PC running games very poorly with an FX 8120.

[drosera01]

Any tips from experienced users on how to properly reinstall the BIOS?

I did not see you mentioning your exact Model of Motherboard with revision if there be any. If you provide that, i can check you if the update is available and guide you through.

Yes, its very easy and mostly foolproof, but make sure you dont do hard-reset while BIOS update is running. Easiest way would be using Flash drive and boot it from that drive. Make sure you keep only BIOS update on flash drive.

 

[rescuetoaster]

just follow the step by step on the manufacturers website that you download the bios from. there are a couple ways to do it and either are pretty much foolproof as long as you don't hard shutdown in the middle of it.

I'm afraid this is my answer as well. You'll have to get comfortable with these things if you are going to be overclocking - go take a look at your motherboard manual and give it a go. If you have specific questions, we can help ya. It really is NOT that big of a deal as long as you follow the directions.

 

[Ravara]

i was SO close to start screaming "dont hate Fx series!!!"

HOWEVER -
its true, get a decent Mobo that can run a Fx81xx cpu proper and a fresh bios aswell + all windows updates since they improve a little..

and who the hell told you the 81xx isnt good for gaming? i dont see my 8120 (8130b) ever being a bottle neck for the next 4years - not to mention your graphic card is a poor model imo..

about updating ur bios look at ur mobo cd, it has a program to update bios for you, very simple to use

oh and i read some articles about people getting better cpu scores with the Corsair vengeance RAM when using a FX 81xx cpu whether its true or not i dont know.. but i get some heavy duty scores from 3dmark 11

 

[HighTide]

I updated my BIOS to the last BIOS available and haven't seen any sort of performance improvement.

Any my graphics card is a poor model?

It got excellent reviews on the sites that I looked on.

Also, my CPU temps have been higher than usual.

I turned my CPU fans to Turbo from Standard.

Idle:



Prime95 for 5 minutes. (Temp stopped going up)

Stress:




Also about a month ago, I had a power surge at my house and my computer wouldn't immediately turn back on.

I waited about 10 minutes and it started up.

Could this have messed up my CPU, GPU or PSU?

 

[caddi daddi]

have you tried reseting the cmos? it is also called real time clock?

 

[HighTide]

have you tried reseting the cmos? it is also called real time clock?

No, I'm not really sure how to.

Also, how do my temps look?

 

[Ravara]

Its possible some components may be dmged..

About ur gpu.. well its decent im just not a fan of the lower models, however a mate of my had problems with the same mobo u got

 

[HighTide]

Meh, it seems a bit risky to purchase a new Motherboard without knowing for sure that it's causing problems.

I need to invest into a better PSU beforehand.

I'm not really sure how I could check if my PC parts were damaged.

It scared me when my PC wouldn't boot up after the power surge.

 

[caddi daddi]

the cmos/real time clock reset information is in your motherboard manual.

 

[Ravara]

About the bootup its prolly the auto switch thingy when surge / overload happends newer mobos got it asweæl i can say i love it xD what psu do ya have?

 

[HighTide]

Wait, is that the same as pushing F5 to load default motherboard settings?

I have some non-brand (800)-watt PSU.

It's pretty garbage.

I think it's causing my computer to reset when idle giving me a "failed to load media device" error on startup.

I have to let my computer sit for about 10 minutes before starting up again to get it to work.

It never has the problem if I'm actively using my computer, though.

I've checked the HDDs and they've came out fine.

 

[caddi daddi]

no, f5 just resets the bios, and it is a good thing if you have done that.
to reset the cmos, you have to unplug the power cable, open the case, remove the battery and move a jumper for about a minuet or in some cases press a button. the process is in your mother board manual.

 

[HighTide]

no, f5 just resets the bios, and it is a good thing if you have done that.
to reset the cmos, you have to unplug the power cable, open the case, remove the battery and move a jumper for about a minuet or in some cases press a button. the process is in your mother board manual.

Ill try to do so.

And is it my PSU probably causing my PC to restart when idle and then giving me a "failed to load media device" on start up?

 

[RGone]

High Tide I see a star now under your name and that means you have at "least" 50 posts so it is High Time that you made a signature so we can quit guessing what parts and pieces are in your configuration.

Sigs are pretty easy. Signatures follow you in every post in the forum so your system information follows you and people know what is in the box.

Be logged in to the forum.

Across the top of the forum is a button shown as 'user cp'. Click that button.

On the page that loads are a list of options down the left side of the page.

Under the Settings & Options menu area is a Edit Signature listing. Click on that listing.

Clicking Edit Signature opens another page. In the middle of that page is where you Edit YOUR signature.

Enter your information there and at bottom of the window you are entering your signature is button for either Preview Signature or Save Signature. Do save and you will have your signature incorporated into the forum in each of your posts. Of course Preview Signature will let you see 'how' your signature would appear in the forum. But in the end the Save Signature must be clicked to save it to the forum.

You can look at my signature for a template of some good stuffz to put in one's own signature when seeking help.

Good luck man.

 

[HighTide]

Oh wow, I didn't know that I've already posted that much.

Sorry for all the questions and such; I just don't see how my computer is running as sub-par as it is unless it all stems from my awful PSU.

I don't think it could cause that many problems with gaming and then it randomly restarting my comp and giving me a "failed to load media device" error.

 

[RGone]

1. It certainly seems you have posted quite a bit.

2. Back on page #1 you say that computer is pre-built. If that is so and you feel you have issues with it, then I would be contacting the Pre-builder about some warranty and assistance.

3. "failed to load media device" = Brings absolutely no hits or results at all on g00gle. That normally means that there is some sort of difference in what you are typing and what the error is really saying or there is an issue that is just not seen in general.

 

[HighTide]

"Reboot and select a proper boot device or insert boot media in selected boot device" is more accurate.

I've dabbled with boot ordering in the BIOS with every possible combination of drives.

I only really get this problem when my computer sits idle as well.

 

[Bluefalcon13]

The M5A97 is a low end board, but other than a lack of fine LLC controls, I haven't had any issues with mine. Then again, I don't have an FX in mine either. Ensure you have nothing plugged in like a flash drive, as that may be throwing your error. If it continues, you may need a firmware update on your SSD. Follow ADATA's firmware update procedures if you haven't already.

 

[RGone]

USB > NZXT Bunker 5.25" USB Locking Device (4 x Ports) = I would unplug this and test as well to see if bootup is without an error.

 

[HighTide]

Well, I've only started getting this problem after I reformatted both of my hard drives and fresh installed Windows 7.