Solved PC Freezes then HDD makes clicking sounds.

[Layback Bear]

Could you give us a clue what power supply you are using at this time.
Please update your (My System Specs) with that information.

A bad power supply can take out the complete computer.
Been there, done that.

 

[Devadip]

I will update my specs as soon as I have time to unplug my PC. Also, I don't want to pay too much for a PSU. How about this one?

 

[townsbg]

I felt like I was cursed lol. I lost 3 disks in 4 years (Kingston, WD and Seagate).

@AddRam I'm pretty sure I have a load cycle problem. All the HDDs I had were WD Cavillar.

So which is it?

 

[Devadip]

@townsbg My bad. My SSD was a Kingston, but my HDDs were WD. The Seagate one was my old HDD that I kept for 6-7 years (this one was part of my previous system and had never been connected to my Gateway desktop). I mixed them up by mistake.

I'm a bit confused since I lost two HDDs (possibly because of a load cycle problems) BUT I also lost an SSD not long before my first HDD died. It might have been bad luck... I don't know...

Either way, I think I'll be better off replacing my PSU.

 

[alphaniner]

Failure of three HDDs forms a pattern. The additional failure of an SSD doesn't necessarily fit into that pattern. It could very well have just been bad luck.

If we were to assume all were related, it would actually narrow things down. HDDs require 12V and 5V, the former for mechanical components and the latter for circuitry. SSDs only make use of 5V (or in some cases 3.3V). Granted, I have no idea what we'd do with that information. 5V is perhaps the least important voltage as far as the motherboard is concerned, but that doesn't mean it's unimportant.

 

[Devadip]

Here are the specs of my current PSU:

Brand: FSP Group INC.
Model: FSP750-80APG
You can see all the specs here.

 

[townsbg]

It doesn't matter what the tech specs are. It is likely correct however I think that it is overloading the hard drives causing the failure. I agree with you on replacing the psu.

 

[alphaniner]

I'm not trying to say that replacing the PSU is a bad idea, but I don't think we have enough information to say it's likely the cause. In every case where I've seen voltage tolerances published for desktop HDDs they were even more "liberal" than the ATX spec (+10% vs +5%).

 

[Devadip]

Now that I think about it, I had problems booting my PC at some point in the past. It would not get past the Gateway logo, but after a second time, it would boot correctly.

I realized my external hard drive (a drive I kept connected to the computer, not the HDDs we talked about) had bad sectors and when I got rid of it, the booting problems dissapeared but came back (less frequently) a couple months after. It still happens, but it is intermittent. It can occur once in two months or something like that.

My external hard drive was about 3 years old when I found out it had bad sectors. I forgot to mention I had it hooked up to my PC for a while and then it started malfunctioning. It has probably been damaged when I accidently knock him over a little bit. It's one of those vertical WD external HDDs. I had little to no space on my desk back then and it just flipped on the side when I knocked it over.

Considering this, what do you guys think? A 3 years old external HDD with bad sectors + an intermittent booting problem. Can a bad PSU really affect USB peripherals such as external hard drives?

Moral of the story: Never spend your money on a Gateway/Acer computer lol

 

[alphaniner]

Of all the problems an HDD (internal or external) can suffer, bad sectors is the last one I'd attribute to power issues.

You may be able to disable the Gateway logo via BIOS. That would cause normal POST output to be displayed, which may provide some clues as to what goes wrong when it fails to boot. Without further detail it's another symptom strengthening the case for PSU replacement.

In that regard I have just one piece of advice: don't shop with the mindset of finding a replacement PSU for this machine. Shop with the mindset of finding a quality PSU that will last you for years to come. The EVGA model AddRAM mentioned earlier is similarly priced to the Rosewill model you linked, but carries a 10yr parts & labor warranty vs. the Rosewill's 3yr parts and 1yr labor.

 

[Devadip]

Yeah, I perfectly understand your point. I will indeed shop for a new PSU + I plan on building a new pc maybe next year. I was thinking of a Haswell system. This way, I could choose my PSU accordingly.

 

[Devadip]

I don't want to spend too much on a PSU though. The CAN$ is sh*t atm. I'm not sure if I want to pay $160 for a PSU. What about this one? It supports Haswell CPUs as far as I know.

 

[alphaniner]

Keep in mind that different 'lines' from the same manufacturer may carry different warranties. For EVGA models you can refer to EVGA Power Supplies Warranty Terms.

 

[Devadip]

Hmmm... According to Newegg, I have a 3 year warranty and according to EVGA Warranty Terms, the models with the -VR prefixes have a 5 year warranty. Since Newegg is an authorized reseller, does that mean I can benefit from the 5 year warranty?

 

[alphaniner]

Newegg.com shows 5yr, I guess you're looking at newegg.ca? Since the page I linked specifically indicates the warranty details apply to Canada, it's probably just a newegg mistake. But I'd contact EVGA to be sure.

 

[Devadip]

Yeah, I was looking at newegg.ca. I will contact EVGA. Also, do I really need a 750W PSU? My GPU only need 500W so I would probaly be all right with a 650W PSU. What do you think?

Oh well... Nevermind. The 650W EVGA PSUs they have on newegg.ca are more expensive than the 750W 110-B1-0750-VR. There is a refurbished one, but I prefer a brand new PSU.

 

[Devadip]

I'm pretty sure there are different policies between US and Canada. If you buy from the US, you get a 5 year warranty, but if you buy from Canada, it's 3 years.

 

[alphaniner]

These warranty terms are valid ... within the regions of the Continental United States, Alaska, Hawaii, and Canada.

I'd be willing to bet you can take that at face value. That said, "trust but verify".

 

[Devadip]

They said I can get an extended warranty if I register using my invoice. It will indeed be a 5 year warranty. That's the actual message:


Hello,

This specific power supply model as well as all other power supplies have a standard transferable 3yr warranty. If you are the original owner and register it along with a valid invoice then you would receive an extended warranty depending on the model. This one particularly receives a 5yr warranty if registered to the original owner. If you have any concerns or further questions you may contact our Support Team at 888-881-3842 who are available 24/7.

Regards,
EVGA

 

[Devadip]

Is it safe using WDIDLE3 on my WDEZRX HDD? Now that I know that the noise is related to a load cycle issue, is it really worth fixing? According to this post, I could use WDIDLE3 to modify the load cycle. If I don't fix it, what are the consequences? There must be a reason why WD programmed them that way.