Computer random crashes problem that prevents me from speedrunning
6 years ago
Midi-Pyrénées, France

Yes i know that this is probably not the best place to ask for this kind of things, but i already asked on a few forums dedicated to hardware and they could not give me any advice at all.

And since i love speedrunning i really need your help.

First of all, system setup :

8gb ram R9 270 gpu AMD FX 6300 cpu M5A78L-M/USB3 motherboard 1to western digital blue hardrive Zalman Z11 case

So to sum it up, my computer have random crashes, those are manifested by black or colored screens that pops up at any moment (the colored ones are vertically chopped into 2 shades of the same color that alternates) and also when the black/colored screen pops up almost everytime i have the time to say to my friends "I'm crashing" since the audio cuts like 5-15 seconds after.

I did memory test by having only one bar for a few hours, also did run memtest on each bar for 1hour and nothing.

So my guess is that it has something to do with :

  • The graphic card
  • The overheat of the cpu/motherboard

I did run some tests on overheat and it showed up that my cpu and mother board were having some trouble, so i did clean up the computer's inside and applied some paste on the cpu but i don't really know what to do more about it.

And im sceptical about the overheat problem since i recorded some crashes that happened 10 degrees lower than temps i had the habit to play on for hours.

And for the graphic card i don't have any "substition card" at disposition so idk.

I really sumed it up to the max, but if you need more info go and ask.

Edited by the author 6 years ago
Midi-Pyrénées, France

PS : Since i have a mechanical hard drive i litterally want to kill a dolphin everytime i crash, 'cause it means like 5 mins of startup.

coolestto likes this
Antarctica

A lot of crashes can be related to your OS, so I would start with re-installing that if it is possible.

As for the hardware overheating, I'm not sure that would cause what you're describing because if your hardware is consistently overheating it would probably do a lot more than just cause some graphical glitches or at least give you some kind of indication/warning before just crashing. (that being said, I see you're using an AMD CPU and the last time I used an AMD CPU it ran so hot that it fried 80% of my system and I've heard people say the only way they could get proper cooling for AMD was with liquid cooling. Obviously my own experience and that of a few others is hardly indicative of a problem so take it with a grain of salt, but just an anecdote).

If you are concerned about cooling, make sure your fan on your CPU is running good and make sure no fans are loaded with dust that could be inhibiting air flow to the system. You could also make sure the thermal paste on your CPU looks good, maybe apply a little more if it's an older build.

Other than that it's hard to debug these kind of issues as it could probably be a number of different things from bad drivers to a failing part.

Edited by the author 6 years ago
janorio likes this
Montana, USA

Try removing and,then firmly reattching power cables to and from your GPU. If that doesn't work, try replacing them. It sounds like your GPU is crapping out on you.

janorio likes this
Midi-Pyrénées, France

Well i can try and change GPU cables since i have another set. edit, nope kek, i don't know what i was thinking, the power cables are not switchables.

Yeah for the CPU i was thinking of switching for an intel since i only bought amd for the low price.

And for the OS reinstall i already did that some times ago when i had the same problem on a cracked Windows 7, but even with a legit reinstalled one it still continues so i don't think it comes from there, i already clean physically the pc a lot and applied so paste recently.

Edited by the author 6 years ago
Antarctica

Yeah in that case then it sounds like your GPU is having an issue of some kind. Aside from re-installing any drivers you have for it, idk how else to troubleshoot it aside from replacing it. If you have a friend or something with a spare GPU you can try using that and see if the problem persists.