Sign in with
Sign up | Sign in

Reply to this thread

Forum question

Started by tambeshakunt | | 44 answers
PSU Faulty or something else?
So,

Over the past 2-3 days, my system just turns off while playing watch dogs. It is completely random and has happened 2 times now. Although I have only noticed it with watch dogs, I am 98% sure that it is not a Watch dogs fault and it is a hardware issue.

(The specs are in the bottom right corner.)

Here is what I noticed:

    -While playing, when under load, my system just turns off without warning
    - However long I wait, I cannot turn my system back on by pressing power switch. Therefore, it is not a overheating issue.
    -If I flick the PSU switch off and then on again, my system powers on just fine and I am back to normal.

    THEREFORE, I think it may be a PSU fault? Why should flicking the switch make it turn on ? Could it be motherboard as well - since flicking switch drains all the power out?



I have made no hardware or software changes and the system has been working perfect so far.
Thanks in advance for all your help - I wasn't able to figure this one out myself. :( !


P.S System is 1.5 yrs old now so all parts still under manufacturer warranty.
  • By posting on this site, I confirm I am over 13 years of age and agree to abide by the site’s rules.

a b 4 Gaming
a b ) Power supply
a b B Homebuilt system
a b V Motherboard
October 16, 2014 9:38:35 AM

Ok well I have already sent back my 7970.

Since the 7970 is now phased out for the 280x which is the direct replacement (rebranded 7970), I think the retailer will offer me a 280x or a refund of the money £220 that I originally paid for the 7970.

If I take the refund what card do you guys think I should get?
- A good R9 280X?
- A GTX 780 - Should I switch to green team and will this bottleneck fx 6300 (I have mixed feelings on this)
- something else?

Obviously I want the new card to be equivalent or better than the 7970 and considering the games I play, I think there is a fair balance between AMD and nvidia optimisation so I would say it doesn't really matter. Just thought will give nvidia a go :) 

Thanks for the help!
a c 298 4 Gaming
a c 723 ) Power supply
a c 104 B Homebuilt system
a c 1189 V Motherboard
October 15, 2014 11:46:15 AM

tambeshakunt said:
Interesting. So do you feel this isn't even a GPU issue ( I have already sent my GPU off :(  )??

Not too sure if its 'shorted out'....my gut feeling is that is it something to do with the VRMs.

Also, do you think I should blame Corsair for this :D 



It is GPU issue now for sure and is a short of some kind whether it is the VRM's on the card or not. I am not sure if it is the CX fault or not but one thing for sure is that its internal protection was tripping whether it was short or overvoltage protection.
a b 4 Gaming
a b ) Power supply
a b B Homebuilt system
a b V Motherboard
October 15, 2014 10:36:52 AM

Interesting. So do you feel this isn't even a GPU issue ( I have already sent my GPU off :(  )??

Not too sure if its 'shorted out'....my gut feeling is that is it something to do with the VRMs.

Also, do you think I should blame Corsair for this :D 

a c 298 4 Gaming
a c 723 ) Power supply
a c 104 B Homebuilt system
a c 1189 V Motherboard
October 14, 2014 3:50:20 PM

That is a very rare failure since apparently your card shorted out and may have been tripping the short circuit in the CX, then again if the CX was going bad it may have damaged the card. Normally the short if present is at all load scenarios.
a b 4 Gaming
a b ) Power supply
a b B Homebuilt system
a b V Motherboard
October 14, 2014 1:00:56 PM

Yep gonna go through the whole process tomorrow. :( 
a b 4 Gaming
a c 96 ) Power supply
a b B Homebuilt system
a c 148 V Motherboard
October 14, 2014 12:56:30 PM

Well that sucks. Rma the video card.
a b 4 Gaming
a b ) Power supply
a b B Homebuilt system
a b V Motherboard
October 14, 2014 12:53:08 PM

Ok guys, a major twist in the story and bad news :(  :( 

Basically, got the new PSU today, installed it booted up and everything was normal.
Then I decided to try out furmark again...........
At 100% load nothing happened for about 3-5 seconds and then bam. A white artifact and the system powers off. Now I can't even turn the system on. Tried everything inc clear CMOS, reset of PSU etc.... The motherboard has the power LED on but thats all. NO POWER ON

My immediate thought was GPU. So I took the GPU out and tried powering system on without it. Guess what....works fine. Still I wasn't convinced so I installed this 7970 into another system and installed another 6450 into mine to test. It confirmed the 7970 was faulty - no power on.

Strange thing is .... if I install the GPU without the PCIe power plugged in then the system boots , shows missing video card (theres no display) and the fans on the GPU spin. ~ This further clarifies that the GPU is at fault.
My 7970 is only about 10 months old now and now I am going to have to RMA this. :( 

So you guys agree its a GPU thing ?

Guess I didn't need a new PSU after all.
a b 4 Gaming
a b ) Power supply
a b B Homebuilt system
a b V Motherboard
October 12, 2014 9:19:53 AM

SR-71 Blackbird said:
I hope this resolves your issues, .



Me too :) 
a c 298 4 Gaming
a c 723 ) Power supply
a c 104 B Homebuilt system
a c 1189 V Motherboard
October 12, 2014 9:18:30 AM

You are welcome!
a c 523 4 Gaming
a c 2489 ) Power supply
a b B Homebuilt system
a c 1533 V Motherboard
October 12, 2014 9:14:48 AM

I hope this resolves your issues, thanks for posting on the forum.

See all answers