System crashing

[logitecs]

hi there, I've built a computer and im having some trouble with crashes. i get one of 3 types of crashes and Im hoping someone can help me diagnose the problem. the first and most common is a total system restart, no warning, no nothing. just restarts randomly. sometimes it will do this during boot-up. the 2nd and also very common is a bsod (blue screen of death) i get the driver sylq or something like that. and the 3rd type is a total system tweak out. my screen will as best as i can describe it is that it tweaks out and it freezes. i see pink and random colours on the top left of my screen in a 1x1in box and on the last 1/2" of the right of my screen also gets it. or it will cover my entire screen, rarely.


Im using:

asus p5q-e
intel duo quadcore q8200 @2.33ghz
ati radeon 4850 1 gig
2x corsair xms2 2048 sticks of ram (6400)
1 120gig IDE HD
1 500 gig sata2 hd.
corsair vx 550w psu

Ive tried replacing the ram, i relaced my 4 gigs with 2 sticks of 512 dd2 6400 ocz sticks. with the same result.


any ideas? Im thinking it might be my PSU cause my system is so heavy on higher end parts. Could the lower watt PSU be causing these crashes? or is it something else?


any help would be much appreciated.

 

[MadAdmiral]

You're PSU should have enough wattage for that. And it's not high-end parts, FYI.

Did you try everything in the "Read Before Posting about Boot Problems" sticky? I know this isn't really a boot problem, but that's just a good spot to start troubleshooting.

Still, the first problem sounds to be a PSU issue. The random cut out seems to be the main indicator of a power supply problem.

Another possibility is the GPU having issues. Do you have one to replace it with for testing?

 

[T_T]

I'm guessing that the IDE HD is the master. Assuming that, is your BIOS configured to read the SATA as the secondary HDD? If not, start there. If that has already been done, try removing the SATA.

The three problems you've described don't really have anything in common with one particular hardware; however, any diagnosis guide will tell you start with almost nothing.

In case you're wondering system "freezing" can happen from a failure of any part. The most common are GPU, RAM, CPU, or driver conflict.

1. A crashing problem, i'm assuming that you've actually have gotten Windows to load. If this is true, have checked your system for any hardware conflicts/failures?

2. BSOD is almost always indicative of hardware malfunction. If this is the most common problem you're facing, paying more attention to the message on the BSOD will generally lead the way to the repair. But nonetheless, start the diagnosis by following the "Read Before Posting about Boot Problems" sticky, as this technically is a boot failure.

3. Seeing random spots of pink suggests that there is an improper display of graphics. Like MadAd said, your best bet is to try another video card. That is, of course, unless one of the steps in the sticky help your bring your computer back to life.

keep us posted on any successes, failures, changes, etc.

 

[logitecs]

my sata drive is my master at the moment, im going to try and find a driver updating tool that can update all my drivers and see if that helps. i have an older pci-e ndivea card kickin around here somewhere, im gonna try that.

 

[logitecs]

Best answer selected by logitecs.