Help I accidentally created a Frankenstein monster PC. Not in a good way.

[jtcollins145]

Hey all, If you're reading this please be aware this is a cringe post somewhat.
Soo long story short 2 years ago I thought I knew about computer components enough to order a custom built. I was very wrong. The system I made was really exceptional at anything except falling short of my expectations. So the system is a bit a of a random assembly. This whole system is kind of a joke looking at it now.


Components list:

CPU/Core: Intel Core i7 4790K Quad Core LGA 1150 4.0GHz Unlocked CPU Processor

Mother Board: ASUS MAXIMUS VII HERO/4 x DDR3

GPU: Asus GeForce GTX 750 Ti Overclocked 2GB Video Card

Boot Drive: Samsung 850 EVO mSATA 120GB

Storage Drive: Seagate SATA3 2TB 7200RPM Barracuda 64mb Cache

RAM: G.Skill 16GB(2x8G) DDR3-1333 Dual Channel

Cooling Components: Arctic Cooling Freezer 13 CO cooler for Intel Socket 1156/1155/1366/775

Power Supply: Thermaltake TR2 500W Power Supply 80+ Gold

Tower/Case: Fractal Design Define R5 USB3.0 Mid Tower Case Titanium


The reason I write this is for two reasons.

Reason 1:
The computer randomly shuts off without warning. Akin to power failure, I think it might be a hardware issue except. I'm not sure I know enough about anything when it comes to computers to tell. It could be a software glitch but I am only guessing. It does it more during summer so i guessed hardware. So I would like to fix that issue.

Reason 2:
I want to make this a better PC if possible, by changing the GPU and cooling system. Or just getting a new PC all together suggestions for either are welcome. Also you are allowed to start your comment with: "You are a * idiot, but this is what you should do."

As for price limit on replacing parts its 500 Australian dollars. If I were to get a new system I would spend around 1800 for a new PC. Lastly, please help me...

 

[LaborinjoRt]

You are.... Okay I won't xD.

So, I wouldn't even try to get this thing back up. I wouldn't even know where to start troubleshooting this machine. It could be cooling problems, it could be lack of power, it could be a fried motherboard, pretty much anything and everything here.

If you try to build another PC, try to get some help with the parts, maybe a 1060 and an i5 to keep to the budget, I don't know, too lazy to convert Australian dollars to Euros.

 

[Aeacus]

While you do have unbalanced build, your MoBo (Z97 chipset) and CPU (K-series i7) are the things you did get right and they are very powerful combination, even at today's standards.
Though, disregard what LaborinjoRt says since you can make your PC to a solid gaming rig with only a few upgrades.

As far as random shutdowns go, those are mostly caused by 2 issues:
1. CPU/GPU overheats and to prevent any damage, system shuts down.
2. PSU fails to deliver enough power to the GPU or fails to keep smooth enough voltage for PC's operation.

Check the temps of your CPU/GPU and look if they are within reason.
While Arctic Freezer 13 is good CPU cooler, it isn't designed to cool K-series CPUs, especially when you OC your CPU. Without CPU OC, Freezer 13 will do just fine. As far as temps go, 80°C for CPU is still good, 90°C is getting hot and at 100°C, you'll see CPU thermal throttling.

Though, your PSU is low quality unit and my best guess is that it is the culprit. Fixing PSU issue can be done only by buying a new, good quality PSU.
Since you already have great CPU, Z-series MoBo and 16GB of RAM, what you need for proper gaming rig is better GPU and new PSU.

Here are what you can go for within your budget:
(All prices are in AUD.)

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Video Card: MSI - GeForce GTX 1060 3GB 3GB GT OC Video Card ($319.00 @ Shopping Express)
Power Supply: SeaSonic - FOCUS Plus Gold 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($139.00 @ Mwave Australia)
Total: $458.00
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-09-24 02:02 AEST+1000

Few words

Put in GTX 1060 3GB GPU from MSI that enables you to play latest games with high/ultra settings @ 1080p with solid 60+ FPS. My Skylake build also has GTX 1060 3GB GPU from MSI but mine is Gaming X series.

Seasonic Focus+ 550 is the latest PSU line from Seasonic and you'll get 80+ Gold certification, fully-modular cables and 10 year OEM warranty with it.
All my 3 PCs: Skylake, Haswell and AMD are also powered by Seasonic. Full specs with pics in my sig.


Further PC upgrades that you can do is to get bigger SSD as a system disk (e.g Samsung 850 Evo 250GB) so that you can put few of the most played games on it for faster loading times. Also, better CPU cooler would do if you like to OC your CPU (e.g Be Quiet Dark Rock Pro 3). While you can go for faster speeds of RAM (up to 3200 Mhz DDR3), it would be waste of money since you already have 16GB of RAM which is more than enough for latest games.

 

[jtcollins145]

Yeah I think i found the problem, the CPU is definitely over heating, which is good because replacing a CPU fan isn't expensive. The power supply unit seems to be running steady. But the CPU is hitting upwards of 90 Degrees just playing a game on medium settings and when running a few videos ( I edit film crap). The mother board Core is hitting upwards of 80 degrees. So I assume I just need better cooling/ insulation. I will defiantly grab the 1060 as a GPU upgrade but I probably need a few more cooling components. Is my assessment correct or close to correct so far?

 

[Aeacus]

If you see such a high temps then yes, your PC is probably shutting down due to the overheating.

Fixing it is easy, just buy a better CPU cooler (your case supports up to 180mm tall CPU air cooler) and also add additional case fans. By default, your case has 1x 140mm front intake and 1x 140mm rear exhaust (Fractal Design Dynamic GP14, 140mm, 1000 RPM).

For optimal cooling, i'd add 4x 140mm fans to achieve:
2x 140mm front intake (Noctua)
1x 140mm bottom intake (stock fan)
2x 140mm top exhaust (Noctua)
1x 140mm rear exhaust (stock fan)

Great CPU cooler and case fans to go for are:
Be Quiet Dark Rock Pro 3,
specs: http://www.bequiet.com/en/cpucooler/482
review: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/be-quiet-dark-rock-pro-3-cpu-cooler,4350.html

Noctua NF-P14s redux 1500 PWM,
specs: http://noctua.at/en/nf-p14s-redux-1500-pwm/specification

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU Cooler: be quiet! - Dark Rock Pro 3 67.8 CFM Fluid Dynamic Bearing CPU Cooler ($109.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Case Fan: Noctua - NF-P14s redux-1500 PWM 78.7 CFM 140mm Fan ($22.00 @ Umart)
Case Fan: Noctua - NF-P14s redux-1500 PWM 78.7 CFM 140mm Fan ($22.00 @ Umart)
Case Fan: Noctua - NF-P14s redux-1500 PWM 78.7 CFM 140mm Fan ($22.00 @ Umart)
Case Fan: Noctua - NF-P14s redux-1500 PWM 78.7 CFM 140mm Fan ($22.00 @ Umart)
Total: $197.00
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-09-24 16:53 AEST+1000

Note: If you get your temps within reason and your PC still shuts down then most certainly, it's the PSU's fault.

 

[jtcollins145]

Thanks a lot Aecus, I'll look into fixing up the cooling system and changing over the GPU. Great response time from this site was expecting to wait a week for any input. I'll probably replace the PSU when I can since it isn't the best either way, but yeah you've been most helpful. You gave me sources and did the conversions and calculations I am pretty frankly surprised by the quality of the answer you've given.

Thanks again, Hopefully next time i post on this its only for upgrade recommendations haha. Really liking this community so far.

 

[Vic 40]

Just tried to reseat the current cooler with some fresh paste? if not overclocking should it be at least good enough to keep things under control.Also make sure it's properly mounted.

 

[jtcollins145]

So I'm also thinking of getting maybe a 6GB 1060 is that worth it because I found some for 300.

 

[gaius_iulius]

I didn't want to add my 2 cents when I read Aeacus' first post, recommending a GTX 1060 3GB ... but since you mentioned it yourself ...

Yes!!!
you should spend some extra money and go for the 6GB version.

While the 3GB model will do fine with a lot of games, you don't want to go searching for a new graphics card in a year.
The GTX 1060 6GB will keep you happy for at least 3 years, if you don't need to play every single new game on Ultra settings.

Cheers,
Gaius

 

[Aeacus]

I didn't want to add my 2 cents when I read Aeacus' first post, recommending a GTX 1060 3GB

I only suggested GTX 1060 3GB GPU for cheaper price than 6GB version GPU, so it does fit within $500 AUD budget which also includes a great quality PSU from Seasonic. Without PSU taking up nice part of the budget, GTX 1060 6GB is better.

 

[Vic 40]

If he needs to save money would this psu still be good and give some money for the better gpu,
https://au.pcpartpicker.com/product/VCxfrH/antec-power-supply-hcg520m
or better this,
https://au.pcpartpicker.com/product/PVzZxr/corsair-txm-gold-650w-80-gold-certified-semi-modular-atx-power-supply-cp-9020132-na
but doesn't save that much,stil cheaper and very nice quality with 7 years warranty.If you look specifically in the shops lists can you find the 550watt as well as shown here,
http://www.mwave.com.au/product/corsair-tx550m-550w-80-plus-gold-semimodular-power-supply-ac02103
saves at least another $20.

 

[jtcollins145]

So after considering and taking in everyones feedback. To replace the CPU cooling fan with the one Gaius recommended (It looks pretty decent for the price, and quiet) and the 4 other fans. if my computer still keeps shutting down I'll throw in an extra 100 so I can buy a new PSU. Buying the 1060 GPU 6GB Variant which I will grab at 300 I won't install it until i know for certain its just the CPU over heating (just incase it damages the GPU Via the PSU. I'll spend a little extra so I don't have to spend on it again for awhile.

 

[jtcollins145]

Also I intend to buy a lot more storage SSD and HDD for operating the OS and storing crap editing takes a lot of room when rendering.