Constant random BSODs - ASUS N53SV - Win 7 - Going NUTS - Please HELP!

[MrAndersen]

I don't know enough about computers to figure out what the heck is wrong, but it is making me lose my mind. This laptop is only a few months old and it is causing me major headaches. It usually goes BSOD at random, but after many tests that chance seems to be higher when listening to music, watching videos or playing games (especially if multi-tasking with something else).

I have an OEM copy of Windows 7 Home Premium x64 and all the video/audio/chipset drivers have been updated. I have attached the .zip file as per BSOD Posting Instructions, but whenever I try to run the perfmon /report I get the following error :

Error:


An error occured while attempting to generate the report.



The wait for the report generation tool to finish has timed out.

Also, here are my complete system specs:

Display
Diagonal Size : 15.6"
Resolution : 1366 x 768 (HD) 16:9 / 1920 x 1080 (Full HD) 16:9
Technology : LED backlit Asus Splendid Video Intelligent Technology

Graphics Card
NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 540M with 1GB DDR3 VRAM (+Internal Intel HD Graphics for when the Nvidia Graphics Card is not needed)

Processor
Type : Intel® Core™ i5-2410M dual-core processor
Speed : 2.30 GHz with Turbo Boost up to 2.9 GHz
Cache : 3 MB L3


Chipset
Intel® HM65 Express Chipset

Memory
DDR3 1333 MHz SDRAM
Quad Core : 4 x SO-DIMM socket for expansion up to 16GB SDRAM


Storage
2.5" SATA
640GB 5400rpm

Optical Drive
Blu-Ray DVD Combo

TV Tuner
Hybrid : Analogue + Digital

Communication
LAN : 10/100/1000 Base T

WLAN : Integrated 802.11 b/g/n

Bluetooth :
Built-in Bluetooth™ 2.1 + EDR (optional)
Built-in Bluetooth™ 3.0 (optional)

Audio
Bang & Olufsen ICEpower®
Built-in Speakers And Microphone
SonicFocus
(Realtek High Definition Audio)

Interface
1 x USB 3.0 ports (optional)
3 x USB 2.0 ports
1 x RJ45 LAN Jack for LAN insert
1 x HDMI
1 x Microphone-in jack
1 x Line-in Jack
1 x VGA port/Mini D-sub 15-pin for external monitor

Power
Output : 19 V DC, 6.3 A, 120 W (Quad Core) / 4.74 A , 90 W (Dual Core)
Input : 100 -240 V AC, 50/60 Hz universal

A thousand thank-yous to whomever is kind enough to help me. You will be my personal hero

 

[Maguscreed]

The only thing I can tell you for sure after a quick look at the dumps (sorry short on time right now)
Is the asus auto update tool was running every time you crashed, I would remove it temporarily and see if the frequency goes down or if the crashes even stop at all.
Get back to me on that one and hopefully I've have more time later.

 

[MrAndersen]

Well, I un-installed the Asus Live Update tool and shortly after that it crashed again. Then, as I was writting in this forum, it crashed again. I don't know what else to say, I am really pulling my hair out on this one. I sincerely hope you can help me out here. I have attached the updated crash log.

 

[MrAndersen]

Ok, I have now un-installed a lot more apps and attached the latest crash report file. Hopefully, this will make things a little easier for you.

 

[Maguscreed]

The problem here is you are getting a 7f type failure, and they are notoriously difficult to weed out since they generally just crash the system kernel and we're left trying to back trace through debugger.

You do have drivers for a atheros device I am unfamiliar with (likely wifi)

I am honestly to the point of requesting you turn on driver verifier.
...also clear out the minidump folder before doing so. It's getting crowded int here and we already have all the previous dump files sitting on the site here.

Anyhow as for driver verfier.
http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/101379-driver-verifier-enable-disable.html
(Please read all instructions for driver verifier before using as it's possible it will make the machine behave badly and you need to know how to undo it.)

The idea here is actually go cause more bsod's, in hopes driver verifier will weed out the culprit for us. It will likely crash many times. I would let it go about 4 or 5 crashes before turning dv back off.

 

[st0kEd]

MrAnderson, did you determine the root cause of your problem? I have an N53SV-XV1 (with the i7 core) and its been suffering from chronic BSODs just like you're describing. Thanks!

 

[MrAndersen]

Unfortunately I was not able to pinpoint the exact problem. However, it was most likely caused by my wireless Internet receiver (the aetheros one). It got to a point where I could not connect to the net at all, even though everything appeared normal on Device Manager. Anyway, long story short, I had to reformat my c drive and re-install the operating system along with default asus drivers. Since then I have not had any more BSOD's. I know it sucks, but if you can preserve your data...

Wish I could have been of more help.

MrAndersen

 

[st0kEd]

Unfortunately I was not able to pinpoint the exact problem. However, it was most likely caused by my wireless Internet receiver (the aetheros one). It got to a point where I could not connect to the net at all, even though everything appeared normal on Device Manager. Anyway, long story short, I had to reformat my c drive and re-install the operating system along with default asus drivers. Since then I have not had any more BSOD's. I know it sucks, but if you can preserve your data...

Wish I could have been of more help.

MrAndersen

Thanks for the quick response! I'm glad to hear the re-format cleared up the BSODs, I'll put that on the table as my last resort.

 

[writhziden]

st0kEd, if you would like help from our crash experts, you can start your own thread and follow the http://www.sevenforums.com/crashes-debugging/96879-blue-screen-death-bsod-posting-instructions.html. We would be happy to assist you.

 

[st0kEd]

st0kEd, if you would like help from our crash experts, you can start your own thread and follow the http://www.sevenforums.com/crashes-debugging/96879-blue-screen-death-bsod-posting-instructions.html. We would be happy to assist you.

Thanks, will do! Wanted to see if MrAnderson had found resolution first so as to avoid multiple threads on the same topic. Especially considering we have the exact same machine exhibiting the same bad behavior! Regardless, I've got my files ready and will be posting up my own thread in a few.

 

[Maguscreed]

If it is the ahteros wireless, there are sadly a million drivers for the various stuff they have put out and there is no official spot to run too and find them all.

 

[st0kEd]

If it is the ahteros wireless, there are sadly a million drivers for the various stuff they have put out and there is no official spot to run too and find them all.

Yeah, an IT friend and I spent time yesterday going through and updating drivers and Atheros was the only one we couldn't get direct from the manufacturer (meaning Atheros not ASUS).

 

[Maguscreed]

You could message Asus directly it is possible they used the same wireless device on another more recent motherboard and thus have a more recent driver for it listed under that model instead of yours. Not incredibly likely but it does happen.

 

[writhziden]

The best site to find Atheros drivers is ATHEROS drivers for Microsoft Windows (Atheros?????) but the drivers there do not usually come with an install application and have to be installed manually. Also, Atheros drivers are usually difficult to update. The Atheros drivers for some reason cause problems in Windows. When you install them to overwrite the current drivers via the install package that vendors provide, they don't stick. I do not know why. Also, if a user tries to update them through device manager, for some reason, Windows informs the user that the system already has the most up to date drivers. Again, I do not know why. There is a special procedure that must be followed for these devices to update them properly.

After downloading the latest Atheros drivers from ATHEROS drivers for Microsoft Windows (Atheros?????), here are the steps to install it so it sticks and actually updates the drivers for the device.

1. Click Start Menu
2. Right Click My Computer/Computer
3. Click Manage
4. Click Device Manager from the list on the left
5. Expand Network adapters
6. Right click the Atheros network device
7. Click Uninstall (do not click OK in the dialog box that pops up after hitting Uninstall)
8. Put a tick in Delete driver software for this device and hit OK
9. Do not restart your computer
10. Install the downloaded driver for the Atheros network device.

Alternatively:

1. Login as an adminstrative user.
2. Click Start Menu
3. Click Control Panel
4. Click Hardware and Sound
5. Click Device Manager (the last link under Devices and Printers)
6. Expand Network adapters
7. Right click the Atheros network device
8. Click Uninstall (do not click OK in the dialog box that pops up after hitting Uninstall)
9. Put a tick in Delete driver software for this device and hit OK
10. Do not restart your computer
11. Install the downloaded driver for the Atheros network device.

To install the drivers, I recommend the steps in http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/98073-drivers-install-vista-drivers-windows-7-a.html OPTION TWO after scanning for hardware changes (the magnifying glass over the computer icon in device manager).

 

[st0kEd]

Is that a legit site (www.atheros.cz)? I came across it yesterday but was a little worried about downloading from a Czech site. No offense to Czech!

 

[st0kEd]

And thanks for the replies guys, I've started my own thread (http://www.sevenforums.com/crashes-...3sv-xv1-suffering-frequent-bsod-win7-x64.html) if you care to stop by and have a look at the details.

 

[writhziden]

Is that a legit site (www.atheros.cz)? I came across it yesterday but was a little worried about downloading from a Czech site. No offense to Czech!

It is a semi-legit site. Be careful which links you click on; some link to controversial areas. Once you get the links down for getting the drivers, it is safe. What you want to do is click on one of the four boxes to begin with: Atheros Wireless Drivers, Atheros Network Drivers, Atheros Bluetooth Drivers, or Atheros PDF Datasheets. Then scroll down to the device you are looking for in the table that appears (assuming you click on one of the three boxes for drivers). Click the blue check mark that corresponds to your operating system. Click on the Click For Download box. Wait for a bit; it usually takes between 5 seconds to a minute for the download to start.

If you follow those steps, you should be able to download the drivers safely.