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system locks and shut downs on AMD system

1092 Views 19 Replies 6 Participants Last post by  xd_1771
Ok, firstly, this is my first post here, please direct me to the right place if im posting in the wrong section.

So i got all these components together and its crapping out on me.
Here's what i got...

MSI nf750-g55 Mobo updated AMI BIOS ver. 1.2

AMD Phenom II X2 Black Edition 550 Callisto (on stock cooling, for now)

4GB OCZ Obsidian DDR3 RAM (dual channel, 2 sticks Rated at 9-9-9-24 1600)

Dual BFG GTS250's in SLI

Western Digital Caviar Black 750GB Sata drive

SilverStone 650W PSU

Windows 7 Ultimate 64bit edition

So i built the machine (using just ONE video card at first), it posted fine with default settings. I installed OS, and it booted just fine.
I installed drivers and such, no problems.
After a couple reboots, the system froze. No BSOD, no messages, just freeze.
Installed second video card.
Freezes continued to happen at random.
Tried updating the bios, went through without a hitch. System still randomly freezes.
Tried to adjust the RAM timings to get them to manufacturer recommended settings (see listed above) Could not get system to boot most of the time with those settings. It would occasionally though. (Mobo wont let me set voltage to 1.65 closest i could get was 1.64 then the settings jump to 1.67)
Removed one Ram stick, ran MemTest on each one. no errors on defaults, but could not get through test with any adjustments (ie manufacturers settings)
Tried running stress tests and benchmarks.
Video benchmarks only work with one video card installed, when in SLI, computer shuts off. no errors, no messages, just immediate power down.
This also happens occasionally with one video card as well. Tried both cards seperately, same result. (EDIT: consistently powers down in SLI mode)

System also shuts down during gaming.

Whats up with it? any ideas? any troubleshooting i havent tried?

Thanks for any help!!

EDIT: i forgot to mention that throughout all the troubleshooting, my CPU will sometimes post as a quad core, even though i never did anything to unlock other cores. This also seems to happen at random.
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Try updating for bios. And if that don't work try clocking your to 1333 to see if it is stable.
I have the LATEST bios update already, as i said.
I have the RAM at 1333 right now, with voltage at 1.67, all other RAM settings on auto.
The ram seems to be stable in memtest and prime95 at these settings, but im still getting lock ups and shut downs. I'd like the RAM to run at the manufacturers rated timings. Ive installed speedfan and cpuid. Temps all seem to be normal, CPU, GPU etc. All hardware posting in CPUID accurately (except for those times when the CPU magically unlocks its cores without my help)

Still stuck....
Run scan disk. Your harddrive could be bad.
Ran chkdsk/f from dos....zero errors. the hard drive is brand new, seems to be working just fine.

???
I used to get this error really often when I had just bought my computer... sometimes it would randomly freeze even on stock settings, while other times it would just randomly restart, often while I'm not really doing anything. I've found numerous potential causes for this problem (i.e. hyper-transport - northbridge conflict, psu problem, etc.) but I'm not really sure about this.

However, I'm pretty sure it's the RAM voltage here. Even running default settings there's a possibility your system is unstable at such voltage. I know your BIOS is the latest, however if you can't push your RAM voltage further (I have mine running on 1.95v and only then is it stable, though I run 1600 tight-timings), you might be out of luck here... (it also seems that when my RAM voltage is high enough, the freezing stops...right now I get no freezes whatsoever).

Also, sometimes while memtest reports no errors, Windows may still freeze; I noticed that there's a certain inconsistency between stability during POST, external-OS tests, internal-OS tests and normal use.

Also, do you have SLI drivers installed and SLI properly enabled?
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I can try upping the RAM voltage without touching any other settings...might help.
As i've said, memtest would go through fine and prime95 would work fine with the ram at some settings (default and 1333 at 1.67v).
It seems the biggest factor is when i run SLI.
Ive tried uninstalling and reinstalling video drivers, (always rebooting, even though win7 doesnt require it) enabling SLI in nvidia console, rebooting, then testing. FurMark ALWAYS crashes the machine in SLI. immediate power down. If SLI is disabled it will run the benchmark, no problem. But i still seem to get some random lockups (though much less frequently)

Thanks for trying to help, im getting pretty frustrated with this machine. Ive posted in 5 forums and have people saying its RAM timings, PSU, Processor, Mobo, etc. I'll just keep trying, but im probably gonna RMA the processor just to see if it helps....
So i tried upping the voltage, didnt help any. Same situation. Im running everything on default settings and only using one video card at the moment. its smooth so far. im running prime95 and BurnIn software to stress test. Im going to let it sit for a little while and see what happens.
If i cant get the ram to where its supposed to be and i cant SLI, then the whole build is useless to me. Any other suggestions?
It sounds like a PSU problem to me, it would explain the immediate shutdowns in SLI at least, and maybe the freezing if something can't get enough juice. Silverstone is usually good quality but you may have gotten a dud, do you have another PSU you can try?
The only other psu i have is 350W..not nearly enough to power both vid cards. I guess i'll have to buy a new one to test.....
You can always just RMA it with silverstone, instead of buying a new one, or if you have a friend who builds as well you can ask him to try his/her PSU.
Yeah, my old Antec 550w would cause my PC to freeze up when I more than one case fan, despite it having enough power. It was like 3 years old and kinda died.
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Cant RMA...its like 2 years old. Going to BestBuy right now to get one for testing....i'll post results soon
I'm not sure how long Silverstone's warranties are, but a lot of the power supply manufacturers have 3+ year warranties, like OCZ, PC P&C, and Corsair. It wouldn't hurt to shoot them an e-mail or call. Good luck with the build.

EDIT: Zeifer, I thought I went way overkill on my PSU! Jeez 1050W for an Athlon II x3 and an 8800GTS?! You could get away with a decent 400W!
So i picked up a Corsair TX 750W PSU at best buy. That SOLVED my SLI problem. Its awesome! BUT. i still cant get the OCZ ram to clock at rated speeds. the machine booted, but blue screened pretty quickly. I set the voltage to 1.67, timings at 9-9-9-24, manufacturer specs (aside from the voltage which should be 1.65, but thats the closest i could get it in my bios)
Im not sure what else to tweak to make this timings work. I guess i could mess around with all kinds of settings and work to OC the ram, but i bought it because i didnt want to HAVE to OC it.

Thanks for the help folks, any suggestions on the RAM? im also trying OCZ's support.
Quote:


Originally Posted by soulseer
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So i picked up a Corsair TX 750W PSU at best buy. That SOLVED my SLI problem. Its awesome! BUT. i still cant get the OCZ ram to clock at rated speeds. the machine booted, but blue screened pretty quickly. I set the voltage to 1.67, timings at 9-9-9-24, manufacturer specs (aside from the voltage which should be 1.65, but thats the closest i could get it in my bios)
Im not sure what else to tweak to make this timings work. I guess i could mess around with all kinds of settings and work to OC the ram, but i bought it because i didnt want to HAVE to OC it.

Thanks for the help folks, any suggestions on the RAM? im also trying OCZ's support.

It would really help people to help you if you would fill in your system specs here: http://www.overclock.net/specs.php?do=addsystem
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Hmm, well glad the PSU worked out, I knew right away when you said it immediatley shut down in SLI it was the PSU.

As for the RAM, you say when you tried the manufacturer's specs it BSOD'd or was that on Auto? IIRC you said it passed memtest? At manufacturer specs or auto? Try setting everything to auto and let us know your results. I don't think you'll get the timings you want but it may be able to get the RAM stable, and when its stable check the voltage its getting, I don't know how you would do this though because I use AOD, but you have a Nvidia chipset.

EDIT:
Quote:


Originally Posted by MrAMD_Fan
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It would really help people to help you if you would fill in your system specs here: http://www.overclock.net/specs.php?do=addsystem

QFT.
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When all settings are on auto, the system seems to be stable. according to CPUID the voltage on the ram is 1.5, but im not sure if thats the spd or an actual reading (i think the former) I can also get it stable at 1333 by changing the ratio and leaving the rest on auto.
The problem is, i spent the money for RAM that runs at 1600, 9-9-9-24, not RAM that i have to OC to this setting. Seems a lot of people are having problems getting this OCZ RAM stable at those settings. Its standard to have to manually set the timings for it, but i shouldnt have to go through the whole process of guess and check overclocking.
Ive sent in a support ticket to OCZ for an answer as well.
Im new at messing with RAM timings, so its possible im missing some setting to get it stable.
Thanks again
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Is 1.67 the highest voltage your mobo can give the RAM? If not try upping it a little.
You might want to know that most 1600mhz DDR3 kits specify at least 1.8v when running at 1600mhz, and potentially more if you have tight timings or 1T or whatever.
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