am having some issues when playing games,
for example when playing counter strike source i try the video stress test and after about 5 seconds the screen goes blank and no output is coming from the computer, the only thing i can do is switch the computer off manually and turn it back on again.
This happens in other games but not as quickly at the most about 20mins,
I have searched and searched for solutions but cannot find any, i have got all latest drivers and installed everything i need,
the only thing i can think it is, is that the old pentium d processor that i put in is overheating and just crashing the computer.
the rest of my specs are as followed:

Gigabyte EP35C-DS3R motherboard
Pentium D 930
seagate Barracuda 500gb 7200.11
muskin 8800gt over clocked edition
2gb RAM OCZ
Antec 900 gaming case
XP SP2 32-bit

Please If anyone can help me, reply cos this is really getting on my nerves now

 

[DiscoDuck]

have you checked temps during or right after for cpu and gpu? Do you have a second monitor you can connect to run temp monitoring on while testing on primary monitor? Is the temp protection feature enabled in bios setting?

 

[sailer]

Besides the possible CPU problem, its also possible that the PSU is a problem. You start the game, the voltage draw goes up and the PSU quits nicely, that is, it overheats as turns off rather than doing anything bad to the rest of the system. You didn't list the PSU, so I can't really comment anything more than a generality about that. For that matter, you don't list whether you're using a stock heatsink on the CPU or overclocking it. In other words, we need a little more information.

 

[wesbuck]

Haha ok sorry, i bought a new cpu cooler for about 10 pounds and applied the paste and everything, and no i am not over clocking the cpu in anyway. I have a cosair HX520 so i don't see that being a problem. And no i cannot seem to read the cpu temp with any programs i download, for example everest reads about 6 different temperatures but just not the cpu temp, which is rather odd to begin with. I can read the cpu temp in the bios settings, but after it crashes i go straight to the bios and it reads like 30ºC for the cpu temp, and i can't see it cooling down that quickly.

Thanks for the help and quick replys

 

[wesbuck]

I tried paying bioshock last night aswell, on mediumish settings, and it lasted about and hour, although i went onto counterstrike and once again it still had the same problem.
If anyone knows a solution to this delima then please help, thanks.

 

[sailer]

OK, the next thing to try is testing the ram. Use Memtest86 and test one stick at a time for errors. Also, check in the BIOS what voltage the ram is running at. Some OCZ ram needs 2.1v instead of the standard 1.8v. I know that's what mine uses. If the ram is undervolted and then stressed, that could cause a crash. I just worked on a computer earlier today that had that problem. The guy would get a few minutes into a game and then it would crash out. Temps were fine, even a bit cool for that matter. So I bumped the ram voltage up a bit and the problem disappeared. So that's another thought and something else to look at and try.

 

[xoham]

The one time I had this sort of problem, one of the ram sticks turned out to be bad and it failed the BIOS ram test. This was a long time ago however,

 

[wesbuck]

Ok i will try that today, the only thing is, when i first built this computer i leant some RAM off a friend, a muskin 2gb stick and that gave the same problem, but i will check the RAM anyway, thanks again for the help.