Video turns black and grey, keyboard/mouse becomes unresponsive

Hello ,

I bought a new computer with the following parts.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i3-2120 3.3GHz Dual-Core Processor ($117.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: ASRock P67 PRO3 SE ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($102.55 @ Newegg)
Memory: Patriot Signature 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($41.99 @ Amazon)
Hard Drive: Samsung Spinpoint F3 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($109.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Asus Radeon HD 7850 2GB Video Card ($249.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Fractal Design Core 3000 ATX Mid Tower Case ($69.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: Corsair 500W ATX12V Power Supply ($41.98 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: LG GH22NS90B DVD/CD Writer ($22.98 @ Newegg)
Monitor: Acer S220HQLAbd 21.5" Monitor ($128.96 @ CompUSA)
Total: $886.42
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-05-12 00:22 EDT-0400)

When I first got it, it arrived without the video card so I used a temp one. The computer started crashing, so I thought it was because the video card was old. I borrowed another one from a friend and uninstalled the old drivers and installed the new ones. The same thing happened with this one. I decided to run some test so I downloaded prime95, memtest86+, and a video benchmark. Everything passed except for prime95. Memtest ran for 11 hours with no errors and prime95 crashes after a couple of minutes. I returned the motherboard because I thought it was faulty, but the same thing happens with replacement. I tried moving the memory sticks to different slots and using one and then the other. I tried installing windows 7 32bit and 64bit. I ran the diagnostic test for the cpu and everything passed. I have installed the latest updated drivers.

So if it's not the motherboard, memory, cpu, nor gpu, what could it be. Can someone please help me identify the problem(s). I don't know where the .dmp went but here is a screen shot https://i.imgur.com/MN9Lz.png and I will attach the PERFMON HTML file.

May be overheating? Did you put thermal paste on the processor? Do you have an aftermarket CPU cooler?

Also check bios to see if there are any factory overclock settings or something. I would just reset the BIOS to defaults.

For the hell of it, and to reduce variables, unplug the DVD burner temporarily.

It's not over heating I checked the temp of the cpu and motherboard while running prime95. I have the stock cpu cooler. I haven't changed the bios. I checked and it should be in default settings. Right now I am running ubuntu to see if I would see any difference. Everything worked up untill I installed the video driver. It started flashing grey, plus it shows a watermark: amd unsupported hardware on the bottom right. I uninstalled the driver and it works good so far. I'm going to try a different video driver to see what happens

What video cards have you had installed on the current system? A list of the hardware that has been added, removed, and added again would be beneficial.

Have you re-installed Windows since changing your display card?

Your crashes are graphics card related, so if changing graphics cards, clean installing Windows, and temperature monitoring do not help, it is likely the motherboard at fault. Other causes could be power supply, memory, or your monitor. Have you tried a different power supply? What about running with different RAM? Different monitor?

   Warning

Before you proceed with the following, answer these two questions: Are you still under warranty? Does your warranty allow you to open up the machine to check hardware? If you are unsure of the answers to these questions, contact your system manufacturer. WARNING: The steps that follow can void your warranty!!!

Strip down your system to run only the bare essentials: one RAM module, the CPU, motherboard, one hard disk, one graphics card (or use onboard graphics if you have it), keyboard, mouse, and one monitor. See how the system behaves by running Windows for twice as long as it typically takes for you to get a crash. If it is stable, add one piece of hardware back at a time until you get crashes again. Take notes of what hardware you add and how the system responds to the hardware changes.

As you add and remove hardware, follow these steps for ESD safety:

1. Shut down and turn off your computer.
2. Unplug all power supplies to the computer (AC Power then battery for laptops, AC power for desktops)
3. Hold down the power button for 30 seconds to close the circuit and ensure all power drains from components.
4. Make sure you are grounded by using proper grounding techniques, i.e. work on an anti-static workbench, anti-static desk, or an anti-static pad. Hold something metallic while touching it to the anti-static surface, or use an anti-static wristband to attach to the anti-static material while working. If you do not have an anti-static workbench, desk, or pad, you can use your computer tower/case by finding a metal hold in it, such as a drive bay.

Once these steps have been followed, it is safe to remove and replace components within your computer.

I have tried a different mointor, but haven't tried different ram, nor power supply. I will try the following method you metioned and report back later.