First self build PC.. Really need your help guys..

[Tsunku]

Hi

Im sorry to bother you guys but i have a serious problem thats probably really easy to solve by you guys.
I recently build my first computer it was a lot of fun and it actually went pretty well,
that is until i installed windows 7 on it. Installation went fine but as soon as i started windows
it was one big mess of BSOD, randam reboots and all sorts of other errors. So i checked the hardware through
various methods (memtest etc.) but it was all fine. So i started to think it was driver related.. maybe the
ATI drivers, but that also wasn't it. Then i read something that the default bios voltage settings etc are
sometimes wrong so i used this Auto overclocking utility in BIOS and what do you know it solved everything.
It went from 2.8ghz to 3.4ghz and it was as stable as a brick wall. For a couple of days everything was fine
until i started playing games, WOW in this case.. and it crashed giving an error that was related to either
ram or temperatures. So i downloaded realtemp and to my horror the cpu temps were off the chart.. between 80c - 100c !
yes it is that bad (dangerous). Ofcourse i know that this is because of the auto overclocking feature, it just does
a really bad job of OC'ing. So i pressed F5 in bios to return everything to default settings rebooted and what do you
know all the problems are back (reboots, bsod). So i used the auto overclock option again and it was stable again.
I have zero knowledge about bios settings or overclocking so my question is what options in bios should i change
to solve this ? i know that it is related to voltage or some other option maybe of the RAM but thats about all i know.
Im not intrested in overclocking so i just want a stable computer at stock speeds.
If someone can pleae help me i would be really grateful.


Thank you,
Tim



MY system:


Thermaltake Xaser VI
Corsair HX1000
Intel Core I7 860 2.80 GHz
Asus P7P55D-E Deluxe
Sapphire Radeon 5970
GeIL Dual Channel 4 GB 1333 MHz X2 = 8GB
Scythe Mugen 2 Rev.B
Sony DRU-875S
LG CH08LS10
WD Caviar Black 1 TB, 7200 Rpm, 32 MB, S-ATA II/300
WD Caviar Black 750 GB, 7200 Rpm, 32 MB, S-ATA II/300
Cooler Master Neon LED Fan 120x120mm 120 Mm, 1220 RPM X2
Windows 7 Ultimate 64bit

 

[shortstuff_mt]

It sounds like you have more than one problem. The problem causing your original BSOD's and other problems is most likely related to the RAM not getting enough voltage under "auto" settings. Filling all four RAM slots usually requires a bump in RAM voltage for stability. The best thing to do is read your motherboard owners manual, paying special attention to the section that talks about RAM settings in the BIOS. You should manually set the RAM speed, timings, and voltage to their recommended specs in the BIOS. You may even need to bump the RAM voltage up by .05v or .1v.

Your other problem is that your heat sink isn't properly installed. Even at that overclock those temps are way higher than they should be. What thermal paste did you use? How much thermal paste did you use?

 

[Tsunku]

The thermal paste i used was Artic Silver 5. As for the amount, i used i fair amount and made sure the entire surface was covered. I'm pretty confident that i installed the heatsink properly but if the problem continues i will definitely look into it.
So what are the names of the settings in bios that i should change.

 

[jack_attack]

Tsunku, you're not bothering anyone. It's a forum

You'll need to give a part number on the Geil, as RAM varies in voltage. I do second that though, it really sounds like that's an issue.

Heatsinks can be tricky, especially on a first build. Everyone has their own tricks on how to do it, but my best advice is to install it with the mainboard out of the case. Remember to keep yourself grounded, but that way you can be certain it's installed all the way.

 

[Tsunku]

Okay i took some time today to redo the heatsink and thermal paste and also manually inputted all the dram settings.
It runs completely stable now and my temps range from 35c to 40c idle, i think that is acceptable right ? I will do some tests tomorrow to see how the temps hold up under heavy load using prime95.

BUT... i have a new problem now. Whenever i play a game (WoW, Dirt 2) for a while 10-20 mins my pc crashes and reboots automatically. It did not do this when my system was overclocked by the asus utility because i could play for hours without any problems. But now that everything is on default settings in bios it crashes. It must be some voltage setting of the videocard (the pcie slot perhaps ?). I know it is not a hardware problem because it did not do this when it was oc'd.
So my question is what setting should i change in bios to make the videocard run stable ? I tried looking for the option in bios but i could not find any voltage settings of the PCIE slot, i just wanted to raise it by 0.1 to see if that helps.
So if anybody can help me that would be great because my first build pc would be completely stable (for now ;-) )

 

[jack_attack]

35C is an ok idle temp. Could be better I think, but it's load temps that are most important. If you're idling at 35C and only gain 20C, you're in the clear. If you gain 40C though...

When it crashes, you get a BSOD? I wouldn't bump your PCIe voltage, I've never had to do that, ever. What voltage is your RAM at now? I'd Prime95 it for a few hours to make sure it's not a RAM/CPU issue, then go from there.

 

[Tsunku]

yes there is a bluescreen for a second when it happens and also some stripes and flashes, that led me to believe that it was the videocard that was the problem. Also with normal use (non 3d heavy apps) i have no problems because the pc has been on all day playing music and videos and even encoded some videos without problems. It only happens when i play a demanding game. But could it be a diffrent problem than the PCIE voltage ? My ram is at 1.65 right now. Is that still too low ?

 

[jack_attack]

What's the spec? I couldn't tell you for sure, but if it's rated at 1.7 at your timings and you're at 1.65, it will BSOD when you start cycling it hard. Try a P95 blend test, I'd bet it will BSOD or hang then too.

 

[Tsunku]

the specs of my ram are:
7-7-7-24
1333mhz
1.5v

but even when i put this in manually it crashes during games (couldn't even finish 1 lap in dirt 2)
BSOD saying something about memorydump.

So what is the problem here?

 

[jack_attack]

Hmm, voltage isn't your issue then. A memory dump is what happens during a BSOD. Can you post the .dmp file here?

http://www.nirsoft.net/utils/blue_screen_view.html

 

[Tsunku]

Here is what the latest entry said.
Funny thing remains that all of this didnt happen when it was overclocked so i know it's not something with defective hardware.


==================================================
Dump File : 031710-25116-01.dmp
Crash Time : 3/17/2010 11:18:20 PM
Bug Check String : SYSTEM_THREAD_EXCEPTION_NOT_HANDLED
Bug Check Code : 0x1000007e
Parameter 1 : ffffffff`c0000005
Parameter 2 : fffff880`04fd0008
Parameter 3 : fffff880`06113698
Parameter 4 : fffff880`06112ef0
Caused By Driver : dxgmms1.sys
Caused By Address : dxgmms1.sys+20d4b
File Description :
Product Name :
Company :
File Version :
Processor : x64
Computer Name :
Full Path : C:\Windows\minidump\031710-25116-01.dmp
Processors Count : 8
Major Version : 15
Minor Version : 7600
==================================================

 

[jack_attack]

I don't know exactly. It's a DirectX issue, but that's all I really know. Just out of curiosity, are you using the latest ATI drivers and not the MS ones?

 

[Tsunku]

yes i'm using the catalyst 10.2 drivers.

 

[Tsunku]

Well today i thought of one more thing to do (can't believe i didn't think about it sooner !!) I used the asus auto overclocking thing again and looked at what it did to my ram settings. i saw that the settings were different than the recommended settings. So i restored the default bios settings once more but now inputted the ram settings that it used when it was auto oc'ed. Like this:
9-9-9-24
1.65v
1333mhz

And i haven been running stuff all day on my pc and not a single crash.
I ran Dirt 2 for half an hour after that 4 hous of WoW and after that i ran a couple of tests with
the Heaven benchmark program. And no crashing, bsod or any other sort of error has popped up.
So its actually working now like it should.... The only question that i have now is: is it safe to let my ram run with
these settings ? could it damage anything like this ?

 

[shortstuff_mt]

Those settings won't damage your RAM. If it's stable, keep it how it is.