PC freezes during gaming: Is this a PSU problem?

AcetheGamer

AcetheGamer

Member
My pc keeps on freezing 3-5 minutes after initializing a 3D game...??? Call of Duty 4, Dawn of War, F.E.A.R, even LOTR: Return of the Kings:mad:. There are also several instances that it hangs at desktop, and while multitasking; burning music, playin mp3's, downloading huge files, and internet browsing. This occurs at random so there are times that I get lucky so I can play games smoothly. I'd already updated my drivers,...did a system reformat, scanned for viruses, defragged my hard drive but still got no luck. My 7mos PC is in my rig, most of my components are still 2-3 mos old. I'm thinking it is a PSU problem as what im using right now is a stock one that goes with my case. It has 500watts with +12v, 18amps. Just need your opinions on this one, thanks...
 
A shaky supply with a lack of good regulation would likely see system restarts rather then lockups when pulling the power down too much. Besides video drivers the ones for sound especially for onboard will see problems when gaming. Some of the newer games will pound the system where you need to meet demands there.
 
oh I forgot to mention that it did restart once but most of the time it just freezes,....and during those times the sound stutters like a broken record,...then plain silent. I got a Realtek HD Audio as my onboard in case you need it. Im thinking of buying a new branded PSU, but perhaps you guys have better ideas of what should I do?
 
Time for a separate sound card! One often heard complaint is on Realtek being the sound a board comes with. That one brand sees more problems then boards running some other audio chipset. :rolleyes:

A good Creative, Diamond, Turtle Beach, no longer seeing Pine around anywhere would process the load. Onboard sound is always limited in too many ways for strictly gaming while newer games also expect more out of the hardwares themselves.

Make sure to rurn off any firewall, antivrus, or other resource grabber that could be conflicting. The idea of getting out of a generic or cheapie supply for like you said a branded one would likely see an improvement over one that wimps when a good load is on it. Just remember that the wrong update of drivers can also hamper things if too new for the model video card in use.
 
ok might as well try your idea of getting a good sound card...but does that mean that my onboard sound is faulty or it just reached its limits? but how about those times where my pc freezes at desktop...don't think it is a sound issue. I tried all drivers nvidia can offer for my gfx card yet to no avail. Damn, if i only got the money,...hehe im dead broke at this time.
 
lmao. It has NOTHING to do with your sound card. hahaha. Holy crap that's funny.

If it hangs on the desktop, check the temps of your processor. It may be overheating. Your PSU may be faulty. Your VGA card could be causing the problem too. An overheating/faulty northbridge can cause that. An incompatibility with RAM can cause that.

Typically, though, that problem, especially with a new computer, is the power supply.. Faulty regulation or a weak 12v rail. I've had it happen quite a few times. Five minutes later and a new PSU and they were back in business. I can tell you a few stories about PSUs that were just flakey enough to cause issues in some environments and not others.

The one thing I *promise* you that it isn't is your sound card (unless multitasking downloading and surfing requires a sound card).

OMG that guy keeps getting better and better with age. It's almost like a fine wine (except the difference is that wine doesn't go senile).
 
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As well as considering a separate sound card over onboard taking a look at the version of video drivers you updated too can play a big role as well as a good run of a memory tester like memtest to rule out any faults found there.

A weak battery or board that eats them can also see a long list of problems. I ran into that situation on one old build where two sets of flawless memory were seeing a ton of errors until tested on the next build. 0% errors were seen then. The latest build here saw all kinds of locks and blue screens until ATI later released a newer catalust to correct problems being seen by gamers in general.

P.S. It seems our favorite slanderer has returned!
 
SirKenin said:
lmao. It has NOTHING to do with your sound card. hahaha. Holy crap that's funny.

If it hangs on the desktop, check the temps of your processor. It may be overheating. Your PSU may be faulty. Your VGA card could be causing the problem too. An overheating/faulty northbridge can cause that. An incompatibility with RAM can cause that.

Typically, though, that problem, especially with a new computer, is the power supply. I've had it happen quite a few times. Five minutes later and a new PSU and they were back in business. I can tell you a few stories about PSUs that were just flakey enough to cause issues in some environments and not others.

The one thing I *promise* you that it isn't is your sound card (unless multitasking downloading and surfing requires a sound card).

OMG that guy keeps getting better and better with age. It's almost like a fine wine (except the difference is that wine doesn't go senile).
Click to expand...

temps are fine at 30-35celsius, gfx card temp at 50, 56 under heavy load,...what do you mean incompatible? with the mobo? or along my otherstick of ram? Im 75% sure its the PSU,...but without money? hell,..i'll try everything as long as its priceless:D,...
 
Yeah, some motherboards have issues with certain types of RAM. AMD has REAL issues with certain powersupplies. AMD used to be SO bad that they used to have a complete list of compatible hardware. Running them on anything else was a crapshoot at best.

The best way to find out is to try it one stick at a time, and to get a totally different brand of RAM and try it. If you're using cheap, crap OEM RAM, don't be surprised if that's the issue.

My bet is either PSU or RAM. The chances of it being a sound card are about the same as Hilary Clinton being elected President.
 
AcetheGamer said:
temps are fine at 30-35celsius, gfx card temp at 50, 56 under heavy load,...what do you mean incompatible? with the mobo? or along my otherstick of ram? Im 75% sure its the PSU,...but without money? hell,..i'll try everything as long as its priceless:D,...
Click to expand...

If the memory was incompatible to the board you would have seen that problem right after completing the build with an endless number of items like just trying to get Windows and softwares installed. Running a free memory diagnostics tool like memtest to see if faults have developed would be a thought there.

Being an older board there the onboard wouldn't be updated in order to handle some of the newer games out. You wouldn't need a high end sound card since one of the Audigy or Live model cards by Creative would be adequate for the older board there. Those are found for better prices at this time.

If you do get into a better supply make sure it's one you can use for a new build later at some point. Having a good supply to start with can save you on cost later when you do need something with a little more to offer power wise.
 
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