9800 gt SLI problems

[sairanos]

So here is the setup...

Asus P5N-E SLI nForce 650i
Intel Core 2 Duo E8500
500GB Sata-II 3.0b/s
16X Dvd rom
8GB (4x2GB) PC6400 DDR2/800
NVIDIA GeForce 9800 GT 1GB x2
XION XON-580X 580W

So here is the problem. Computer runs completely fine with PHYSX enabled no matter what I am doing and no matter how long I am doing it. The video card temperature never goes above 55C. Whenever I enable SLI, I am able to use windows like normal, however anytime I try to load a game, I can do whatever for roughly 1 minute then the computer shuts off without any errors screens or anything. Upon restart it acts as if nothing has happened.

I have ran every PSU calculator I could find and it never says I need above 500W. As well as my 12v1 being 30a, I read that 9800 gt SLI requires 28A. I have updated BIOS, updated chipset drivers, and 181.22 drivers for video cards. Still happens.

Any help or suggestions would be appreciated.

 

[xthekidx]

I would suspect your Power supply. Just because it says 580w, doesn't mean all that much. Brand is much more important, as is amperage. Xion is at the bottom of the stack as far as PSU's go, I would only use one as a doorstop.

 

[sairanos]

I appreciate the response but if the required Amp for 9800 gt SLI is 28, my power supply is giving out 30a. I had thought that it was power supply as well which is why I did as much research as I could before posting. Are there any tests i could do to verify? PSU calculators state I need minimum 400W. So even if the W would be a problem the crappy PSU could lose 180W and still at least work before it peaks.

 

[Kill@dor]

If you are playing GPU intesive games, that could put you GPU's at a higher wattage rate than you think The G92's still drain a ton of power, could easily go over what your PSU is supporting. I would double check your SLI set up. Turn down everything (AA and AF) and run some games in medium then see if your system will hang with the games.

Also, check your nvidia properties to make sure if its taking over game settings or not.

 

[Kill@dor]

Also, did you overclock this system? If so, what's your RAM frequency at in CPUz?

 

[Helloworld_98]

for 9800GT's in SLI it wouldn't be 28A, the recommended amount for a single GTX 260 is 36A I believe and we all know that the better the card, the more performance per watt/amp.

and for an example you need a high-end 500w for CF'd 4770's, they use 47w each, the 9800GT's use about 75w each so you'd need a high-end 550w, Xion is not a high-end brand.

 

[xthekidx]

I appreciate the response but if the required Amp for 9800 gt SLI is 28, my power supply is giving out 30a. I had thought that it was power supply as well which is why I did as much research as I could before posting. Are there any tests i could do to verify? PSU calculators state I need minimum 400W. So even if the W would be a problem the crappy PSU could lose 180W and still at least work before it peaks.

I would believe 28A is recommended for the two graphics cards, but not for the whole system. Most of your other components also run off of the 12v rails, including the MB, CPU, HDD's and whatever case fans you have plugged in via molex connectors. I think your PSU is your problem. You also have to consider the efficiency of the PSU. Since your PSU is going to be close to maxed out, it will be running at very low efficiency, which means a lot of current is lost due to the conversion of energy into heat. I have high doubts about that PSU having 80+ certification.

There are a lot of other things to consider on top of that. Voltage Ripple (fluctuations in voltage of the PSU on the rail) can easily cause crashes when you are gaming. High end PSU's like Corsair, Antec, Seasonic have very good ripple suppression and is one of the defining factors of a good PSU. I have read several Xion reviews were the PSU had terrible ripple suppression. The higher you load the PSU, the higher the ripple you will get. Ripple is one of those things that you don't see advertised, but its VERY important. Thorough technical reviews always measure the noise level/ripple of the rails as an indication of build quality. You should never buy a PSU without consulting a technical review of it from a reputable site, such as www.guru3D.com or www.jonnyguru.com.

 

[sairanos]

Also, did you overclock this system? If so, what's your RAM frequency at in CPUz?

No i have not overclocked anything