Weird pc crash/freeze/reboot that happens AFTER exiting game or stress test software

[code99]

So, ive done a lot of work in diagnosing pc issues in the past but this time, im lost.

 

I built my friend a pc a couple of months ago.

 

Specs: 

AMD Ryzen 5 3600 (with stock cooler)

MSI GeForce RTX 2060 VENTUS XS OC 6GB

NZXT E Series E500, 80+ Gold, 500W

ASRock B450 PRO4

Corsair Vengeance LPX Black 16GB DDR4 3200MHz

Crucial 1TB SATA SSD

 

This pc is used for gaming and only gaming at 1080p 60hz.

This pc worked flawlessly until last week. Thats i think over 2 months of gaming.

There is no overclock applied to this pc (except for XMP)

 

Now, this pc crashes AFTER exiting a game. You can play a game for hours on end, no crashes, nothing. Frames are good, temps are good (never over 75 degrees for both CPU and GPU), there is no dust in the system, everything is plugged in properly.

As soon as you exit a game after your play session, after a few seconds (~ 10) the pc freezes and then either reboots itself or stays frozen with the monitor going black.

 

I ran cinebench 20 a bunch of times, no crash.

I ran furemark for over an hour at max settings, no crash during the test. As soon as i exited the test, within a few seconds, pc froze and rebooted ...

 

 

Whats going on? 

Any suggestions?

 

I thought it may be the gpu but why doesnt it crash during gameplay or during the stress test? Why only AFTER you exit the game or stress test?

My friend literally played for 3-4 hours straight, no issues during play, temps were fine but as soon as he quit the game, pc crashed.

 

If we play or run tests for a short time (lets say less than 30 minutes) and we exit said game or test, pc doesnt crash. It appears to only happen after a prolonged session

 

Another weird thing is that this system worked perfectly fine for over 2 months ...

 

Tomorrow i will format the main (and only) drive and reinstall windows and try this again and see how it goes.

[boggy77]

ram in slots 2 and 4? try a bios update

[code99]

Just now, boggy77 said:

ram in slots 2 and 4? try a bios update

Ram in slots 1 and 3

 

Will try bios update, didnt think of this, might help

[boggy77]

2 minutes ago, code99 said:

Ram in slots 1 and 3

 

Will try bios update, didnt think of this, might help

move it to 2 and 4

[code99]

Just now, boggy77 said:

move it to 2 and 4

will do

 

Why tho?

[boggy77]

9 minutes ago, code99 said:

will do

 

Why tho?

it's the preferred channels. if you look in the motherboard manual, it will show you that when you have two ram sticks, they should be in 2 and 4. any other config might cause instability.

[code99]

2 minutes ago, boggy77 said:

it's the preferred channels. if you look in the motherboard manual, it will show you that when you have two ram sticks, they should be in 2 and 4. any other config might cause instability.

Huh, didnt know this.

 

I've build several systems for me and my faminly/friends and always had 2 sticks placed in 1 and 3 slots, never had an issue.

 

Anyway, i moved the ram to 3 and 4 and started furmark test again. Will see how it behaves after 1 hour of test.

 

If it still crashes i will update the bios, there is a newer version available.

[Energycore]

20 minutes ago, code99 said:

I ran cinebench 20 a bunch of times, no crash.

I ran furemark for over an hour at max settings, no crash during the test. As soon as i exited the test, within a few seconds, pc froze and rebooted ...

This is important info. Cinebench is a CPU only test and Furmark is a GPU only test. Since Cinebench didn't crash after the run, you can immediately suspect a GPU error.

 

I was first thinking that it could be a transient load not handled well by your PSU, but the model you have is very good, very premium. So I would go with GPU. Reset any overclocking (though it seemed like you didn't OC), or try wiping your drivers with DDU and reinstalling.

[code99]

4 minutes ago, Energycore said:

This is important info. Cinebench is a CPU only test and Furmark is a GPU only test. Since Cinebench didn't crash after the run, you can immediately suspect a GPU error.

 

I was first thinking that it could be a transient load not handled well by your PSU, but the model you have is very good, very premium. So I would go with GPU. Reset any overclocking (though it seemed like you didn't OC), or try wiping your drivers with DDU and reinstalling.

Yes, no OC applied.

 

I will DDU the drivers tho just as soon this stress test finishes (if it still crashes)

 

I too suspected gpu from the start but I still find it weird that i can play or run gpu stress test for hours on end without it crashing but as soon as i exit game or app it crashes ... 

[code99]

Well, I decided to update the bios but turns out i have the latest version already so I moved to the next thing to try and that is, as @boggy77 suggested, to move the ram sticks from slot 1 and 3 to slot 2 and 4.

 

After several stress tests and longer gaming sessions, it appears the system is finally stable. I havent had a single crash yet.

 

I would like to thank you all for your help and especially @boggy77 

 

Never had such issues with ram and what slots they sit but then again never had an AMD system before, maybe its an amd thing.

[boggy77]

4 hours ago, code99 said:

Well, I decided to update the bios but turns out i have the latest version already so I moved to the next thing to try and that is, as @boggy77 suggested, to move the ram sticks from slot 1 and 3 to slot 2 and 4.

 

After several stress tests and longer gaming sessions, it appears the system is finally stable. I havent had a single crash yet.

 

I would like to thank you all for your help and especially @boggy77 

 

Never had such issues with ram and what slots they sit but then again never had an AMD system before, maybe its an amd thing.

It is an amd thing. Glad it's working now.