new build, keeps crashing

[Mattt9]

ok, before i begin, i am a computer builder and have built many computers over the past several years. xp, vista, and 7.

i recently built a computer for my brother and everything as been a disaster. a lot of it is him not knowing much about computers, but also because i am over there every other day trying to get the thing to run stable. here's a list of problems i have had.

1.i had to install windows 7 with a ps2 mouse because it simply wouldnt install with a usb mouse.

2. no programs would install from dvd drive, (had to get another dvd drive)

3. memory and driver related crashes.

4. faulty keyboard - (brand new razor keyboard)

5. windows explorer errors and crashes.

so far, i think i have fixed the majority of the issues. the memory timings and frequency had to be changed in bios in order to pass memtest and other memory diganotics tools. the mobo had it running at different timings then what they should have been. also, the mobo wouldnt run the ram at 1333, and i had to run it at 1066.

explorer keeps freezing from time to time and i dont know how to fix this. i run windows 7 and dont have any issues on my pc.

all drivers have been updated, sound, chipset, video, etc... (havnt flashed bios yet and might at somepoint if i need too)

i researched the razor keyboard in question and found that many people had problems with it freezing up, crashing games, or even the OS. hopefully the newer logitech keyboard will fix that.

i dont know why i ran into all these issues, i guess it was finnally time for something to go wrong with one of my builds. lol

i guess where i'm at now, is does anyone think i should just try a reformat now that the memory seems to be straitened out ?

i did run scf/ scannow and no errors were detected. same with the check disk utility.

 

[zigzag3143]

ok, before i begin, i am a computer builder and have built many computers over the past several years. xp, vista, and 7.

i recently built a computer for my brother and everything as been a disaster. a lot of it is him not knowing much about computers, but also because i am over there every other day trying to get the thing to run stable. here's a list of problems i have had.

1.i had to install windows 7 with a ps2 mouse because it simply wouldnt install with a usb mouse.

2. no programs would install from dvd drive, (had to get another dvd drive)

3. memory and driver related crashes.

4. faulty keyboard - (brand new razor keyboard)

5. windows explorer errors and crashes.

so far, i think i have fixed the majority of the issues. the memory timings and frequency had to be changed in bios in order to pass memtest and other memory diganotics tools. the mobo had it running at different timings then what they should have been. also, the mobo wouldnt run the ram at 1333, and i had to run it at 1066.

explorer keeps freezing from time to time and i dont know how to fix this. i run windows 7 and dont have any issues on my pc.

all drivers have been updated, sound, chipset, video, etc... (havnt flashed bios yet and might at somepoint if i need too)

i researched the razor keyboard in question and found that many people had problems with it freezing up, crashing games, or even the OS. hopefully the newer logitech keyboard will fix that.

i dont know why i ran into all these issues, i guess it was finnally time for something to go wrong with one of my builds. lol

i guess where i'm at now, is does anyone think i should just try a reformat now that the memory seems to be straitened out ?

i did run scf/ scannow and no errors were detected. same with the check disk utility.

Hi matt

a couple of ideas.
What PSU is installed?
it might be a heat issue.
definitely hardware. I dont think re-installing would help

Ken J+

 

[Wishmaster]

What Motherboard is it?
Its possible some of these problems are known issues, and a bios update could resolve it.

 

[nate42nd]

Also, shut down, take the memory out and "re-seat" it. I have seen cases where a piece of cardboard or plastic get caught in there. Blow out the slots with air. It's an idea.....

 

[mckillwashere]

IS you memory on the MB's QVL?
If not it could be a memory issue.

 

[Mattt9]

i have tried to re seat the memory. case is clean and has great cooling. it has 3, 140mm fans, and a 120 mm fan. i installed a OCZ 600 watt modular psu. the motherboard is a Gigabyte MA785GT-UDH3 revision 1.0

the only reason i switched the memory timings is because i read on newegg that someone had the same exact problems. by default the memory was supposed to be at 8 8 8 21 , and the motherboard forced it to 9 9 9 24 .

i'm hoping the keyboard was the culprit and so far so good.

 

[ignatzatsonic]

For clarification:

Are explorer crashes and keyboard your only current issues?

If so, I certainly wouldn't think a reinstall would help, but I might do it anyway if I did not have a lot of programs installed already. If you reinstall, install the chipset drivers immediately after Windows installation completes.

Do you have another PSU you could swap in temporarily?

Are you satisfied through googling that the Gigabyte mobo has no particular correlation to explorer crashes?

 

[Mattt9]

i havnt seen any explorer crashes since the new keyboard. and i myself own a gigabyte board with a similar chipset so i hope its not the issue. i think the PSU is fine and i doubt it would cause IE8 to do what its doing. i guess i'll keep monitoring it over the next serveral days and see what the outcome is. i would hate to reformat , but will if all else fails. thanks for all the feedback and suggestions !

 

[mckillwashere]

Here is a really neat program
Resplendence Software - WhoCrashed, automatic crash dump analyzer
It tells you what programs are crashing and why

 

[nate42nd]

i have tried to re seat the memory. case is clean and has great cooling. it has 3, 140mm fans, and a 120 mm fan. i installed a OCZ 600 watt modular psu. the motherboard is a Gigabyte MA785GT-UDH3 revision 1.0

the only reason i switched the memory timings is because i read on newegg that someone had the same exact problems. by default the memory was supposed to be at 8 8 8 21 , and the motherboard forced it to 9 9 9 24 .

i'm hoping the keyboard was the culprit and so far so good.

How about memory voltage? Is that set to the voltage on the sticker on the memory?

That's another idea. Also, memory multiplier is something to check.

Good luck

 

[Mattt9]

voltage is fine, its at 1.5 which is recommended.

 

[mckillwashere]

Check out the link I sent you.
It will tell you whats crashing and why.

 

[Mattt9]

yeah, next time i go over my brothers house, i'll install that program. thanks !

 

[usasma]

If it's a new build and you have all these issues with a stock installation - you've either got a bunch of different problems (less likely) or a single problem (more likely).

Where do all the problems (that you're having) meet? IMO it's the motherboard. I'd suggest RMA'ing the motherboard and see what happens.