PC Crashing within minutes of starting a game

[lukass1024]

I recently upgraded my system and I some games are crashing within minutes of opening them. Other times, its after hours of playing them (Same games by the way) Temps are not an issue.
The only problem I can notice easily is my hard drive running at 100% for short periods of time (Mostly right after start up) And then going back down to its normal ~5%, although it spikes to 100 at very random intervals.

Is the drive the reason of my crash? Or could it be something else?

 

[gasaraki]

Power supply issue? What hardware are you running?

 

[InvalidError]

If you suspect the HDD, run the manufacturer's diagnostic tool and see what it has to say.

A dying PSU is also a common cause of random crashes, shutdowns and restarts.

 

[lukass1024]

Power supply issue? What hardware are you running?

I really don't think thats the issue. Running:
AMD Fx 8350
GTX 1060 gb
PSU: https://www.amazon.com/EVGA-SuperNOVA-Modular-Warranty-120-G1-0650-XR/dp/B00K85X2AW/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1518019825&sr=8-3&keywords=evga+650w+80%2B+gold

My only concerns are RAM and HDD, but maybe im wrong.

 

[lukass1024]

If you suspect the HDD, run the manufacturer's diagnostic tool and see what it has to say.

A dying PSU is also a common cause of random crashes, shutdowns and restarts.

I'll try the HDD diagnostic. Doubtful that it's the PSU but I guess its possible.

 

[geofelt]

To test ram, run memtest86. You should be able to complete a full pass with NO errors.

To check your HDD, run the vendor diagnostic. Seatools for Seagate, data lifeguard for WD.

I suspect neither is your issue. You would see your problem immediately.

More likely, it is a graphics card problem or a psu problem.
Under load, as in gaming, the gpu needs to work much harder and will draw more power.

If you can test with a known good psu, you can eliminate that possibility.

Regardless, now might be a good time to convert to a ssd.
Samsung has a nice C drive mover if your used portion of the C drive is not too large.

 

[lukass1024]

To test ram, run memtest86. You should be able to complete a full pass with NO errors.

To check your HDD, run the vendor diagnostic. Seatools for Seagate, data lifeguard for WD.

I suspect neither is your issue. You would see your problem immediately.

More likely, it is a graphics card problem or a psu problem.
Under load, as in gaming, the gpu needs to work much harder and will draw more power.

If you can test with a known good psu, you can eliminate that possibility.

Regardless, now might be a good time to convert to a ssd.
Samsung has a nice C drive mover if your used portion of the C drive is not too large.

I guess I'll look into the power supply issue.

 

[InvalidError]

To test ram, run memtest86. You should be able to complete a full pass with NO errors.

One pass of memtest86 isn't enough. I remember at least one time where I was convinced I had bad RAM, let memtest86 run for only a pass or two, didn't get any errors, booted my PC to get stuff done, decided to let memtest86 run overnight and out of 11 passes completed by morning, only three had errors and the first error was found on the 4th pass. All errors where on the same bit at the same address and test pattern, which means that the weak bit had a ~30% chance to flip on that specific test sequence.

That's why I'm telling everyone running memtest86 to do so overnight. It may take multiple passes to catch intermittent single-bit errors.