Is this a PSU or a GPU problem? ( PC shuts down when playing game)

[exittoexist]

So i was playing ghost recon today and pc shut off while playing with a weird sound coming from speakers. Then pc didnt start , until i gave it 10 mins. After that i tried playing again and the same result after 5-10 minutes.

a similar thing happened 2 weeks ago , while working with unreal engine 3 suddenly i got "windows 7 is shutting down" message and pc shut down , didnt open until i repluged cables , turned psu on off ext.


So do you guys thing this is definitely a power supply problem? I switched to 16gb ram from 4gb ram recently maybe 600w isnt enough for 16gb ram , i5 2400 , 1gb gtx 560? Thanks in advance.

Powersupply is OCZ Stealthstream 600W

 

[Sunius]

It should be enough if it's quality power supply. What is the brand and model?

 

[vmem]

memory hardly draws any power compared to some of the other things in your system. liek Sunius says, any quality power supply at 600W should be more than sufficient

out of curiosity, has there been any thunderstorms in your area lately (there has in mine). if so, is your computer plugged into a surge protector or an UPS system? also, has there been any power blackouts etc?

 

[smorizio]

power supply will be bsod or hard reboots. i would use hardware monitor to look at your pcu temps and gpu temps. if you have a small case or a case with one fan i would take the side panel off and see if it happens again..also did you hear your gpu fan spin up?? durning gaming when the gpu gets hot it should speed up to where you hear it.

 

[Onus]

Please post the brand and model of your PSU.
This could be the PSU, or it could be an overheating problem, or both (i.e. it is the PSU that is overheating). Do you have good airlflow through your case, with fairly balanced intake and exhaust? If you have too much exhaust but not enough intake, the PSU (which is an exhaust) may be unable to cool itself effectively because it is fighting against your other fans.
This problem needs to be solved before you continue gaming. There is a strong possibility that your PSU is shutting off, possibly after wandering so far out of spec as to risk damage to attached components.

 

[ss202sl]

If it shut down, and wouldn't power on for 10 minutes it likely is heat related. What are your temps? Is there dust build up inside you heat sinks and fans? I your power supply overheating. Is there anything in your logs saying why it shut down?

 

[exittoexist]

Powersupply is OCZ Stealthstream 600W

 

[Onus]

Hmmm, that PSU got a golden award from HardwareSecrets, although it lacks a MOV, so it may be affected by power spikes. Is it plugged into a surge protector?

Edit: http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/OCZ-StealthXStream-600-W-Power-Supply-Review/451/10

 

[exittoexist]

System log says

The system has rebooted without cleanly shutting down first. This error could be caused if the system stopped responding, crashed, or lost power unexpectedly.

I'll check out the temps when i run unreal engine 3 in 10 minutes , will post back the results.

 

[anti-painkilla]

We had a similar problem with one batch of our machines, randomly shutting down only in the computer labs where there were more than 10 machines. Cheap PSU's were the cause, just not able to handle any fluctuations.

We tested the GPU with benchmarking, temps were 80+ and still fine. Test the GPU first, if that seems fine, see if you can borrow a PSU off someone else just for testing. Seems that the PSU should be fine unless it is faulty and not working to the rated watts.

 

[vmem]

Hmmm, that PSU got a golden award from HardwareSecrets, although it lacks a MOV, so it may be affected by power spikes. Is it plugged into a surge protector?

Edit: http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/OCZ-StealthXStream-600-W-Power-Supply-Review/451/10

my suspiscion is that a surge burnt something... it'll be hell figuring out what that something is

 

[exittoexist]

i dont even know what surge protector means. Also note that right now pc works fine right now ( since its not at full power

 

[vmem]

i dont even know what surge protector means. Also note that right now pc works fine right now ( since its not at full power

here's wikipedia's definition: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surge_protector

basically, if you plug your computer directly into the wall socket, you run the risk of burning your parts due to potential instabilities the current from the wall socket. this is an especially high risk during thunderstorms or power outages. it's generally considered a big no no to plug your computer directly into a wall socket

 

[exittoexist]

here's wikipedia's definition: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surge_protector

basically, if you plug your computer directly into the wall socket, you run the risk of burning your parts due to potential instabilities the current from the wall socket. this is an especially high risk during thunderstorms or power outages. it's generally considered a big no no to plug your computer directly into a wall socket

hmm my pc cable and some others are connected to this and another cable connected to this surge goes to the wall. I though the purpose of this was to increase the number of available slots.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e1/Surge_protector.jpg



I really thing the PSU is dead , because almost identical thing happened to me back in 2008 , had a 400w fsp psu back then , and the pc working fine but sometimes it was shutting down while playing cod4 , with the same weird sound coming off. I changed the psu , the problem was gone. But i guess it could also been an overheating issue of gpu which the new psu stopped (which had better cooling system.. ,i mean taking the air off better

 

[exittoexist]

I think i will have to give one last conclusion about the issue:

- I have been using this system with no problems for 6 months.

-Upgraded the pc to 16gb ram from 4gb ram 1 month ago. ( Played Max Payne 3 , no shutdowns)

-PC had 3 different error at the days when the maid cleaned my room in the last month 1-windows didnt shut down properly ( pc was closed when i left)
2-blue screen (not sure pc was off when i left home) 3- windows closed itself 1 hour when maid left.

When asked she said she was lifting the power surge and cleaning under it, i believe those problems were about the cable gettting loose.

Now for the first time yesterday pc shutdown while playing a game.

 

[smorizio]

with the ram upgrade use cpu-z and see that the ram is the same speed and voltage. (timing). pull out the old ram and just leave the new ram in and game..if the system shuts down or reboots it could be power or a bad stick of ram.