Question PC reboots randomly

[vasilis77]

Hi,

I've been experiencing an issue with random reboots with my PC. The configuration is:

• Intel Core i5 8600
• Gigabyte Aorus Gaming WiFi H370
• 2x8GB DDR4-2666
• 1 SSD SATA
• 3 HDD 7200rpm
• Asus Radeon RX Dual 6600
• Corsair CX 550M (bought in 2014)

No overclocking for all the components.

The reboots started after installing the new VGA 2 weeks ago. The VGA was connected to the PSU with the extra PCI-e cable.

At first, I had 2-3 reboots while playing games in Windows 10. There could be days that I would not experience a reboot. The last days, I've had reboots while the PC was idle (listening to a few mp3s or just staying with the browser open) in Linux. The fact that this issue exists in both OSes makes me think it's hardware related and not software. At first I thought there could be an issue with the AMD Adrenaline drivers in Windows.

Before the new VGA, I worked with the CPU's iGPU and would experience some very rare freezes in Linux, where the screen would totally freeze and if I was playing a mp3 or something, the last 1-2 seconds of the sound would play in loop. In these cases, I had to hard reboot.

What do you think could be the cause of these reboots? My first thought is that the PSU might be slowly dying and under heavy load (gaming) it could not provide the needed wattage and simply reboot the system. But, the reboots while the PC is idle make me wonder if something else is the real cause.

Any ideas?

 

[Colif]

Well, PSU is 8 years old so it is possible.

I would get a new one as it might be on its way out. Even if its not cause, its probably a good idea to replace it anyway.

 

[vasilis77]

Ok, I was thinking about it replacing it anyway. I'm considering BeQuiet's Straight Power series 11, but I'm not sure about the wattage. Since I will probably upgrade sometime in the next year, using the online PSU calculators for a configuration for eg. 13700K or Ryzen 7700X and keeping the same VGA, I get a recommended PSU wattage in the range of 600-620Watts (for the Intel configuration, for the AMD one it's ~50-60 Watts less). Am I safe to go with the 650Watts Gold or is it better to go with the 750Watts model?

Besides that, if anyone else has any recommendation about what might be the issue with the reboots, let's have it. Thanks.

 

[Colif]

if you thinking about a new CPU, I would aim at a 750 to give wiggle room in case you get another GPU later.

without errors from the PC, its difficult to say if it might be something else. Do you have last BIOS for motherboard? its about only software that would be involved since you have problems on 2 OS.

 

[vasilis77]

The latest BIOS is already installed, months ago...

 

[Colif]

try running Crystaldiskinfo on your drives and just check health - blue icons - https://crystalmark.info/en/
drives can cause freezing, worth looking at. I don't think they can cause restarts though.

It is probably the added power draw of the GPU compared to igpu. I am toying with getting a 6800xt myself. Indecisive.
Considering how little stress linux puts on hardware, it is probably the PSU. I just don't want to jump to conclusions right away.

The freezes in linux on igpu could have been drivers, the sound you got happens on windows too if a driver crashes. Its not common but can happen.

 

[vasilis77]

The situation has deteriorated dramatically. Yesterday and today I've been experiencing multiple reboots in just a few minutes. I've already ordered the new PSU and it's on its way, but it'd be awful if the real reason of the issue is not the PSU itself. I checked for the cables if anything is loose, but they seem fine.

 

[vasilis77]

Today I received the new UPS and installed it. I stress tested the PC for some times (GPU+CPU test) and all seems fine. I'm currently in Linux, and so far no reboots. So, I guess it's rather safe to write that the PSU was the cause of the reboots. Thank God.

 

[ohio_buckeye]

Glad you got it fixed. Came late to this thread but psu was my first thought.

 

[vasilis77]

News from the front.

Unfortunately, it's not a faulty PSU. After installing the new PSU 8 days ago, I've experienced a couple other random reboots, not too frequent though. At one point, I thought maybe the BIOS settings were the cause, I loaded the default ones and made few adjustments (no overclocking, most settings at auto). After 5 days, I experienced another reboot. Today I removed the VGA card, enabled again the iGPU and will leave it as is and see if anything happens the next few days. If does something happen, I suppose there must be something wrong with the motherboard, since there's no other component that was changed in this timeframe (other than the PSU which is brand new).

 

[Colif]

keep us informed, PSU was due for replacement anyway, it was 3 years into its "could die at any moment" period. Or it could last forever.

Wasn't cause. Sorry about that.

 

[vasilis77]

I do not regret buying the new PSU, at some point I intend to upgrade the system and since the wattage of all the new processors have gone way up, it would be needed anyway.

I opened support tickets with both Gigabyte and Asus. Let's see how this goes.

 

[vasilis77]

Update: Another reboot happened at some point. The VGA was removed, the setup is now the same as before first connecting the new VGA, except for the new PSU. I reset the BIOS options and still the reboot happened afterwards. The response from Asus was not really much helpful, they told me to contact my local dealer (the store where I bought the VGA from). I asked if they could prepare a similar as mine setup (mobo, memory, VGA) and test if there are any incompatibilities, but they cannot do so. Still waiting for a reply from Gigabyte.

Today I tested the memory with Memtest86+ (the open source version). It went through 4 passes (it was running for 2,5 hours) and no error. This is a strong indication that the memory is probably ok. So, I have to think it's something with the motherboard.

Apart from all these, is there a motherboard vendor failure rate source?

 

[Colif]

Not really an official listing as I am sure people at bottom of list don't want to be on it.

I found one where they ranked it as
Asus - 80% of votes
MSI - 10%
Gigabyte - 7%
EVGA - 3%

list
but I have heard others complain about Asus customer service... who you waiting on now.
I had 4 Asus motherboards in a row and never had any problems with them... so I sort of agree with the listing above.

 

[vasilis77]

At some point, I installed the VGA again. I changed the memory dimms to the other channel. I reset the BIOS settings and changed again a few only. It's been 8 days that I've experienced no reboots. I consider the issue closed. But in the mean time, I ordered parts for an upgrade (13600K, Asrock Z690 Extreme, 2X16GB DDR4 memory and a Noctua NH-d15S).

During a period of month, the cpu dropped considerably (almost 100€). I ordered the motherboard for the price of 314€. but yesterday I cancelled the order, since it's now sold at 255€ and re-ordered again. Strange things with the prices of some parts.

After putting up the new system, I'm going to sell the old parts.