[SOLVED] Is it PSU, my electrical system, or smth else?

[meharp7224]

So I’ve been having issues with my PC shutting down - at first during gaming, and then during idle. Absolutely could not figure out what was wrong, since all system readings were normal, so I took it to my more knowledgeable friend. We powered it up at his house and could not recreate the issue.

He figured it may be RAM (bc I was using a 4gb and 8gb), so he set me up with two 16gbs. Got home, set it up, and it’s shut down within 10 minutes. So, I figure it can only be an outside component we didn’t consider, and tried switching out the power cable. No dice. Grab another power cable that was actively powering a modem, so it must work, and still no dice.

At this point, we’re both stumped. I wondered if maybe the PSU - a ThermalTake Smart 500W (I know… first mistake.) - might be exceeding the amperage of my 15v circuit, since I had a few devices and a 1500w heater on it. But the breaker hasn’t flipped, and I don’t know enough about electrical systems in houses or computers to know if a computer could exceed that power limit and shut itself down without tripping the breaker. Any advice would be appreciated.

SPECS:
Mobo: ASRock A320M
Processor: Ryzen 5500
Graphics: Radeon RX 5700 XT
Ram: 2x16GB
Drives: Primary m.2 1tb ssd, secondary 500gb hdd
PSU: Thermaltake 80+ Smart 500w

 

[stonecarver]

since I had a few devices and a 1500w heater on it

Leave the heater off and see if it still had issues.

Also you needed to test your whole system at your friends place. If you did take your monitor , mouse and keyboard. Than we can count them out

 

[zinkles]

PSU: Thermaltake 80+ Smart 500w

How old is the PSU?

I suggest checking if all the voltages are in spec. To check this, go to the BIOS, and then find a section with voltages. (different motherboards have different names for stuff so its hard to say exact instructions).

Those voltages should be something like

CPU - <a voltage [varies]>
3.3v - <a voltage equivalent to around 3.3volts should be here>
12v - <a voltage equivalent to around 12volts should be here>
5v - <a voltage equivalent to around 5volts should be here>

if all these voltages are a bit above the voltage I've specified, its fine. If some voltage is lower than what I've posted, there is an issue with that voltage rail, thus the PSU is the fault. (even if everything is correct, it could still be the PSU that's at fault)

typically a old PSU will cause these types of issues, thus causing random restarts/shutdowns.

 

[DSzymborski]

So I’ve been having issues with my PC shutting down - at first during gaming, and then during idle. Absolutely could not figure out what was wrong, since all system readings were normal, so I took it to my more knowledgeable friend. We powered it up at his house and could not recreate the issue.

He figured it may be RAM (bc I was using a 4gb and 8gb), so he set me up with two 16gbs. Got home, set it up, and it’s shut down within 10 minutes. So, I figure it can only be an outside component we didn’t consider, and tried switching out the power cable. No dice. Grab another power cable that was actively powering a modem, so it must work, and still no dice.

At this point, we’re both stumped. I wondered if maybe the PSU - a ThermalTake Smart 500W (I know… first mistake.) - might be exceeding the amperage of my 15v circuit, since I had a few devices and a 1500w heater on it. But the breaker hasn’t flipped, and I don’t know enough about electrical systems in houses or computers to know if a computer could exceed that power limit and shut itself down without tripping the breaker. Any advice would be appreciated.

SPECS:
Mobo: ASRock A320M
Processor: Ryzen 5500
Graphics: Radeon RX 5700 XT
Ram: 2x16GB
Drives: Primary m.2 1tb ssd, secondary 500gb hdd
PSU: Thermaltake 80+ Smart 500w

The PSU *is* the most likely culprit; it's a very junky unit. While it may not be the direct problem, it has no business ever being turned on with this GPU, and it's hard to go further without getting it out of the whole situation.

 

[meharp7224]

The PSU *is* the most likely culprit; it's a very junky unit. While it may not be the direct problem, it has no business ever being turned on with this GPU, and it's hard to go further without getting it out of the whole situation.

Oh man, thank you for pointing it out - I didn’t realize just how much that card requires! Jesus, no wonder - I had been running a geforce 1050. I feel so dumb 😂 Gonna put the old card back until I can get a better psu. I’ll update then if it works, but do you have any PSU recommendations? I clearly cannot be trusted with my own <Mod Edit>lol

 

[DSzymborski]

Oh man, thank you for pointing it out - I didn’t realize just how much that card requires! Jesus, no wonder - I had been running a geforce 1050. I feel so dumb 😂 Gonna put the old card back until I can get a better psu. I’ll update then if it works, but do you have any PSU recommendations? I clearly cannot be trusted with my own <Mod Edit> lol

It's not so much the wattage -- though it could be -- but that it's cheap and group-regulated. The SMART PSUs are pretty bad, they're basically a decade-old Sirfa platform with a Thermaltake badge slapped on, and designed to run PCs of 20 years ago.