Computer freezes semi-randomly when playing games, passes stress tests

[langolyers]

I've been having this issue frequently the past week or so and haven't found a solution anywhere, so maybe someone here can help.

First of all, the computer. I've had it since 2011, except for the GPU and SSD, which were recent upgrades. Memory was also replaced recently through warranty.

EVGA X58 SLI3 motherboard
Intel I7 960 3.2 GHz (stock frequency)
Corsair Vengeance 3x4GB 1600 MHZ DDR3
Galak Geforce GTX 1070
Corsair CMPSU-950TX 950W PSU
Crucial BX100 500GB SSD

he computer freezes while running a game. Video stops wherever it is, sound remains for one or two seconds and then stops as well. The HDD access light also stops after a couple of seconds and only a hard reset will unlock the computer. Checking the event log afterwards, I had always 4 occurrances of event id 10016, which MS says is non-intrusive. I did apply the following fixes:

http://www.tomshardware.com/faq/id-3128597/windows-error-10016.html

https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/windows8_1-performance/error-event-id-10016-distributedcom/130522d2-beac-4495-980a-65e1e3279901

which didn't solve the problem. Instead I now get event id 35, which I've been getting occasionally for the past few months associated with the computer locking up, but seems to be more frequent now.

I've ran memtest86+, Prime95, Hot CPU Tester, Furmark to stress test different components, all of them ran without error for at least an hour each (the freezes occur within a minute of starting a game). Intel Processor Diagnostics Tool indicates a failure on the IMC.

I suspect hardware, honestly. The third channel in my RAM slots has failed, which means I can only use 8GB instead of the 12GB. Visually there doesn't seem to be any issues with the motherboard, no swollen or blown capacitors. I'm just not completely sure it is hardware because the error only seems to occur with games, and no amount of stress testing was capable of reproducing it.

Thank you for the help.

 

[BadDragon]

It could be quite a few things on your system. Seeing as it's almost 8 years old or even older, the PSU could be giving you dirty power, meaning it's not stable and fluctuates too much for your PC to handle in a game. Games use almost a all parts of the CPU, gpu, ram, hard drive, etc, but stress tests only test certain bits at a time and not the whole. It could also be that faulty ram slot, if there's anything in it and the computer trys using it it might give you problems. The motherboard itself might just be dying, even if you can't tell visually sometimes parts just wear out and won't work properly anymore. The CPU might be faulty after running for so long even on stock clocks, the gpu could be causing a kernal issue, but it's a 10 series so leave that as a last resort fix as it's still basically new. I suggest buying a new motherboard, ram, CPU, and PSU. That old cpu, even if the PC still worked perfectly, might end up holding the gpu back in games anyway. If I were you I'd go Ryzen, maybe the new 2600, or wait for a 4c 8t Ryzen2 to come out. If the computer only fails in games then you may still be able to use it as a secondary computer for video capture, or servers, or an htpc for the living room, or even a nas setup. I hope that helped a little, I'm sorry your system isn't working dude, a bum PC sucks, especially in today's market. If you need any help picking parts let me know.

 

[Danra]

The motherboard needs replaced. You can use a different type. If you get a different type you will need to contact Microsoft and get a new key for Windows operating system. Tell them your old board is defective and you were forced to purchase a different one. Although Microsoft may give you a new key, they are not required to.

And, the age of your PSU is a factor. If it is older than six years I would personally replace it. Find one in the 600 to 700 watt range that is recommended by jonnyGURU.com, he is the best reviewer.
Here are a few PSUs, purchase them where what you want cost the least:
https://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=100007657%2050001459%2050001697%20600479295%20600037997%20600037998%204814&IsNodeId=1&bop=And&Order=PRICE&PageSize=36