Windows 7 locks up...

I am puzzled by the symptoms of the new system...

Specifications:

• CPU: i5-2500K
• CPU cooler: Noctua NH-C14
• Motherboard: Asus P8P67 LE
• OS drive: OCZ Vertex 3 120GBs
• HDD: 2 x Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 ST31000528AS 1TB 7200 RPM (SATA 3)
• Optical drive: Lite-On iHAS424-98 (SATA)
• Memory: Corsair DDR3 1333 Model CMX8GX3M2A1333C9
• Video card: HIS Silence H557HR1G Radeon HD 5570 1GB 128-bit DDR3 PCI Express 2.1 x16

The system runs well and has around 30 Celsius degree temperature at idle. With the Prime95 torture running for a half an hour, the temperature is 60 Celsius degree. The fan-less video card's temperature is around 45 Celsius degree. The motherboard temperature is couple of degrees lower than the CPU idle temperature. All the latest drivers, service packs, patches had been installed.

The issue is that the system locks up solid; no keyboard/mouse control is possible and the reset button does not work. The only way to restart the system is with the power switch. Upon reboot, Windows does complain about "improper shutdown"; however, no errors in the event logs.

The lock up could happen using any of the programs, Firefox, Macrium, etc., but it did not happen during the torture test with Prime95 using 98% memory utilization. I have a feeling that this is some hardware related problem, but I am lost as to where to start?

Does anyone have an idea where to start?
TIA....

Check your RAM with Memtest.

Well, Memtest+ ran for over two hours, did two paths, and came up with no errors. The Prime95 ran for over five hours and also came up with no errors:

Torture Test completed 435 tests in 5 hours, 34 minutes - 0 errors, 0 warnings.

I've rechecked Corsair' site and it still states that the memory works with the Asus motherboard. On the other hand, Asus currently does not list this memory (I would swore they did) at their site:

CMX8GX3M2A1333C9

They list this instead:

CMX8GX3M4A1333C9

The difference between the two model is the number of sticks; the former one that I have is 2x4 GBs, while the Asus listed one is 4x2 GBs. The other is the voltage with both having SPD based settings of 1.5V and the M4 has been tested at 1.65V.

Interestingly, Asus lists GSkill and OCZ as the two OEMs that have 2x4 GBs memory sticks that work with the P8P67LE board. Could the number of sticks and their sizes cause this kind of issues?
TIA...

Hmmm... Do you have any other spare left over RAM you could use to test if the problem still occurs with a different RAM type?

If you do, remove the existing RAM you have and replace with the left over one's you have, and test if the issue still occurs.

Unfortunately, I don't have any spare memory that would fit this box. The memory settings had been re-adjusted in the BIOS, or EFI with this board to:

1333/9-9-9-24 and 1.5 Volts.

The things different from auto detecting the memory is the voltage, 1.6 auto vs. 1.5 manual; doing so also removes the performance, or XMP profile for the memory.

This is evidently a know issue with the P8P67 LE board and Corsair's XMP type memory sticks. Here's one of the links for similar issues:

ASUSTeK Computer Inc.-Forum- Memory or Motherboard problem?

Interestingly, the guy who had the same issue as my machine does was actually using the Corsair's CMX8GX3M4A1333C9 with his P8P67 LE board, which is 4x2 GBs set or the Asus recommended four sticks. I guess it doesn't really matter, if one follows board makers recommendation to the letter...

It was sort of evident that there's some hardware issue since when started at the first time the machine took a double take. Meaning that it did start up, shutdown by itself without going through the BIOS, and started back up after about five seconds, and loaded the installation DVD. It still does it when the system is cold booted and rarely when it's rebooted.

Getting another set of memory is an option, but the issues make me think twice. Is it possible that this Asus board has some issues with relatively high density memory sticks? Sure, it certainly could be Corsair in this case but other 4 GBs sticks could exhibit similar symptoms as well. Maybe give Gskill a try, although when a company website has a memory finder application that does not work, it makes me kind of weary...

Pull the heatsink and reset the CPU.
The board will do that ON/OFF/ON when the CPU can not be detected at first power on.
Mark sure you clean the socket and the bottom of the CPU with some Alcohol. Let it try completely, 5-10 minutes, before putting it back in.

Hmmm, thanks for the info. Now I am thinking its the motherboard or CPU that is the main root of the problem. Try doing a complete CPU stress test on Prime95. Try leaving on for as long as possible. Post back the results if anything strange happens.

I can reset the CPU after it's cleaned up and probably will do it too after couple of days. It just seems at the moment that changing the memory voltage did make a diffence; more testing needs to be done to be sure.

It seems that the "double boot" issue is Asus board specific and can be alleviated by changing the memory. Here's one vote for Gskill memory that doesn't trigger the double boot:

Newegg.com - G.SKILL ECO 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL8D-8GBECO

Quote from the above link's feedback section:

They're also on the approved RAM list for the P8P67-M PRO which I suspect is why I don't get the 'double boot' issue a lot of folks have reported.

The longest I've ran Prime95 is five and a half hours, the system ran just fine with 98% memory utilization and 100% CPU (all cores) utilization. The CPU temperature was around 60 degree Celsius, which is not bad for a quite machine. It's about two feet from me and I can hardly hear it. Maybe I leave it one for overnight and check it in the morning...

Ok, the CPU seems to be fine in that case. Its (thanks for clarifying) definitely between the motherboard and RAM. You should always check reviews and comments on anything you buy to make sure its all okay and no problems will arise. I suggest that instead of buying new RAM as your current RAM is pretty good, and it would be a waste of $125 to get new RAM, to take this on with Asus. Your motherboard comes with a 3 year warranty, so of course the guarantee is still in place. You should request from Asus to get another similar as possible motherboard, or ask to fix it by maybe creating a BIOS update that will fix the problem. Its your choice ultimately on what to do, but I suggest (unless you like to spend cash freely) not to buy separate RAM to fix this issue. Its better to fix than avert the problem

Slasher

Well, to be frank, the specification for this system had been put together in January and put on hold, due to Intel's SATA 2 chip issue. There was nothing about certain memory may not work with this board at that time. And yes, I should've checked prior to ordering...

I'll take it up with Asus, but they may just send me packing. The current QVL does not list the Crucial model # CMX8GX3M2A1333C9 as compatible. Let's see where it gets me...

The board BIOS is at the latest version and it did come with already installed. Some people had success resolving this issue by clearing the BIOS with the jumper, while others with the same setup have not been successful. It could very well be some quality control issue with the early Revision 3.0 boards...