markzs2002

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ok i got a computer a few days ago i would say it crashed 15 or so times already
im running xp home and when it crashed theres no blue or nother it locks up solid :(
im not even doing anything that requires a lot of power
for example i ran virus scan it crashed
another i go to bed wake up and its froze again cant leave the dam thing for a second.
someone help please i think its hardware not sure
check my specs
INTEL PENTIUM 4 2.8C GHZ S478 512KB 800MHZ RETAIL
MSI neo 865 motherboard
DDR400 MEMORY 512MB PC3200 DUAL CHANNEL PACKAGE
ANTEC PERFORMANCE II SX1040B W/400W PS
LG 52X24X52X CD-RW
LG CD/DVD BURNER GMA-4020B
160 gb WD harddrive 7200RPM 8MB CACHE HARD DRIVE
PANASONIC 198P BLACK FLOPPY DRIVE
ATI RADEON 9800 PRO 128MB
VIEWSONIC E90FB 19IN 1600X1200
HEWLETT PACKARD PSC 1210 all in one
LOGITECH Z-640 - MULTIMEDIA SPEAKERS
LOGITECH CORDLESS FREEDOM OPTICAL KEYBOARD

<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by markzs2002 on 10/12/03 09:32 PM.</EM></FONT></P>
 

lhgpoobaa

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Hmmm could be any number of things, but one of the most common culprits is bad ram.

goto <A HREF="http://www.memtest86.com" target="_new">http://www.memtest86.com</A> and run this program to check your ram.


<b>I am not a AMD fanboy.
I am not a Via fanboy.
I am not a ATI fanboy.
I AM a performance fanboy.
And a low price fanboy. :smile:
Regards,
Mr no integrity coward.</b>
 

allanon1965

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I agree, sounds like a memory issue to me, try a different stick or try yours in another computer and see what happens

Fat, Drunk, and Stupid is no way to go through life Son.
 

markzs2002

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Dont know all i know is that it is pc3200
everything seems fine but it just crashes doing the simpliest things
it dosnt lag it just goes crashes all a sudden
this is really pissing me off what a waste of money
 

Crashman

Polypheme
Former Staff
You bought an expensive case with a cheaply built overpriced power supply, then bought cheap RAM? And you consider the entire system to be a waste of money? Wow, what color is the sky in your world, green?

Try manually setting the memory timings as slow as the BIOS allows, probably 4-4-4-8.

<font color=blue>Only a place as big as the internet could be home to a hero as big as Crashman!</font color=blue>
<font color=red>Only a place as big as the internet could be home to an ego as large as Crashman's!</font color=red>
 

slvr_phoenix

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You bought an expensive case with a cheaply built overpriced power supply, then bought cheap RAM? And you consider the entire system to be a waste of money?
Agreed. Antec should just drop their Smartpower line IM(NSH)O. Why they even put Smartpower on a good case is beyond me. And I'd wager that the RAM is <i>exactly</i> the problem.

Try manually setting the memory timings as slow as the BIOS allows, probably 4-4-4-8.
Agreed. Many mobos of the 865/875 variety don't take kindly to bad RAM or tight timings. I'd bet the SPD is just set to harsher than the system can actually run.

Also thinking of a third possiblity... Isn't MSI the ones who make the self-overclocking mobo that ups the FSB for a few seconds every time you open a program? If so and that's what is happening and the RAM is pushed to it's limits at <i>stock</i> then it means anytime a program gets opened it's a game of russian roulette as the FSB jumps up for a few seconds.

* Edit: Also maybe try upping the voltage on the RAM a little bit and see if that makes a difference.

<pre><A HREF="http://ars.userfriendly.org/cartoons/?id=20030905" target="_new"><font color=black>People don't understand how hard being a dark god can be. - Hastur</font color=black></A></pre><p><P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by slvr_phoenix on 10/13/03 11:07 AM.</EM></FONT></P>
 

markzs2002

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ok thanks for the help
i think i will replace the powersupply first
what would you guys think would be a good power supply (420)
also if that dont work i will change the ram or would it make a difference if i got 2 more sticks of pc3200
 

slvr_phoenix

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I would highly suggest trying to diagnose what actually is the cause of the problem before you go replacing hardware so that you don't replace anything that was working fine. There are plenty of things which you should be able to adjust in BIOS that will help stabilize the system. And once you know what makes it stable you will know what you might want to replace to make the system better.

The power supply might be the problem. It might not be. And more wattage is <i>not</i> the answer. Quality is the answer. Antec TruePower over Antec SmartPower. There are other brands out there which would do nicely as well. Even knowing just which voltage rail is being drawn on too hardly (if any are at all) would help to identify a better power supply to use.

<pre><A HREF="http://ars.userfriendly.org/cartoons/?id=20030905" target="_new"><font color=black>People don't understand how hard being a dark god can be. - Hastur</font color=black></A></pre><p>
 

Crashman

Polypheme
Former Staff
I really think it's a RAM problem. The easiest way to tell would be to underclock the RAM using the DDR333 setting. If that fixes the problem, you can try upping it back to the DDR400 setting and raising latencies and/or voltage setting.

<font color=blue>Only a place as big as the internet could be home to a hero as big as Crashman!</font color=blue>
<font color=red>Only a place as big as the internet could be home to an ego as large as Crashman's!</font color=red>
 
G

Guest

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Captain Obvious asks have you even TRIED running memtest as LHGPooBaa suggested?!

The captain thinks it would be obvious that the correct procedure would be to investigate the problem <b>BEFORE</b> randomly throwing money at it!

<b><font color=red>Captain Obvious To The Rescue!!!</font color=red></b>
 

Woodman

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Obviously Obviouss' obviousness is obvious.

-----
<A HREF="http://www.khmercity.com/city_music//Kerpal Comedy@@ kick my dog~ :)/Jerky Boys - Kerpal - Airport Pakistani And Hindi Fight.mp3" target="_new">I'm going to get you, you bastard guy</A>.
 

markzs2002

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yes it ran like 22 tests for like 2 and a half hours
it wasnt finished and i restarted because it seemed like it was going for hours.
i thought it would take a copule mintues
anyone know how long it takes
 

markzs2002

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ok i found the site it runs 11 tests but continues on
so i guess my ram is good because i never got a error after 22 tests

<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by markzs2002 on 10/14/03 07:06 AM.</EM></FONT></P>
 

slvr_phoenix

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The problem with most testing softwares is that they're designed to test for one and only one problem. They don't max out the usage of a PC's processing and power systems like a good game will. To crunch through the hard drive and play music from the CD ROM while the CPU and graphics cards are both maxing out just takes a lot more out of a system. :\

Do you have any software to check (or even better, to log) your voltages while you're using your PC?

<pre><A HREF="http://ars.userfriendly.org/cartoons/?id=20030905" target="_new"><font color=black>People don't understand how hard being a dark god can be. - Hastur</font color=black></A></pre><p>
 
G

Guest

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Captain Obvious says that the program loops itself!

Multiple loops without errors is good!

The Captain suggests then that your problem lies elsewhere.

<b><font color=red>Captain Obvious To The Rescue!!!</font color=red></b>