133 replies to this topic

[jeff matthews]

I am not sure what is causing this, but my computer just seems to shut down all of the sudden now. I can't leave it on for no more then 10-15 min at the most and it shuts down. Also if i do manage to log into windows, its EXTREMELY slow. i mean like slower then a snail. Is this an indication that my Hard drive might be failing. The HD i have in there is pretty old. Windows install corruption possibly? Or could this be a PSU failure. I do have 5 external's and 2 internals hooked up to my PSU. But i have a Raidmax Rx 730SS. I AC Input - 110V/230. I am not sure if that is enough or a powerful enough PSU to run all my equipment. People tell me those are like one of the best power supply's you can get though so i shouldn't have any problems. Anyways i just noticed this happen like a day ago. I tried using the windows 7 installation to disk to like reformat the drive or re install windows 7 but it doesn't give me enough time. The computer just shuts down. There is no BSOD screen or nothing. Its like a power outage, the pc just dies. Then i have to restart it again to get it to work. Another problem i have is i get "no video imput" signal some times when i restart the computer. I never had that issue before so im assuming that both issues are related some how. Normally when i power up my computer, it turns on. then shuts off, then turns on again and does the post code process. That is normal for my computer ever sense i built it. Recently though now ill turn it on and it doesn't shut down once and doesn't go through the post process. So thats how i know its not working. It will only work if i flip the back switch off and then on again. Then it boots up. But like i said, it only lasts for like 15 min and then shuts down. Any idea what this could be? I don't want to really buy a PSU if that does not solve the problem. I am not sure what this could be though. I noticed prior to this happening that my pc has been really slow over the past few months. I can't believe how slow it is. Its ridiculous. I can use my dads computer and its so much faster. But yet my computer has much higher specs then his does. He has a athlon 64 bit. I have a i5 series CPU. Anyways my computer has several issues and i wish i can just fix this dayam things. Its really irritating. I have been constantly on these forums always trying to find help. In some cases, they were viruses, but i really think the main issues are in my hard ware, like my HD. Having a bad HD with the OS installed on it. Can that dramatically slow your computer down? Anyways, i do run alot of HDD's, like 5 currently, with 2 internals, so like 7 all together. If this happens to be a PSU problem. Can you recommend me a good PSU that is capable of this load. I have a nvideo 8800 GTS video card as well and like i said an I5 series cpu.

Edited by jeff matthews, 18 April 2011 - 05:32 AM.

[terry1966]

that is a good psu and would be one of the last things i'd expect as the cause of your problems, but even the best makes have failures so wouldn't completely rule it out. shut downs like that, i'd first think are cpu temperature related problems, so would check in the bios to see what they read and also check that the fan on the heatsink is working and dust free. you changed your psu from a corsair 750 to a make i know nothing about, never heard of a Raidmax Rx 730SS.

Edited by terry1966, 18 April 2011 - 05:38 AM.

[jeff matthews]

Actually sorry, i was incorrect. I thought i had a corsair, apparently i never bought one yet. I was thinking bout it. I just looked at my machine. Look up in the above post, i modified, i actually have a raidmax PSU and the AC is 110v Also how do i check my temps in the bios. Yeah all the fans seem to be working just fine, I have like 2 exaust fans, 1 over head 230mm fan and 3 intake fans. My CPU fan is running as well. This computer should no way be experiening heat related problems. I had a pc before that got fire cracker hot and i could tell, cause i place my hand near the fan and there is nothing but hot air coming out of there. This computer on the other hand does not get that hot at all. It runs really cool. But i still would like to check my temps just to make sure.

[terry1966]

all bios and settings are slightly different depending on make/model so no exact details but to get into the bios you usually have to keep tapping the delete key(might be something completely different tho like F2) when you start your pc then you'll have to find an option where it'll have something like pc health, when you look under that it should show you what the temps are. seems that psu isn't a very good one, so yes probably is the cause of your problems from the little i've read about it.

Edited by terry1966, 18 April 2011 - 05:56 AM.

[jeff matthews]

When im looking for a PSU, what do i need to know besides manufacturer. Like how many Volts it has for AC input. This one has 110. Is that actually low? It would help if you can give me a link to a recommend PSU for my set up. Thanks!

[terry1966]

voltage input depends on where you live, in the uk we have mains voltage of 240v alternating current(ac) and in the us they have 110v ac for example.

now good power supplies are able to automatically take whatever the input voltage is 230v/110v ac and convert it to the required direct current(dc) voltages a pc needs to run.

only cheap psu are usually limited to one or the other, 230v or 110v input.

here's a link to a power supply calculator:- http://extreme.outer...culatorlite.jsp

and yes i'd go for the corsair 750tx you said you had(one in my daughters pc).

[jeff matthews]

Here are the TEMPS that Everest picks up. CPU core 1 - 64 CPU Core 2 63 CPU Core 3 65 CPU Core 4 62 They some times range from like 65-70 at the highest. I am pretty sure that is cool. When i had my computer, that was hot all the time and shut down. The temps were like in the 80's-90's

[terry1966]

are those temps in centigrade or fahrenheit?

you haven't said exactly what i5 you have but in general i'd say if in f then they are fine(good in fact), if in c(like i think) then i'd say they are high, especially if they are idle temps.

download and run prime95 for 20 minutes from here:- http://www.mersenne.org/freesoft/
to load and stress the cpu while monitoring the temps, lets see how high the temps reach or if the pc shuts down.

[jeff matthews]

I really i have no idea what im looking for here. I did run the test and yeah it did turn off, But i highly doubt the application caused that. My computer has been turning off like every 5-10 minutes. As i write this comment, i have to hurry because my computer will shut down like right now. Can you be a little more specific what im looking for well running these tests and what do you mean by "stress" the CPU. Also my temps read in C, not F.

[jeff matthews]

Ok im using a laptop now so i can communicate easier. My computer seems to shut down not just on windows installation. But i could have it even on the bios screen or set up screen and it will still shut down. So that tells me right there that its not an issue with windows or the hard drive for that matter. It is ether one of two things, temps like you said, or a bad PSU. Is there any way to run a test on my PSU. I really don't think its temps. Like i said before i remember running an old computer that i build before, using the same applications, everest, and Nvideo Tunning Utility. The tuning utility i heard gives more accurate readings then everest. So i use that. When my computer was fire cracker hot, it would shut down, but not nearly as frequent as this newer machine is. Also the temps were so high, they were like in the 80's-90;s Centigrade. Usually what I would do, is turn the machine off for like an extended time. Then turn it back on. The temps would be drastically reduced to like 70's on idle. Which is still pretty high. But in any case i would let it run for a while and the temps would just keep raising and raising, higher untill eventually the pc just shuts down. Also I noticed the computer was really slow as well and the CPU % would raise to very high, like 80-90% when it got hot. However in this case those things are not happening, my CPU stays at around 1% on idle. I have around 8 gb of memory so plenty of ram. My windows how ever is kind of slow and i honestly think there could be two issues here. I think my HD might be bad as well, so i was t hinking bout buying a new one to see if it helps with the slow downs. In any case, this issue with the shut downs every 5-10 min. Just happen very recently like a few days ago. This computer is fairly knew. i actually built less then a year ago with help on this forum. I believe "doug" can probably pull up the information or the topic on that. I had some issues with putting my computer together so some of the people on this forum helped me which im thankful for that. So my PSU i bought exactly at the same time that i build this computer, less then 6 months ago. Like you said before though, that a raidmax 720SS is a pretty crappy PSU. I do run some pretty high voltage on this computer, 5 external hard drives, 2 inernals, a 8800 GTS video card and 4 2gb sticks of DDR2. My Cpu is an i5 2.3 ghz.

[jeff matthews]

My video card also has a plug in for an power input to my PSU. So im assuming because the PSU is going out, could that possibly effect the "video input" signal. Because i am having both issues currently.

[jeff matthews]

I got this one

http://www.amazon.co...duct/B000X24ISU

Hopefully that is efficient enough, at least better then my previous Raidmax RX 750

http://www.amazon.co...-...0221&sr=1-8

I am kind of irritated though, i had this PSU for about 5 months and its already blown?

Edited by jeff matthews, 18 April 2011 - 08:34 PM.

[terry1966]

yes that corsair 650tx psu is a much better one and should be fine, i agree with you the psu is more than likely the cause rather than your temps. let us know if it fixes things.

Edited by terry1966, 18 April 2011 - 09:10 PM.

[jeff matthews]

I will but can you give me any technical details why this PSU is better. I am sure its more then just it being a good model. Also i just don't understand how this PSU would blow in like 4 months. My previous psu which was like 450 watts, lasted for like 6 years. When your measuring PSU's what are you looking for? People tell me watts don't mean carp**. You can have a corsair 650 watt that will blow away raidmax 900 watt. Why is that though? Is there any other type specs that corsairs have that are higher then other PSU's.

Edited by jeff matthews, 19 April 2011 - 01:24 AM.

[terry1966]

no i can't give exact technical details why they are better because i don't know, but it's usually better parts are used in the making of it, for example, capacitors, more/better copper wire wound round coils, etc.

cheaper power supplies usually can't keep a steady output voltage and is what pc's require most in my unexpert opinion.

here's 2 links you might find interesting tho.

http://en.wikipedia....iki/Transformer
http://en.wikipedia....er_power_supply

and the place to go for expert reviews and everything you want to know about psu's :- http://www.jonnyguru...php?name=NDFAQs

Edited by terry1966, 19 April 2011 - 06:03 AM.