[SOLVED] Possible short circuit somewhere in the PC

[Xeel]

Hello people. I bought a PC last May. It had an FX-8350, GTX 1060 6GB, Asrock 970 Extreme 3, 16GB Ram DDR3, Cooler Master 500watt psu bronze. The machine ran with no flaws except for one: sometimes when I plug something in the front or back panel a short circuit appears causing the system freeze. After a restart it works and the prior connected device also works without issues. So far so good. A week ago I bought i5-10400f, 16 Gb Patriot Viper 3000mhz and an MSI H410M -A Pro and a new case. I used the old PSU (Cooler Master 500W Bronze) and the old GPU (KFA GTX 1060 6GB). To my surprise the problem is still here. When I touch the metal parts of the tower (IO shield or front USB panel for example) sometimes my keyboard's lights flicker as if it loses power. Haven't managed to make the system crash yet though. When I run my forearm through the back of the PC case I feel electricity. So I went a bough a multimeter. It reads anywhere between 5.5 and 8.3 volts. I know it is normal for static to build up, but 8 volts? Also the outlet which I use has ground so that shouldn't be the issue? I am suspecting that there is a problem somewhere on the back of the PSU where I plug in the power cable, but this just my suggestion. Appreciate all the help I can get, because I am getting worried that I will fry something if I do not fix this issue.

Note: I am 99% sure it is not an issue with the outlet, because I had this problem in my old place with the old PC (student dorm) and have it still in the new place I live (apartment) with the old and new configuration. I am thinking of getting a gold rated 650watt power supply in the near future.

 

[geofelt]

Is your electrical outlet properly grounded?
You can get a 3 prong tester for <$10.

Past that, coolermaster quality is iffy.
I would suspect your psu.
If the outlet is grounded, I would replace the psu asap.
Consider a quality psu as a long term pc investment.
Look for 650 or 750w, the unit will only consume the power demanded of it, regardless of the max capability.
Look for a unit with a or 10 year warranty.

 

[Xeel]

Thank you for your reply! I am kind off financially limited at the moment but if not in April, in May I will 100% buy a new PSU. As for the outlet I will search for the "3 prong tester" as I am not sure how this is called in my native language ( I am from Bulgaria, Europe ). The outlet is grounded properly I checked it. When the PC was assembled on the box of the MOBO outside the case I used to get the same thing when scraping metal to the metal casing of the back USB ports for example. But as I said I had the same issue in my old student dormitory and it is present in the new apartment I am living at the moment. So most probably you are correct, PSU is faulty. Any ideas how I can check that the PSU is faulty before buying a new one?

 

[geofelt]

Thank you for your reply! I am kind off financially limited at the moment but if not in April, in May I will 100% buy a new PSU. As for the outlet I will search for the "3 prong tester" as I am not sure how this is called in my native language ( I am from Bulgaria, Europe ). The outlet is grounded properly I checked it. When the PC was assembled on the box of the MOBO outside the case I used to get the same thing when scraping metal to the metal casing of the back USB ports for example. But as I said I had the same issue in my old student dormitory and it is present in the new apartment I am living at the moment. So most probably you are correct, PSU is faulty. Any ideas how I can check that the PSU is faulty before buying a new one?

Since you had the same problem with a different outlet, grounding is not likely the issue.
Possibly the psu power cable has a short in it; they are cheap to replace.
The only way I know of is to replace the psu with a known good quality unit of sufficient wattage.
If you can't borrow one, buy from a shop with a good return policy.
Expect to pay a 15% restocking fee if you need to return it.

 

[Xeel]

Okay, so I will go and get a new cable for the PSU that plugs in the outlet and will give feedback.
Any recommendations on PSU's ? I will 100% get a 650Watt and for sure a GOLD one.

 

[geofelt]

Okay, so I will go and get a new cable for the PSU that plugs in the outlet and will give feedback.
Any recommendations on PSU's ? I will 100% get a 650Watt and for sure a GOLD one.

Gold rating does not always confer quality to a psu.
Gold rating is an efficiency number.
A more telling indicator of quality is the warranty, 7 or 10 years.
Here is one psu quality tier list, there are others:

PSU Tier List [OLD]

Credit to @Starelementpokeand @Energycore for helping out with this long-awaited refresh of the old PSU tier list by Aniallation (who previously went several months without logging in), leaving the old list in need of help. This is simply an update of the list that was flawed in creation by the P...

linustechtips.com

If I had to pick a brand, that would be Seasonic.

 

[Xeel]

Image1
One brand new Super Flower Leadex III 650W 80 Plus gold later aaaaand....getting the same thing. Managed to get it to 12volts at the point at which I plugged the VGA and CPU. What baffles me is how the hell am I getting between 1,5 and 4volts when the PSU switch is OFF and not even plugged in an outlet. Image2 I am starting to suspect something. The power grid is really unstable. This used to happen quite often in my dorm and my fridge got fried once. When the technician measured the voltage coming from the grid it didn't go over 180volts. Could be that, after all both my dorm and my apartment are in panel blocks, whose electrical wiring is 40+ years old. And the power surges that are the electric company's fault... These are just some suggestions, but alot of appliances in my hometown have been fried due to surges, so glad I do not live in my hometown anymore😁

I hooked the old PSU to the FX-8350 system and got the same result 7-8-9 volts running through everything from metal (usb shields, psu case etc)

Am I mistakingly using the multimeter or something? Don't know what to think anymore🤔

 

[geofelt]

Can you consider a UPS?
It can ride you through power irregularities and run on battery for the few moments a problem exists.

 

[Xeel]

Yea that is the last resort actually, but to be honest its too much financially for me. I'm gonna pray the new PSU is strong enough to whitstand 🥴After all the old cooler master was performing without issues for a year and it was really old, hope this one won't fail me. If only there was a way to ground my case, as the ground in the outlets is weak...we'll a change of apartments is an option, we'll see. Thank you very much for the help! But I do not think I will strain my self over this issue and enjoy gaming.😁

 

[geofelt]

Ghetto, I know.
Can you attach a wire to an unpainted part of your case, then connect it to a cold water pipe.
That should ground the case.

 

[Xeel]

In the end if the problem does not go away, I will tie a wire from the back of the case, and ground it in the dirt in a pot😁😁Always wanted some kind of a flower the room, now is the time to get it I guess🤔

 

[geofelt]

In the end if the problem does not go away, I will tie a wire from the back of the case, and ground it in the dirt in a pot😁😁Always wanted some kind of a flower the room, now is the time to get it I guess🤔

I don't think a pot is enough, you need a cold water pipe.
Or, run it out a window to a long copper stake in the ground.