I am experiencing PC restarts

[und3rtaker]

Hello,

Im having this problem that is bugging me a lot and i want to fix it ASAP, thats where you guys come in.

So, im playing game normally for random amount of time (it varies) then all of the sudden, whole system restarts. Of course i get Kernel Power event written into Event Viewer. It happens with pretty much every game.

I have my CPU overclocked but i tested it with default settings also and it makes no difference at all. GPU is stock (not overclocked)

Anyway, my specs are:
CPU: Intel Core 2 Quad Q8300 @2.50Ghz (3.01Ghz overclocked)
GPU: ATI Radeon 4870 512MB
PSU: LC Power LC6550 PSU Picture
RAM: 4GB Corsair hyperx 1066mhz
MOBO: ASUS P5KR

My best guess is that the PSU is fake as hell and its malfunctioning.

So fire away your questions

 

[Someone Somewhere]

Yeah... I suggest you replace that PSU. If you look at the label it can only deliver 380W on the 12V rail, which indicates that it's a rebranded smaller maybe 450W or less one.

 

[und3rtaker]

Im looking into doing that. I think LC is known to have low output on their PSUs.

 

[Someone Somewhere]

If you leave it idling on the desktop does it crash? If not then chances are it's the PSU. LC Power has a pretty bad reputation IIRC.

 

[und3rtaker]

Im not sure. I don't usually leave my PC to idle, either i use it or i shut it down. I will try downloading something trough the night and see if it crashed in the morning.

 

[und3rtaker]

So i left it trough the night (only opened program was Origin and i was downloading BF3) and it didn't restart or anything.

 

[Someone Somewhere]

Dead PSU then. It can't deliver enough power when you are gaming so it shuts off.

 

[und3rtaker]

Yea im guessing thats it. Lately i changed to better, faster ram and better MOBO. That enabled me to max out my CPU for this MOBO. All these new changes ate a lot more power than the system i had before. I had no such problems with system before. I will work on changing my psu to corsair or thermaltake brand so it has better output.

I will check back once i change it (won't be so soon though).

Thanks for now!

 

[Someone Somewhere]

Thermaltake isn't a good brand either. You want Antec, be-Quiet, Corsair, Enermax, (some) OCZ, PCP&C, (some) Rosewill, Seasonic, or XFX.

 

[und3rtaker]

Ow ok then. Thanks!

 

[Paperdoc]

I support the suggestion to replace the PSU. I had a similar problem, but it did not appear to be related to a poor PSU design. It DID appear to be PSU aging - more specifically, aging of poor capacitors inside. The symptoms were like yours, which is why I read this thread. Machine would spontaneously restart, and I don't even stress it with gaming. After some efforts to find this intermittent problem, it got progressively worse and more frequent over time. Sometimes it would just freeze up, and I would have to disconnect power from the wall for a minute to reset it and power up again. Eventually I pulled the PSU and opened it, finding a couple of capacitors with bulged tops. A replacement PSU completely solved the problem.

Just let me mention another possibility, again from personal experience with a different machine. It would randomly freeze or re-start. My son replaced the PSU, but it did not seem to solve the problem completely. When I inspected carefully, I found capacitors with bulged tops on the MOBO in the voltage regulator area. That "bad cap" problem from around 2006 was not limited to PSU's! In this second case, a new mobo was the solution.

 

[und3rtaker]

For starters i will replace the PSU since its really old and the brand is fake (LC Power). I hope that replacing it will fix it. However if it won't ill look into MOBO.

 

[und3rtaker]

I haven't change the PSU yet but games are working sometimes without a problem for a whole day and some day ive got few restarts. But what it bugs me the most is that ive started some BROWSER GAME (Tiberium Alliances FYI) and that game restarts my PC in the matter of moments. No other PC game does that, they last lot longer.

Does this help narrow down the problem?

 

[und3rtaker]

Bump.

 

[und3rtaker]

I have just run AIDA64 stability test for about 30mins and the numbers are:
http://imgur.com/0QrcV

So lets recap this. For example Planetside 2 doesn't restart my PC at all. BF3 sometimes restarts it. Tiberium Alliances browser game restarts it in a minute or so...

Im really without words...


EDIT: Quick update. When i started the game it prompted me to open it with OpenGL (Tiberium Alliances). I choose Yes and it seems to be working for much much longer.

 

[h3llfire741]

Hi, I'm experiencing the same exact problem. Sometimes it happens even when I"m not gaming, but mostly when the rig is on high load. Thought it was my cpu or gpu at first overheating but this just might be the problem.

Here's a picture of my PSU, can anyone take a look at it to see if maybe it's the problem?

http://i.imgbox.com/abe7PcZS.jpg

 

[und3rtaker]

Bump.

 

[und3rtaker]

Come on guys, please help me solve this one, its really bugging me!