Any suggestions or help..please

[smurfsriot]

I have had my new gaming rig for about a month now and have had a problem since day one that, at times, seems to get better. Vista will randomly freeze. Sometimes in a game or sometimes browsing the web. It is completely random!! I have Vista ultimate 64. I have updated ALL DRVERS i can think of when it comes to hardware. I have AVG running and know I don't have a virus or spyware (I don't really have any programs installed, just games). My temps (cpu, gpu, nb, sb) are all down far below anything that would be of a concern. I've read many places that it may be due to memory settings/volts. I changed my volts to 2.1 and it actually stopped the frequency of the freezes but did not eliminate them. I also changed the timings/frequency on the memory with no effect on the freezing. I don't think I have any "bad" memory. I did run the windows memory scan and it said all sectors are fine. I've changed video cards and know it isn't that. I have ordered a new psu (antec cp-850 with the antec twelve hundred case, I also have a spare hd 4870 1gig i will be adding) to be certain it is not a power issue. I personally think it may be an issue with the hard drive or possibly still the memory (i haven't run memtest86 just the default windows memory test). I am going to do a clean install of vista again soon, I just wanted any suggestions before I start from scratch or maybe I am completely overlooking a simple problem. Also I forgot to add that originally I only had 4 gigs of the memeory (I know the gold OCZ brand is not the best by far, but price was a steal) and I still had the freezing.

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SPECS
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Windows Vista Ultimate 64
Phenom II x4 940 (stock 3.0)
ASUS M47A9 Deluxe
8g (4 x 2g) OZC gold ddr 1066 (running right now at 800mhz)
XFC HD 4870 1gig
Zalman 9500A
Arctic Silver 5
Edimax PCI wireless card
Seagate Barracuda 500gb sata
Samusung 22x DVD sata
Raidmax Smilidon
Raidmax 535w modular psu
Asus VH242H 23.6" full 1080p monitor

 

[Russel1]

It seems like it could be a ram problem. You have plenty of ram, try running with one 2Gb "stick" of ram. If you still have the problem, try the next one. All it will cost you is a little time. I personally like to take the hardware approach. You could simply run Memtest86, I would trust it much more the the windows memory test.

I once spent a week trying to figure out a similar problem. It turned out to be the L2 cashe on the motherboard. I kept installing Win98 and would get a lock up at random intervals.

 

[berry120]

I'd recommend trying memtest86 - just leave it on overnight or similar, it's MUCH better than the windows one. As russel said the motherboard could also be a culprit (dodgy L2 cache or a number of things there could cause random lock ups and freezes.)

 

[smurfsriot]

thanks guys, i'm going to run memtest86 tonight and see what the resluts are in the morning, i'll post tomorrow

well, I ran memtest and all sticks are fine and no errors. hmmmmmm...... I get my antec twelve hundred and antec cp-850 psu tomorrow (07/17/09) so I will try my setup with a new more powerful psu, but I just doubt that 535w would not be sufficient to run my current setup (the brand of psu i have now is crap so that may be the problem). After the upgrade, if the BSOD and/or freezing continues, I will format and start from scratch. If the problem is STILL persistant after a fresh format, I guess I will swap hdd's. This problem is making my head hurt!! I have a fast/powerful setup when it works, but I just can't maintain a smooth run. Any other suggestions to memory voltages/frequentcies/timings or any other suggestions to any part of my system to try to change would be greatly appreciated before I spend a couple hours fromating/installing. Thanks

 

[smurfsriot]

I got my new Antec Twelve Hundred case and my new Antec CP-850w psu. Rebuilt my set up and everything has been working smoothly!! No more freezing or BSOD!! I guess my previous psu (Radimax 535w modular) was defective or could not handle my set up. Anyways, I just decided to post my good news. I appreciate the suggestions that were made. I know it's been said MULTIPLE times but I guess it really does just boil down to the quality of the parts you use. No matter how many times people say "don't buy cheap parts" there will be people out there (like me) that refuse to listen to experience. My lesson has been learned!!

 

[berry120]

Glad you've got it sorted!