Computer Crashing!

[ChemicalAli]

Hi

I have recently replaced the motherboard in my pc with an ASUS M3N72-T Deluxe which i have had many problems with and i have had a lot of help from members of this forum and i have also replaced my processor with an AM3 Phenom X4 965.

I had the system running fine with windows 7 x64 and everything was fine until a couple of weeks ago when it started to crash during games. This would leave me with a BSOD and a rather nasty burning smell inside the computer. I put this down to a gfx card problem because an ATI driver was mentioned in the error report.

I sent the gfx card back and ebuyer accepted there was a problem with it and sent me a new one, the ATI 5770. I thought this would solve the problem however now i still have the burning smell and the computer now crashes but with no BSOD and nothing in the event logs.

It cant be my gfx card overheating because that has been replaced. The bios reports that the cpu is around 40C and so do other programs for monitoring it. It is also not hot to touch. The ram is warm but not hot, so what could it be. The burning smell appears to be coming from near the cpu area however there is nothing to suggest why it may be doing this because it used to play games fine and the temperatures are also fine. Im at a loose end now. Im getting very very very fed up with it.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

thanks

 

[PooMan UK]

Check your PSU pal

 

[Cocopara]

Overheated mate, When a PC overheats, its freezes, or turns off. Laptops with a broken fan, often smell burnt after used over a period of time, turn your Pc on, run a stress test, and use Cpu-z or so to determine your CPU temp, download Evga precision, it can tune your fan Speed

Thought you mightve checked this, I suggest double check

also try run Evga Afterburner or so, this will stress your PC alot, check the temp then, sometimes the temp can vary from unloaded to loaded by 50degrees, I have experienced it so I know

 

[ChemicalAli]

Thanks, will try these options although i have stress tested it. In the past couple of days it has started to smell of burning when not running games, which is a bit worrying. From what i can see the temps for the cpu arent at all high. Multiple pieces of software say 40C although it is a bit strange that they all say 40C exactly and dont change. Maybe some of the sensors are dodgey. Would that indicate a screwed up motherboard?

The heatsink of the cpu is warm but not hot so i dont really know what is causing the burning. Maybe the cooler isnt seated properly but it appears to be clicked in properly and the computer had been working fine for about a month before this happened.

 

[stormy13]

Thanks, will try these options although i have stress tested it. In the past couple of days it has started to smell of burning when not running games, which is a bit worrying. From what i can see the temps for the cpu arent at all high. Multiple pieces of software say 40C although it is a bit strange that they all say 40C exactly and dont change. Maybe some of the sensors are dodgey. Would that indicate a screwed up motherboard?

The heatsink of the cpu is warm but not hot so i dont really know what is causing the burning. Maybe the cooler isnt seated properly but it appears to be clicked in properly and the computer had been working fine for about a month before this happened.

None of those things will cause a burning smell, not unless they are getting so hot that they are glowing. You might want to give this,

Check your PSU pal

serious consideration. If that is what it is, would be a real good idea to replace it with a good quality power supply (not finding a whole lot good about your current one) before it decides to kill itself and quite possibly take your motherboard and/or any other components with it.

 

[Carl Lawrence]

Yes, I think you should replace your power supply with a good one Now!!

 

[ChemicalAli]

Ok i will consider replacing it. However it isnt a bad power supply like you are suggesting its an Arctic Power power supply which isnt an unbranded cheapo one. However the burning smell isnt coming from that part of the case so why should it be the psu

 

[stormy13]

If you're sure it isn't the power supply, then start with removing the motherboard and giving it a good once over top and bottom, looking for any burn marks. If nothing is found then double check all the standoffs before replacing the board, and make sure that they are all in the correct place.

 

[ChemicalAli]

Hi

i found my psu was causing the burning smell so i took it apart and just shot the air out with some compressed air. That has got rid of the burning smell however the computer now crashes in a different way. When it crashes blocks appear on the screen however they are relatively transparent.

Event logs report this as application hangs. I will try another psu asap because i suspect this to be the cause of all my problems.

thanks for your help, if you have any more suggestions please let me know.

Thanks

 

[stormy13]

Only one, get a good quality PSU, not a no-name like the one you currently have (only good reviews I could find for it are on that ebuyer link, go figure). Something like one of these,

OCZ Stealth XStream 600W PSU - SLI Ready ATX2.2 12cm Fan - Ebuyer

would do very well.

 

[PooMan UK]

However the burning smell isnt coming from that part of the case so why should it be the psu

Hiya pal....

The main reason I said firstly to check out your PSU is because I've repaired countless machines with more or less the same problem that you are experiencing. You have more or less (thankfully) resolved yours.
My reply is more for others that may come across similar issues.

Most modern PC's have multiple fans, whilst this is great and does help with cooling it can also mask potential problems when it comes to troubleshooting. In "ChemicalAli" case this might have been the issue. The flow of air from your other fans ie. CPU fan, PSU, Case fans etc. may have been a factor in you not being able to pin point the exact problem area from where the "burning smell" was coming from.

My advice would be ....

Do not stick your nose near any moving parts thinking you might be able to smell where the problem is coming from ie. Fans etc. (it really hurts when a blade hits your nostril's at 2500 rpm)

When troubleshooting take each component 1 at a time and test thoroughly before moving on to the next one.

And lastly listen carefully to what others may recommend ... it may save you quite allot of money in the long run and apart from saving you a trip to A & E you could learn some valuable tips

But I'm glad that it looks like you've got it sorted so please let us know how it goes.

 

[ChemicalAli]

Ok chears for that. I was kinda looking for one a bit cheaper than that because im on a tightish budget. I found the one bellow on ebuyers site. Its another arctic power one but it has a lot of good reviews and its 700w. Would 600w be enough though. Ive got 3xHDD's, 2xDVD drives and so on.

Arctic Power 700W PSU - With PCI-E, 4x SATA, 20+4, ATX12V, 8pin +12V Connectors - Retail Boxed - Ebuyer

Thanks again

 

[stormy13]

That 600W OCZ I linked to is far and away better than that Arctic Power POS (heck the OCZ 500W is better), in fact I doubt that that 700W is actually 700W. One sure sign of a garbage PSU is when you can't find any reviews on them (users reviews on the site selling them don't count) and you can't find the specs (amps on the rails, etc).

Do yourself a favor and don't replace one power supply that tried dying (and would have most likely killed at least the motherboard when it went) with another of the same make. The PSU is the one component you don't want to cheap out on as it is the heart of the system, it doesn't work right nothing else will.

 

[ChemicalAli]

hi again.

I dont think it is the PSU. It was indeed the psu that was causing the burning smell but that has been iradicated by a bit of spring cleaning. However it still crashes and even after testing it with another psu that works perfectly it still crashes. Ive done some memory tests with no problems found and windows logs dont show anything. I have also reinstalled windows and this also did not help.

Im at a loose end with all of this. Everything that i have thought it could possibly be it hasnt been.

Any help?

chears

 

[PooMan UK]

Looks like your faulty PSU may have already damaged some of your components.

 

[ChemicalAli]

Well yes possibly but which one (s)? I need to be able to prove it to be able to get a refund on it.

 

[CarlTR6]

I would suggest that you do not continue to run your computer with a faulty PSU. Whether the burning smell is now gone or not, something in the PSU caused it in the first place and that has not healed by itself. Install a quality PSU and then you can begin to look for any components that it may have damaged. You have to have a reliable PSU to diagnose further problems. Without a reliable PSU, you will not be able to tell if your problem is being caused by the PSU or whether you, indeed, have other bad components.

 

[ChemicalAli]

ok well i will replace the psu however i have already tried the computer with another psu and the same thing happened so there must be something faulty. How do i test for specific pieces of kit being dodgey.

 

[PooMan UK]

Pal like we've said your 1st PSU was most properly faulty, which has maybe caused some damage to your components. A new PSU isn't going to fix this.
But you will still need a new PSU no matter what.
When you connect the new PSU go step by step ie. Connect each device/component one at a time, checking the stability of your system as you go. (don't rush) .... You might also want to remove and re-seat your CPU and Fan (clean thoroughly, then make sure you apply some new thermal paste correctly before re-seating the CPU fan.
Once you feel comfortable that the system seems OK, try installing windows with just your "screen card" "1 stick of memory" "1 hard drive" and "CD-Rom" connected and then slowly introduce any other devices, checking stability as you go.

If you are uncomfortable with any of these suggestions then I recommend that you seek out the advise of a professional who might be able to help you out with your dilemma.

 

[ChemicalAli]

k, thx