Out of Ideas

Hi All,

First post here ever, I like all the info available. I searched this forum, and what seems to be the entire internet for answers to my issue, however I have had no success. I rate myself a 3 or a 4 on a scale of 1-10 on PC prowess. Usually I can Google or Bing myself to a solution, but this is not the case. Any, here goes:

First, stats (nothing ever overclocked):

ASUS P5N-D mobo
Q9650
8GB DDR2 PC6700 (4 modules of 2GB)
ITB HDD
EVGA GTX275
Vista Ultimate 64
Antec 750W PSU (672W available on 12V rail)
Zalman heat sink and fan.

So the issue is when running FSX in full screen, my comp freezes. No sound, no reaction from mouse or keyboard inputs. RMA'd new video card, no help. New HDD, no help. New PSU, no help. CPU temps idle at 35-40C (depends on what program is reporting) and under load showing no more than 55-58C. Memory is what I am leading to. I noted that during one of the freezes, all 4 DIMMs were very hot. It can be noted that the PC will freeze within 2 minutes of the game being started, or 1 hour. I cant see the CPU temps during the freeze in real time, but they ran at the above temps using PRIME95 without too many issues. As I mentioned above, nothing was or is ever overclocked. I do have an open case, so I am wondering if cooling is really the issue here. I didnt freeze outside of FSX (freezes in full screen or windowed mode) until today, when the comp. froze while viewing CPU-Z. Subsequently after that, I couldnt get past POST without clearing the BIOS. Anyhow, Im out of ideas, so I leave it to the experts. I hope I left enough info for some educated guesses. Thanks in advance for the help.

Allan Burek
nyi103@aol.com

 

Have you considered a RAM cooler? A clip-on fan you attach above/around the modules that greatly increases airflow above the modules and helps keeping them cool.

If you don't have access to one, you can test your RAM temp theory by running memtest86+. If it runs clean for one hour, the RAM is fine. If it fails after about five or six, it's probably a heat issue.

Everest and SiSoft Sandra should be able to tell you hardware temps. If not, SpeedFan might be able to. Whatever it is, you're going to want to rule out heat as the cause before moving on. I assume you checked your GPU fan for dust?

 

No, I never considered a RAM cooler until this issue came about. My biggest concerns now are if I damaged any of the DIMMs. I did see a clip on fan that secures to one of the mobo mount screws, and you can just point it at the RAM, and I plan on getting one of those in the coming days.

I have gathered my temps from Speedfan. Its gives me the lower temps compared to the BIOS hardware monitor. Theres a split there of about 5C. As far as dust, GPU is new (card was RMA'd) and so is the CPU heat sink fan.

 

Any chance that with that mentioned setup I have that my PSU is underpowered?

 

I doubt that. It might be broken somehow though... do you have another one you can test your setup with?

 

Well, the PSU was putting out good power. It appears that my RAM was overheating. Open case and desktop fan blasting it has yielded good result. I suppose in now in the market for a new case.

 

While saving the money for a new case, a small fan that moves the heat away from the immediate area around the modules is surprisingly effective. If you're concerned the over-heating memory is merely a symptom of a bigger cooling problem, I'd definitely suggest looking for a new case... Antec and CoolerMaster both make great cases, with lots of fans and airflow to them.