Please help, computer constantly crashing!

[FieryTrout]

Hi all,

I need some help with my computer as there seems to be something seriously wrong and I can't find any answers so far. OK so first of all specs:

Win & 64 Bit
ASUS 5970
6gb DDR3 1600 Corsair RAM
P6TD Deluxe ASUS motherboard
i7 980x CPU
120gb SSD for windows
1TB drive for games etc

So, the problem is this, I am having BSOD and freezes daily and frequently, maybe 2+ a day. They mainly happen when gaming, it begins with sometimes seeing flickers on the screen, almost like a checkerbox pattern, usually a mixture of colours and then the system will freeze or BSOD. I have tried using older ATI drivers and still the crashes are happening.

The strangest thing that has happened so far is that the most recent crash, during a game of Black Ops, the computer just froze and a loud buzzing sound was coming from the speakers so I hit the reset button. When the computer powered back on my BIOS appeared to have reverted to an older version and it had loaded the ASUS expressgate which I had turned off previously. The BIOS was an American Megatrends version but now it seems to have reverted back to stock? I'm really worried and confused as I do not know what the problem is.

Another thing I noticed was when I powered on my PC earlier today and was told that "Overclocking had failed, push f1 to enter setup or f2 to load default". Now I have never overclocked anything on my PC at all so again I don't know what is going on here.

The final thing to note is that I did not build this PC myself, it was built for me at a computer store, initially I wanted a accellero cooler installed on my vid card and the 5970 was damaged as a result of installation. The card was sent for RMA and I had a 'loaner' 9600GT installed in the meantime. Everything else in my computer was the same as it is now except for the 9600GT. The issues have mainly arisen since the 5970 was returned from RMA and put back in. I have a feeling its not the same card either as it looks scuffed and I don't treat my gear poorly like that. I do think however that I did encounter the message about failed overclocking once with the 9600GT installed so that issue at least is not exclusive to when the 5970 was put back in.

Sorry it was a bit long winded but I need some help, something is surely wrong with my computer and I spent a lot of money on it =( Also I'm not entirely sure its even a video card problem but I thought this forum was most appropriate.

Thanks.

 

[55Range]

I would recommend a bios upgrade- Might have happened- due to newer gpu paired with a mobo -

 

[FieryTrout]

I had the 5970 the same motherboard prior to the RMA issue though, so the motherboard and vid card have been paired together for nearly 8 months, the 9600GT was only in for four weeks while I waited on the RMA.

 

[55Range]

I say again try a bios upgrade- I had some one with this similar issue- a bios upgrade resolved it-

 

[dokk2]

Yeah I remember Asus boards pulling that overclocking thing when there was a snafu of some kind,anyhow you need to get a look at what the BSOD is all about ,go to My Computer,Control Panel,System,Advanced,Start up and Recovery, and turn on send Administrative Alert, this should freeze it at the BSOD with the error message in plain sight..

 

[vvhocare5]

I would like to add that just because a "computer store" built this PC for you doesnt mean they know what they are doing. My personal experience is most of them are 1 step above assemblers and they just install what they have.

If you send in a board for RMA you will RARELY get your board returned. The companies get lots of boards returned and they retest and reuse the ones that work. Yours goes back into the line for testing and will go to someone else.

You mentioned they swapped an ATI 5970 with an Nvidia 9600? That bothers me as it is easy to leave graphics drivers behind and that could cause erratic operation if not cleaned out properly.

I think you need to update your BIOS as suggested above, you may have to reinstall Windows, then assume you dont know if this works properly and test the CPU and RAM thoroughly.

My 2 cents is make the store prove the system they build works properly by having them run PRIME and memtest for an hour in front of you AND get a warranty statement that if it does not pass testing at home they will REFUND your money. Dont accept stuff that doesnt work.