[SOLVED] Computer randomly freezes, windows 7

[tristanhemm]

Alright, so for context, I've had my system for about 3-4 years now, but as of about a week ago, it has started to randomly freeze, regardless of what I'm doing or if there is any load on the system at all, it just happens seemingly randomly, requiring a hard reboot to fix, it never lifts or resumes. Sound also stops when it happens. However, it never happens during safe mode w/ networking I've found, also regardless of what I'm doing or however much load I put on it, so I feel it is a software thing, but I've also not downloaded or installed anything major within the past week or two besides various diagnostic software to attempt to fix this issue. I've also replaced my hdd thinking it was a failing drive, which I think was contributing to it but hasn't ultimately fixed the problem. I've also done sfc scannow scans, which found nothing, I've also updated as many drivers as I could possibly find newer drivers for, so unless I'm missing something there, that's mostly "fixed", which didn't seem to do much. I've also ran ccleaner, which fixed nothing. I've also been monitoring my thermals and performance across all of my parts, performing stress tests as available, with no noticeable issues. No notable error logs in the event viewer either, though I can't exactly tell what's important in event logs. I've only got put to BSOD once, which has not happened again. There are also times when I can go several hours with no issue, others where I can't go five minutes past boot, if that helps. I've also attempted powering my computer on different outlets and circuits, still crashes. So, without further ado, my specs:

OS: Windows 7 Ultimate x64, fully updated with every update available on windows update
Motherboard: Gigabyte 990fxa-ud3 r5
CPU: AMD FX9590 8-core
Graphics Card: Nvidia Geforce GTX 960
HDD: Seagate Barracuda ST1000DM 010-2EP102 SATA
PSU: I forget, but it's rather old, however I still don't think this part is an issue because it's never crashed during safe mode, however I am unable to actually test it's output with software, so idk

If there's any other part I've forgotten, I'm happy to provide it, I'm just not very experienced with giving important computer details.

Quick edit: It should be noted that I've tried most things that show up on the first two pages of google and then some, if that helps the process any. I'm also actively trying to update the post with as much info as I can come up with so if some details are added after you read, that's what's going on.

 

[Barty1884]

With a 9590, there's a bunch of potential problems - primarily the VRMs on the motherboard, the 9590 was just a horrible CPU with a ridiculous power draw and too demanding for most boards.

That being said, the 990fxa-ud3 Rev5 is a compatible board and, assuming the VRMs haven't simply degraded over time, you should at least be somewhat stable.


With the fact you're not seeing any issues in SafeMode, it might be an OS/Software related issue.
When you replaced the HDD, did you clean install the OS? Or just clone the old drive?

If cloned, you took the good/bad/ugly, and I'd suggest starting "fresh" with a clean OS install - that'll help you rule in/out a software issue.

 

[tristanhemm]

With a 9590, there's a bunch of potential problems - primarily the VRMs on the motherboard, the 9590 was just a horrible CPU with a ridiculous power draw and too demanding for most boards.

That being said, the 990fxa-ud3 Rev5 is a compatible board and, assuming the VRMs haven't simply degraded over time, you should at least be somewhat stable.


With the fact you're not seeing any issues in SafeMode, it might be an OS/Software related issue.
When you replaced the HDD, did you clean install the OS? Or just clone the old drive?

If cloned, you took the good/bad/ugly, and I'd suggest starting "fresh" with a clean OS install - that'll help you rule in/out a software issue.

I cloned, so would I need to do a complete wipe of my drive and reinstall or can I just reinstall the OS and leave the rest of my stuff alone? It's just that my computer came with a lot of drivers and stuff preinstalled that I'm not sure would stick around after a reinstall, so that might cause problems, what would you advise? For the record, my pc wasn't a prebuilt, it was just assembled by cyberpower

 

[Barty1884]

Unless you have a secondary drive that your games/files etc are stored on, you'd be formatting the entire drive - you can't just reinstall one part of the drive (in this case, the OS).

Honestly, that's going to be the best place to start - if the issue persists after that, it's almost certainly a hardware problem - most likely the motherboard after running a 9590 for a period of time.

If the issue is gone, it was software related (whether the OS or some rogue app). While it's a pain, it's going to be easier than trying to identify the issue as is.

 

[tristanhemm]

Unless you have a secondary drive that your games/files etc are stored on, you'd be formatting the entire drive - you can't just reinstall one part of the drive (in this case, the OS).

Honestly, that's going to be the best place to start - if the issue persists after that, it's almost certainly a hardware problem - most likely the motherboard after running a 9590 for a period of time.

If the issue is gone, it was software related (whether the OS or some rogue app). While it's a pain, it's going to be easier than trying to identify the issue as is.

Alright, well, I'll wait a few days, try and clean my computer hoping that it's some randomness caused by dust buildup and then if that doesn't work I'll reinstall over the weekend maybe and then come back to this thread with my results.