Question PSU died, then replacement PSU died within a week.

[Brandi.Tree]

To start off, I will say that my PC was built originally in 2014. Since then, most things have been upgraded or replaced, aside from the motherboard.

My specs:

i7 4790k - No overclocking
MSI z97 Gaming 5 motherboard
EVGA GeForce GTX 1060 3GB
16 GB RAM - 2 8GB Ballistix Sports DDR3 sticks
1TB HDD, 2 SSDs - 250GB and 500GB altogether

Not sure if cooling matters as much, but I have 4 fans and a Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo CPU cooler. My PC also never runs hot, no hitches, no throttling.

The rest of the details... My original PSU was a Corsair CX Series 750 Watt 80 Plus. I believe it was Bronze. It lasted all of my PC's life until recently, about a week ago, I heard a loud "pop" that scared me over my music and games, then my PC was just completely off. I tested it in different outlets, tested a different PSU in my PC, and found that my PSU had died. So I thought okay, not the worst thing that could happen. To my knowledge and as far as I could tell, nothing else was damaged.

I ordered a replacement, and for the sake of not spending a lot, I ordered a 500W EVGA PSU from Amazon. I was told the less Watts wouldn't make a significant difference. I am no PC guru, but I take care of my PC, and I can put it together. That's about it.

I put everything back together after cleaning my PC components, along with the new PSU, on Sunday, April 28. Everything was working perfectly, as if nothing had ever happened. Today, May 3, I heard that same pop and my PC was off again. Both times it died, I wasn't even gaming, I was drawing and watching streams. I also had no warning signs.

So, onto the question(s)... What is causing my PSUs to die? Is it possible that the old PSU died for the sake of being old, and the new one was faulty? Should I order a new one now? Is there anything I can do to prevent it, and/or test things further? Is it an issue with another PC component? Is it my electrical outlet? Is it a motherboard problem? How can I test these things?

There is another gaming rig in the house next to mine, connected to a different outlet and on a different wall.

I do a lot of work from home developing websites and designing things like panels and emotes for Twitch streamers, so I really can't afford to be out of commission, and I really need to figure out what's wrong.

*I'm willing to give any info I may have forgotten.

 

[jay32267]

" Is it possible that the old PSU died for the sake of being old, and the new one was faulty? "
yes

"Should I order a new one now? "
I would

" Is there anything I can do to prevent it, and/or test things further? "
Check the voltage at the wall outlet.

"Is it an issue with another PC component? "
I doubt it. If the PSU is any good it should protect itself against anything a component would do to it....and if a component damaged it I don't think it's worth using.

" Is it my electrical outlet? "
This would be my main concern....BUT I tend to doubt even this is the problem.

" Is it a motherboard problem? "
I doubt it.

I would get a Seasonic or a better Corsair series PSU like an RMx seires.

 

[Ralston18]

Total up the power requirements for all components on your PC. Use the upper values. Once totaled, add 25%.

The original PSU may have been enough but due to age and condition degraded and could not fulfill the power demands.

And the new 500 watt PSU was not able to provide the necessary power overall - and quickly died trying.

 

[Brandi.Tree]

Thanks for the quick responses! I went ahead and ordered a new one because I didn't want to miss the fast shipping window. I'll check the outlets and whatnot as well. All responses are very much appreciated.

 

[AllanGH]

" Is it my electrical outlet? "
This would be my main concern....BUT I tend to doubt even this is the problem.

However, consider the reality that computer power supplies and, indeed, even the computer as a whole, tend to live much longer lives if they have a good quality UPS between them and the wall outlet.

Aside from the issue at hand, it would be a good move to budget for a UPS as a future accessory.

 

[shrapnel_indie]

To start off, I will say that my PC was built originally in 2014. Since then, most things have been upgraded or replaced, aside from the motherboard.

My specs:

i7 4790k - No overclocking
MSI z97 Gaming 5 motherboard
EVGA GeForce GTX 1060 3GB
16 GB RAM - 2 8GB Ballistix Sports DDR3 sticks
1TB HDD, 2 SSDs - 250GB and 500GB altogether

Not sure if cooling matters as much, but I have 4 fans and a Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo CPU cooler. My PC also never runs hot, no hitches, no throttling.

The rest of the details... My original PSU was a Corsair CX Series 750 Watt 80 Plus. I believe it was Bronze. It lasted all of my PC's life until recently, about a week ago, I heard a loud "pop" that scared me over my music and games, then my PC was just completely off. I tested it in different outlets, tested a different PSU in my PC, and found that my PSU had died. So I thought okay, not the worst thing that could happen. To my knowledge and as far as I could tell, nothing else was damaged.

Okay, 750W would be plenty, especially from a good PSU. Problem is Corsair CX isn't the best... Builder Series CX models have a habit of dying as soon as the warranty runs out. Later models are good for being mid-range and price point, but not the best.

I ordered a replacement, and for the sake of not spending a lot, I ordered a 500W EVGA PSU from Amazon. I was told the less Watts wouldn't make a significant difference. I am no PC guru, but I take care of my PC, and I can put it together. That's about it.

EVGA has some good models, and some that aren't all that great. 500W from a good PSU should be enough here. What model did you get?

I put everything back together after cleaning my PC components, along with the new PSU, on Sunday, April 28. Everything was working perfectly, as if nothing had ever happened. Today, May 3, I heard that same pop and my PC was off again. Both times it died, I wasn't even gaming, I was drawing and watching streams. I also had no warning signs.

So, onto the question(s)... What is causing my PSUs to die? Is it possible that the old PSU died for the sake of being old, and the new one was faulty? Should I order a new one now? Is there anything I can do to prevent it, and/or test things further? Is it an issue with another PC component? Is it my electrical outlet? Is it a motherboard problem? How can I test these things?

Age could have killed the first one. If the second was brand new... It might not have been age that killed the first, unless you just happened to get the bad one of the lot with your replacement.

Power supplies are at the mercy of the mains at the outlet. Unless you have a power conditioner (expensive, but if the PC is your bread-and-butter, it may be a worthy investment if not crazy expensive for your needs.) the outlet may be very noisy, especially if you have things like motors on the same circuit. (fans, vacuums, dishwasher, window AC unit, etc.) You can check the wall voltage, and perhaps catch spikes, but to really see will require different equipment and it probably won't be cheap.

There is another gaming rig in the house next to mine, connected to a different outlet and on a different wall.

It's possible that that outlet may be on a different circuit.

I do a lot of work from home developing websites and designing things like panels and emotes for Twitch streamers, so I really can't afford to be out of commission, and I really need to figure out what's wrong.

*I'm willing to give any info I may have forgotten.

I can understand the situation. Get another Power Supply, make sure it's a good one (as close to top tier as you can afford.) Get that power checked out... and for now I'd suggest moving to that gaming PCs outlet, without the gaming PC and see how well it goes.

Corsair TX, HX, AX series are good (RM had some poorer models, but the newer ones should be fine.)
EVGA SuperNOVA G series is good. (B series third gen can be questionable on some models)
Practically anything SeaSonic is good.

 

[Brandi.Tree]

Update: I bought a SeaSonic FOCUS Plus 750W Gold edition PSU. It worked well, even stuck with me through issues that probably would've killed others.

The PC crashed or reset itself a few times during that duration. Today, I woke to the breaker being tripped. This breaker holds another PC, and that PC was fine. Tried powering on my PC, no luck.

So... what are we looking at now? Outlet, electrical problems or motherboard?