PC Randomly Freezes and Emits Buzzing Sound From Headphones

[tarheel90]

I mostly see this when gaming. It will be running smoothly and then all of a sudden the screen completely freezes and a loud buzzing sound plays in my headphones. Sometimes it's after 15 minutes, other times it's after an hour or so of playing. The only way I can get it to stop is holding down the power button. Here are my specs:

 

Windows 10 (latest version)

Intel 6600k

Asus Z-170 Pro

Corsair Vengeance LPX 2x8GB DDR4 3000 MHz

EVGA GTX 970

EVGA SuperNova GS 650W

 

I've noticed it crash while playing PUBG and Fortnite most recently, but really any fairly graphically intensive game will have the same result. Only time I saw it happen not related to gaming was the other night on a Google Hangouts call. I wasn't running many programs or anything, but the same thing happened.

 

Here's what I've tried:

• Made sure I have the latest version of Windows 10 installed
• Updated graphics card drivers
• Ran Memtest86 -- results were normal
• Ran a few CPU/GPU benchmark/stress tests (Cinebench, Unigine) and monitored temps of CPU/GPU -- GPU only got up to 79 C and CPU was mid-60s C
• Monitored temps while playing Fortnite -- temps similar to benchmark/stress tests

I'm honestly out of ideas at this point other than trying to reseat GPU, CPU, RAM, etc. and see if that improves. Anyone have any idea as to what might be causing this?

[sillypenguin213]

Vcore might too low. 

[tarheel90]

Is Vcore the voltage setting for the CPU? As far as I know I just have the BIOS set to automatically choose the best values. I'm not currently overclocking my CPU at all. Does this mean you're thinking this could be related to an issue with my CPU?

[tarheel90]

I’ve now taken everything out of my PC and reseated the GPU, RAM, and CPU (new thermal paste). The buzzing sound is gone, but now the screen goes black and the monitor shows “No Signal” after playing anywhere from 30 minutes to 1 hour. I’m not sure if this is just a GPU issue or something else. Anyone have any ideas?

[tripimus]

so the computer turns on and runs ? or it just goes black? ie no post screen no windows?

[tarheel90]

Yeah, sorry let me clarify what's happening. The computer turns on fine and seems to work fine in general. However, once I start playing a game (Fortnite for example), it seems to run well for 30 minutes or so and then my screen goes black with the sound still playing. A message on my monitor appears saying there is no signal, and the audio seems to replay the same bit of sound from the game over and over again like it's frozen. I did notice a bit of stuttering when I first load into a new match in Fortnite, but I can't tell if that's just normal behavior or something network related.