Nightmare problem which I cannot solve..

Hi

I usually read numerous other posts and forums and solve most problems based on that, but unfortunately i've reach a point of where I need some advice and help for this!

First things first.. my build:

Motherboard : ASUS P8P67 Pro / Asrock Pro 3
CPU: 2600K 3.4ghz
RAM: 2x4gb Corsair Vengence LP 1600mhz
HDD: 1.5tb F3
SSD: 120GB Samsung 840 Pro
GPU: XFX 7970
PSU: CoolerMaster 700W Silent Pro / Corsair GS600W

I've put 2 PSU's and 2 Motherboards.. as i have tested both trying to fix this problem!

My build has been running solid for around 3 or 4 years with the same motherboard/cpu/ram and I only added the ssd over a year ago with the gpu, but in October last year whilst playing games, my monitor would lose connection to the gpu and hang until it eventually rebooted. I checked the error logs and found the driver was recovering (can't remember the exact fault) so i troubleshooted this for a while (installing new drivers , re-seating the card, checking temps etc) and had zero luck.

I swapped the 7970 out and started using a friends 780ti. Straight away the problem was no more! This ran perfect for around 4 months and again I was experiencing a similar fault with games, but this time I received the Kernel Power 41 (63) fault.

I have almost tried EVERYTHING.. every forum post i've read regarding software and hardware I have tried. I have swapped out ram and tested both sets for hours.. FINE.. I have tested both my SSD and HHD.. FINE.. I swapped out my PSU (As this was the most common problem I read) EXACT SAME ERROR. I stress tested my cpu for hours.. FINE

I finally pinned it down to what I thought was a fault on the motherboard..maybe a capacitor or the pcie slot? I bought a new board.. installed it and again.. SAME ERROR..

I'm literally closest i've been to giving up till I can afford to buy a completely new rig.. but i'm reluctant to give up on this! I've already bought a new psu and motherboard which it looks as though i didn't really need.

My next step is to buy a new graphics card..(This isn't a huge commitment as I kinda need a new one anyway) I'm thinking is has to be the card. As my friends worked for 4 months though... I'm starting to doubt myself again over this?

I'm hoping someone can give me something I have overlooked or convince me buying a new GPU will hopefully fix this problem??

Thankful in advance!

Ciaran

What was the PSU that you swapped for?

I swapped out for the0 Corsair GS600W. Errors appear on both.. Is it really likely both PSU's are dead?

Cr0n said:

I swapped out for the0 Corsair GS600W. Errors appear on both.. Is it really likely both PSU's are dead?

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I see that in the specs now... Whoops!

It honestly wouldn't surprise me if the power supply was still the issue, but wait for others to chime in before buying.

Also, when you put in the 780 Ti, did you completely remove all AMD drivers?

Hehe , no problem

I just want to try and be certain what part it is this time before i commit to buying more hardware, otherwise a new rig might have been the better option!

Is it likely to be both psu's? One thing i haven't tried is using the onboard graphics i now have with the Asrock ( as that is the one i currently am using) but it's just if any games I can test using the onboard graphics.. and whether this will be enough to trigger the error anyway.

Yes i removed all drivers in safe mode.. did a reboot twice to make sure. I always follow the same procedure.

Thanks for the reply

Like said by Atminside, sounds PSU-ish to me too. But, have you gotten the firmware updates for the Samsung 840? I've read that there are several issues with it as well. May not be related but still may need attention.

One possibility (I am not saying this is the problem, just another possibility), is the case and grounding issues. Are the problems happening while you have everything inside the case? Have you tried using all the components sans case?

I really wish it was PSU.. but I thought i'd eliminated that by swapping in a new one. Am i able to buy a new PSU and if i receive the same error, then return it? I'm not sure on policies of the stores i'm buying hardware from.

I updated the firmware for the SSD probably not long before i received this fault back in October, but i'm sure I can try and update it again. It just seems odd it ran fine for ages and this has become a problem ever since.

The pc can sit idle for hours on end, but the second I boot most reasonably demanding games up 10-20 sec later, black screen and reboot.

One possibility (I am not saying this is the problem, just another possibility), is the case and grounding issues. Are the problems happening while you have everything inside the case? Have you tried using all the components sans case?

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I've checked all around the case for loose connections etc. but haven't yet build outside the case.. only the PSU when testing.. I will definitely give this a try to eliminate the possiblity. Thanks!

Are you running the graphics cards from one line? If so, power each connector with its own line

bob4933 said:

Are you running the graphics cards from one line? If so, power each connector with its own line

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bob this never even crossed my mind.. I'm at work at the moment, but i'm almost certain from memory that on the 700W modular they had their own slots for the psu? I can't think on the 600w non modular how they are currently connected. I will check this and all the rest of the comment when I get home. Thanks!

Cr0n said:

bob this never even crossed my mind.. I'm at work at the moment, but i'm almost certain from memory that on the 700W modular they had their own slots for the psu? I can't think on the 600w non modular how they are currently connected. I will check this and all the rest of the comment when I get home. Thanks!

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What I mean is take the 6pin and power it from 1 line, and power the 8pin from another line. Had this issue with my 290, even though my power ratings and amperage for the PSU was "enough", I still had issues. When I swapped that I didnt have any more issues.

bob4933 said:

What I mean is take the 6pin and power it from 1 line, and power the 8pin from another line. Had this issue with my 290, even though my power ratings and amperage for the PSU was "enough", I still had issues. When I swapped that I didnt have any more issues.

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Yea, i understood where you were coming from. My first PSU (700w) was modular so both the 6pin and 8pin were on different lines.. yet I still had the issue. The PSU i'm using at the moment isn't modular so i'm not certain which ones the 6 and 8pin are hooked up to, i'll check this and retest!

Cr0n said:

Yea, i understood where you were coming from. My first PSU (700w) was modular so both the 6pin and 8pin were on different lines.. yet I still had the issue. The PSU i'm using at the moment isn't modular so i'm not certain which ones the 6 and 8pin are hooked up to, i'll check this and retest!

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ok, just making sure

edit: No "thumup" on this site? haha Odd

Well, the CM PSU he has is a single rail PSU, so which 6/8 pin it comes from will not matter. That would only come into play if literally one of those cables are bad. The GS600 is also a single rail PSU so same story there. Worth a try to see if it is actually the cable though!



As far as thumbs up... the "THANKS" button takes care of that. Or if you are talking emoticons, there is a thumbs up...

Have you swapped out the RAM yet? You mentioned every component but the RAM in your troubleshooting description. And have you checked the timings of the RAM to make sure they are correct?

This machine is not overclocked, right?

trents said:

Have you swapped out the RAM yet? You mentioned every component but the RAM in your troubleshooting description. And have you checked the timings of the RAM to make sure they are correct?

This machine is not overclocked, right?

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I have swapped out ram and tested both sets for hours.. FINE.

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I've done both i'm afraid , tried two different sets.. set both at speeds and timings and i've tried in the other channels available on the board and tried using just 1 4gb stick.

It hasn't been overclocked for a while now.

Oh, my bad as I re-read your first post you indeed did swap out the RAM.

- - - Updated - - -

What about one of the drives being flakey? Not likely the culprit but worth looking at when you've exhausted all other possibilities.

trents said:

Oh, my bad as I re-read your first post you indeed did swap out the RAM.

- - - Updated - - -

What about one of the drives being flakey? Not likely the culprit but worth looking at when you've exhausted all other possibilities.

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I've kind of exhausted that too, all the motherboard drivers, countless gpu drivers, conflicting sound drivers etc.

Tried building outside the case?

EarthDog said:

Well, the CM PSU he has is a single rail PSU, so which 6/8 pin it comes from will not matter. That would only come into play if literally one of those cables are bad. The GS600 is also a single rail PSU so same story there. Worth a try to see if it is actually the cable though!



As far as thumbs up... the "THANKS" button takes care of that. Or if you are talking emoticons, there is a thumbs up...

Click to expand...

Then he'd need to get a 3$ adapter piece and run his 6 pin off a molex line. He might even have one, most graphics cards ship with those.

Fwiw, " thumup" (not thumbs up) is a very common emoticon on many forums.

I.e. :thumup: