(HELP!) Upgraded parts of my computer, now it switches off!

Today I've been able to use my computer for about an hour before it will switch off, I could play a few games without it immediately turning off.

Something in my computer might be overheating but I don't know what, I'm hoping the graphics card isn't faulty.

When installing I did however remove the CPU fan from the mobo to remove the dust, did I disrupt the thermal paste in any way? Should I go out to the store and purchase some?



(BTW thanks for helping me out, guys! Appreciate it heaps!)

Hello zyr,

You're gaming CPU core temp of 71c (post #17) is not a problem.
What was the GPU temp after gaming?
If you can, post a HWMonitor screen print after gaming for ~ 15 minutes.
I don't think you have a temperature issue at this point, unless your GPU temps jump from ~33c to something a LOT HIGHER.
I wouldn't remove the CPU and apply new paste at this point - that would just add another variable to the equation for troubleshooting.

From what i found a 700W PSU should be way more than needed for a single nVidia GTX 550 Ti GPU.
Having said that, ANY PSU can fail at ANY time ...
How old is your PSU?

Did you ever run a memory test (memtest86) and what were the results?

Make sure your CPU and GPU fans do not shut off.
Best to leave the case open to see this, but the fan noise level change should be noticeable.
I've had fans run for a while from cold, later freeze up and stop, and crash the PC...
Not likely, but...it can happen

Assuming your memory tests out OK and fans are OK, consider suggestions for troubleshooting
gregrocker - post #20 - troubleshooting Win 7
OldMX - post #15 - rebuild ...

I don't remember exactly what the temperature was after game play but I think it went back down to 30~40*C

Just now I played TF2 for about 15 minutes and the temp only reached as high as 50*C

I turned off the game just now as I'm typing this and the temperature is 27*C

Although my computer still is shutting off randomly.
I'm going to run memtest now and I'll post back with results

Well it showed up with this



I guess everything with the ram is fine?

You need to run 5-6 passes or overnight to stress the RAM. Read the exact steps to test RAM and slots in Jonathan's tutorial linked in steps.

Do you know if your PSU is a Cooler Master PSU?
The reason i ask is in your pic is says Cooler Power, but the logo does look similar to the CM logo.
I couldn't find the GX700 model (your pic) on the Cooler Master site, but they do have a GX650 and GX750.

If your PSU has multiple PCIe (Video Card) connectors, try using a different one.

Based on your specs, I'm assuming you built this PC, is that true?

gregrocker said:

You need to run 5-6 passes or overnight to stress the RAM. Read the exact steps to test RAM and slots in Jonathan's tutorial linked in steps.

Oh! I see, I'll do that ASAP and get back to you on the results.

DavidW7ncus said:

Do you know if your PSU is a Cooler Master PSU?
The reason i ask is in your pic is says Cooler Power, but the logo does look similar to the CM logo.
I couldn't find the GX700 model (your pic) on the Cooler Master site, but they do have a GX650 and GX750.

If your PSU has multiple PCIe (Video Card) connectors, try using a different one.

Based on your specs, I'm assuming you built this PC, is that true?

Yeah, I also googled my power supply and was confused when I only found Cooler Master, I'm not really sure, it could be an Australian-brand PSU

I have only 2 PCIe connectors and I tried switching and the same thing happens.

The computer shop that I go to has a few custom build for computers and I bought what I could afford for $1k. This was about 2+ years ago though.


When I turn on my computer I hear a fan (Not sure which fan it is) that immediately powers on at full blast for less than a second then returns to regular fan speed. This happens as soon as I press the power on button. I think it might be the graphics card's fan. Does this mean anything? Because I had an old computer that did the same thing but it was the CPU fan and when I googled the problem it was the result of a dead/faulty PSU.

Ok, you found the same confusion on the PSU as i did
To me that leaves it with questionable/unknown quality.

I have heard where a computer case did cause issues.
I think it was an issue with a faulty Power switch, but can't remember for sure.

So, it's up to you if you want to rebuild using your old case to test that.
That would be a good time to check there are no loose parts, and standoffs are in correctly.

Quote "When installing I did however remove the CPU fan from the mobo to remove the dust, did I disrupt the thermal paste in any way? Should I go out to the store and purchase some?"

Hi,
If you removed the heat sink from the CPU when rebuilding your system you need to replace the compound. All the other tests and checks are inconclusive except your temps are rising very quickly. I recommend Artic Silver 5. Here http://www.amazon.com/Arctic-Silver-Polysynthetic-Thermal-Compound/dp/B0002VFXFE
Clean off the old compound with alcohol and put a dab of compound in the centre of the heat sink. About a pea size is all you need, too much makes it perform worse. After several days the temps will drop.