Computer Restarting During Demanding Games

[Chad Chadson]

Hello, my specs are as follows:

 

EVGA 980 Ti

i7 3770k 

mobo: gigabyte ga z77x d3h

1 TB HDD 

128 gb SSD

Corsair CX750M

The computer is about 3 1/2 years old.

 

The issue I keep having is that my computer will restart itself during demanding games. I tried games like overwatch at max (which I normally play no problem) and the computer simply restarts within 15 or so seconds of actually getting into a game. I troubleshooted by using the EVGA PrecisionX16 tool to lower power consumption from my card, and viola I was able to run overwatch at low settings without it constantly restarting (although it still restarts occasionally). I can run strategy games like Europa Universalis 4 without any issues but the issue only persists with these demanding games. 

 

During my troubleshooting with EVGA overlay I noticed something odd with the demanding games...for some reason the power consumption will randomly spike between 50-99% despite the 750 watts on my PSU being more than enough to run my system. Do you guys think this is a problem with the PSU or is one of my components using up more energy than it has to? All of the fans are working in my machine, including the one for the PSU (as far as I can tell) and I've taken apart the machine to look at the wiring and there doesn't appear to be anything out of place. I could really use some help as I'm at my wit's end and don't want to needlessly spend money on components that I don't need to replace. 

 

 

 

[nayman898]

30 minutes ago, Chad Chadson said:

 

During my troubleshooting with EVGA overlay I noticed something odd with the demanding games...for some reason the power consumption will randomly spike between 50-99% despite the 750 watts on my PSU being more than enough to run my system. Do you guys think this is a problem with the PSU or is one of my components using up more energy than it has to? All of the fans are working in my machine, including the one for the PSU (as far as I can tell) and I've taken apart the machine to look at the wiring and there doesn't appear to be anything out of place. I could really use some help as I'm at my wit's end and don't want to needlessly spend money on components that I don't need to replace. 

 

 

 

What I would recommend is testing the consistency of voltages from your PSU. Also, what rating is your PSU? The Ratings on a PSU determine its consistency to the rated power. In most cases PSU's get around 80% their rated wattage depending on their class. 80 Bronze for example is rated for at least 82% efficiency at 20% load, 85% at 50% load, and 82% at 100% load. As far as testing it go, a baseline test can be done with something like this. That is one that I use at work when I test PSU's and is relatively basic, and low cost, but remains accurate. The issue that is occurring does for the most part sound like a power issue, but I wouldn't want to jump the gun and guarantee. There is always a chance that a MB, RAM, or GPU could be at fault.

 

Test your PSU first, and if you have a second one lying around (Like me, I know not most people do NOT(editted)) Then just plug everything into that. You can try monitoring RAM do see if when it gets to a certain usage level it crashes, then try with 1 stick, or a different stick etc.

 

For thorough diagnostics:

1: Unplug Any peripherals in the device including non system vital PCI-e and USB devices (such as front panel USB), run tests (Benchmarking is a good test to keep it consistent)
2: If failure after that, Remove the Motherboard from the case and place it on either cardboard or an Anti-static surface and run the same test with only the vital system components installed.
3: If failure after that point, recommended to try testing on the component level, try different PSU, RAM, GFX Card, and MB if possible.

Good Luck!

Edited November 7, 2018 by nayman898

[Chad Chadson]

1 minute ago, nayman898 said:

What I would recommend is testing the consistency of voltages from your PSU. Also, what rating is your PSU? The Ratings on a PSU determine its consistency to the rated power. In most cases PSU's get around 80% their rated wattage depending on their class. 80 Bronze for example is rated for at least 82% efficiency at 20% load, 85% at 50% load, and 82% at 100% load. As far as testing it go, a baseline test can be done with something like this. That is one that I use at work when I test PSU's and is relatively basic, and low cost, but remains accurate. The issue that is occurring does for the most part sound like a power issue, but I wouldn't want to jump the gun and guarantee. There is always a chance that a MB, RAM, or GPU could be at fault.

 

Test your PSU first, and if you have a second one lying around (Like me, I know not most people do) Then just plug everything into that. You can try monitoring RAM do see if when it gets to a certain usage level it crashes, then try with 1 stick, or a different stick etc.

 

For thorough diagnostics:

1: Unplug Any peripherals in the device including non system vital PCI-e and USB devices (such as front panel USB), run tests (Benchmarking is a good test to keep it consistent)
2: If failure after that, Remove the Motherboard from the case and place it on either cardboard or an Anti-static surface and run the same test with only the vital system components installed.
3: If failure after that point, recommended to try testing on the component level, try different PSU, RAM, GFX Card, and MB if possible.

Good Luck!

It's Gold rated and the issue just spontaneously occurred a couple days ago after I went to bed and left it on, like usual. 

 

I'm ordering a new 750 W PSU and am going to switch it to see if it works. If it doesn't I really have no clue what the problem could be...

[Chad Chadson]

3 minutes ago, nayman898 said:

What I would recommend is testing the consistency of voltages from your PSU. Also, what rating is your PSU? The Ratings on a PSU determine its consistency to the rated power. In most cases PSU's get around 80% their rated wattage depending on their class. 80 Bronze for example is rated for at least 82% efficiency at 20% load, 85% at 50% load, and 82% at 100% load. As far as testing it go, a baseline test can be done with something like this. That is one that I use at work when I test PSU's and is relatively basic, and low cost, but remains accurate. The issue that is occurring does for the most part sound like a power issue, but I wouldn't want to jump the gun and guarantee. There is always a chance that a MB, RAM, or GPU could be at fault.

 

Test your PSU first, and if you have a second one lying around (Like me, I know not most people do) Then just plug everything into that. You can try monitoring RAM do see if when it gets to a certain usage level it crashes, then try with 1 stick, or a different stick etc.

 

For thorough diagnostics:

1: Unplug Any peripherals in the device including non system vital PCI-e and USB devices (such as front panel USB), run tests (Benchmarking is a good test to keep it consistent)
2: If failure after that, Remove the Motherboard from the case and place it on either cardboard or an Anti-static surface and run the same test with only the vital system components installed.
3: If failure after that point, recommended to try testing on the component level, try different PSU, RAM, GFX Card, and MB if possible.

Good Luck!

I'd also like to add that I know it's something to do with power 100%, it's just a matter of if it's the PSU for some reason not running at 100% efficiency or if my CPU/GPU are drawing way too much power (which has never happened in my entire time owning this computer). 

[nayman898]

5 minutes ago, Chad Chadson said:

I'd also like to add that I know it's something to do with power 100%, it's just a matter of if it's the PSU for some reason not running at 100% efficiency or if my CPU/GPU are drawing way too much power (which has never happened in my entire time owning this computer). 

It is much more likely a PSU issue that a power draw issue. The way that the components are created, they would fail if they were accidentally drawing too much power to the point of not working at all. Too much power going through something would fry it faster than just shutting down unexpectedly. 

As far as power consumption, you should definitely be fine. I run an 850w 80+ titanium PSU in my primary kit right now (my gold died T-T) and I am running an AMD FX-9590 at 250w (oc'd) and an RX580 at 230W and then all my extra peripherals like fans and liquid cooling (ya need it with an fx9590) and I have had no power draw issues (then again, a titanium is 90%+) In most cases computers don't normally draw more than 600w, especially with yours having relatively efficient components.

[Chad Chadson]

2 minutes ago, nayman898 said:

It is much more likely a PSU issue that a power draw issue. The way that the components are created, they would fail if they were accidentally drawing too much power to the point of not working at all. Too much power going through something would fry it faster than just shutting down unexpectedly. 

As far as power consumption, you should definitely be fine. I run an 850w 80+ titanium PSU in my primary kit right now (my gold died T-T) and I am running an AMD FX-9590 at 250w (oc'd) and an RX580 at 230W and then all my extra peripherals like fans and liquid cooling (ya need it with an fx9590) and I have had no power draw issues (then again, a titanium is 90%+) In most cases computers don't normally draw more than 600w, especially with yours having relatively efficient components.

Is there a program I could use to test how much each one of my components is using while in game? All EVGA gives me is a percentage which I have no clue what is supposed to indicate. 

[Chad Chadson]

4 minutes ago, nayman898 said:

It is much more likely a PSU issue that a power draw issue. The way that the components are created, they would fail if they were accidentally drawing too much power to the point of not working at all. Too much power going through something would fry it faster than just shutting down unexpectedly. 

As far as power consumption, you should definitely be fine. I run an 850w 80+ titanium PSU in my primary kit right now (my gold died T-T) and I am running an AMD FX-9590 at 250w (oc'd) and an RX580 at 230W and then all my extra peripherals like fans and liquid cooling (ya need it with an fx9590) and I have had no power draw issues (then again, a titanium is 90%+) In most cases computers don't normally draw more than 600w, especially with yours having relatively efficient components.

Running completely idle my gpu is using up 856 MV according to EVGA, is this normal? 

[nayman898]

2 minutes ago, Chad Chadson said:

Is there a program I could use to test how much each one of my components is using while in game? All EVGA gives me is a percentage which I have no clue what is supposed to indicate. 

I normally use CPUID HWMonitor and that should show you wattage pulled

[nayman898]

1 minute ago, Chad Chadson said:

Running completely idle my gpu is using up 856 MV according to EVGA, is this normal? 

That is relatively normal to save power it goes into a low voltage state and then should bump up and remain consistent when under load

[Chad Chadson]

1 minute ago, nayman898 said:

I normally use CPUID HWMonitor and that should show you wattage pulled

Is there anything odd you notice here while I'm running idle?

 

The memory usage under clocks seems really high...

 

 

[nayman898]

1 minute ago, Chad Chadson said:

Is there anything odd you notice here while I'm running idle?

 

The memory usage under clocks seems really high...

 

Yes, they definitely do. Check the Windows Task Manager to see if they record the same speed. If they do, that would concern me to thinking the RAM is failing. Have you done any overclocking in the past? If so, I would recommend reverting your BIOS to default settings and try checking your memory speeds again.

[Chad Chadson]

Just now, nayman898 said:

Yes, they definitely do. Check the Windows Task Manager to see if they record the same speed. If they do, that would concern me to thinking the RAM is failing. Have you done any overclocking in the past? If so, I would recommend reverting your BIOS to default settings and try checking your memory speeds again.

On the right is shows the usage

 

[Chad Chadson]

10 minutes ago, nayman898 said:

Yes, they definitely do. Check the Windows Task Manager to see if they record the same speed. If they do, that would concern me to thinking the RAM is failing. Have you done any overclocking in the past? If so, I would recommend reverting your BIOS to default settings and try checking your memory speeds again.

Sometimes I'll be doing something as simple as opening up a tab or saving something and the power usage will spike from around 10% to 50% then go back down

[nayman898]

3 minutes ago, Chad Chadson said:

On the right is shows the usage

 

 

Interesting... I might still recommend defaulting your BIOS just in case some setting is messed up. I have never seen CPU ID mess up that badly on recording RAM speeds. Temperatures sure, but not RAM speeds. I am not sure (myself) of other software to use to test

 

 

1 minute ago, Chad Chadson said:

Sometimes I'll be doing something as simple as opening up a tab or saving something and the power usage will spike from around 10% to 50% then go back down

Is this GPU power levels?

[Chad Chadson]

1 minute ago, nayman898 said:

Interesting... I might still recommend defaulting your BIOS just in case some setting is messed up. I have never seen CPU ID mess up that badly on recording RAM speeds. Temperatures sure, but not RAM speeds. I am not sure (myself) of other software to use to test

 

 

Is this GPU power levels?

The GPU does seem to be what takes the most power when I play games, as stated before if I lower settings to the lowest possible and then use EVGA Precision to limit the GPU to 60% power usage I can usually run games for much longer. I will attempt to show you what I mean in overwatch (hopefully it doesn't crash before I can screenshot it lol) give me a minute. 

[Chad Chadson]

5 minutes ago, nayman898 said:

Interesting... I might still recommend defaulting your BIOS just in case some setting is messed up. I have never seen CPU ID mess up that badly on recording RAM speeds. Temperatures sure, but not RAM speeds. I am not sure (myself) of other software to use to test

 

 

Is this GPU power levels?

Unfortunately it won't screenshot the problem but let me explain it...

 

Basically even in the main menu my Power draw will spike up to the high 80%s and the memory clock is at 3600mhz for some reason. Is it possible that my RAM is the thing causing power issues? If so, is there possibly a program I have installed causing it to overclock so massively during games? 

[Chad Chadson]

7 minutes ago, nayman898 said:

Interesting... I might still recommend defaulting your BIOS just in case some setting is messed up. I have never seen CPU ID mess up that badly on recording RAM speeds. Temperatures sure, but not RAM speeds. I am not sure (myself) of other software to use to test

 

 

Is this GPU power levels?

 

1 minute ago, Chad Chadson said:

Unfortunately it won't screenshot the problem but let me explain it...

 

Basically even in the main menu my Power draw will spike up to the high 80%s and the memory clock is at 3600mhz for some reason. Is it possible that my RAM is the thing causing power issues? If so, is there possibly a program I have installed causing it to overclock so massively during games? 

I managed to get a screenshot, here ya go

[nayman898]

1 minute ago, Chad Chadson said:

Unfortunately it won't screenshot the problem but let me explain it...

 

Basically even in the main menu my Power draw will spike up to the high 80%s and the memory clock is at 3600mhz for some reason. Is it possible that my RAM is the thing causing power issues? If so, is there possibly a program I have installed causing it to overclock so massively during games? 

I am being silly, and have been outdated. If you have 3600MHz RAM than that is normal, but make sure other components can handle that speed, such as your MB and your CPU.

 

My mistake.

[Chad Chadson]

Just now, nayman898 said:

I am being silly, and have been outdated. If you have 3600MHz RAM than that is normal, but make sure other components can handle that speed, such as your MB and your CPU.

 

My mistake.

Yeah I was a bit confused about that.

 

So have we narrowed it down to most likely being a PSU issue? If I frankenstein my machine and run the GPU at 60% max draw and the CPU at 60% it doesn't crash during games, albeit I lower the in-game settings for that. 

[nayman898]

1 minute ago, Chad Chadson said:

Yeah I was a bit confused about that.

 

So have we narrowed it down to most likely being a PSU issue? If I frankenstein my machine and run the GPU at 60% max draw and the CPU at 60% it doesn't crash during games, albeit I lower the in-game settings for that. 

I would say yes, most likely a PSU issue

[Chad Chadson]

Just now, nayman898 said:

I would say yes, most likely a PSU issue

What would cause the PSU to only be able to draw a limited amount of its 750W though? Is it possible that I have a setting on my computer causing it to do this? I looked at it and it appeared to be in order with cables and such. Keep in mind I didn't touch it before going to bed a few days ago and when I woke up and tried to play games it would randomly restart in games. 

[nayman898]

2 minutes ago, Chad Chadson said:

What would cause the PSU to only be able to draw a limited amount of its 750W though? Is it possible that I have a setting on my computer causing it to do this? I looked at it and it appeared to be in order with cables and such. Keep in mind I didn't touch it before going to bed a few days ago and when I woke up and tried to play games it would randomly restart in games. 

Have you had any power surges or issues with other devices? Power delivery can be very sensitive, and if a surge went through your power supply, they usually catch them, but at the cost of the PSU. If it is on a surge protector, you want to make sure that the surge protector is replaced every year or so. They wear out over time, and can eventually not actually protect against and surges or power abnormalities. And if this is the case, where a capacitor or coil has been effected, then when the PSU gets to a certain power usage, it would just stop running.

[Chad Chadson]

17 minutes ago, nayman898 said:

Have you had any power surges or issues with other devices? Power delivery can be very sensitive, and if a surge went through your power supply, they usually catch them, but at the cost of the PSU. If it is on a surge protector, you want to make sure that the surge protector is replaced every year or so. They wear out over time, and can eventually not actually protect against and surges or power abnormalities. And if this is the case, where a capacitor or coil has been effected, then when the PSU gets to a certain power usage, it would just stop running.

I don't know of any power surges that occurred although it's possible.Thanks for the help, hopefully my new PSU arrives soon and I can update you on whether or not the issue got resolved.