Would having a singular HDD do all the work on my PC Cause my PC to Freeze?

[CMonkey]

What I mean by this is, if it had to write too much information while playing a game like Overwatch, would it freeze up my whole computer? Would getting a small SSD help with the load?

 

[MeanMachine41]

What I mean by this is, if it had to write too much information while playing a game like Overwatch, would it freeze up my whole computer? Would getting a small SSD help with the load?

No that's not the cause or solution CMonkey and more lightly to be a lack of RAM memory or DIMM failure.
Please list you full system specs for better advice.

 

[CMonkey]

What I mean by this is, if it had to write too much information while playing a game like Overwatch, would it freeze up my whole computer? Would getting a small SSD help with the load?

No that's not the cause or solution CMonkey and more lightly to be a lack of RAM memory or DIMM failure.
Please list you full system specs for better advice.

Specs:
CPU: i3 6100
GPU: AMD rx 480
RAM: 1 8Gb stick corsair vengeance
PSU: EVGA 500w White
Mobo: MSI z170-a Pro
HDD: 1 TB WD

Some things I have noticed: Low 3.3v (3.04)
When running memtest86, it slowed to a crawl. Eventually I had to skip the test as it hadn't gone a single percent in a good few hours (wasn't a problem on the first pass). The test was "Modulo 20 ones & zeroes" There had been no errors up until that point.

 

[MeanMachine41]

What I mean by this is, if it had to write too much information while playing a game like Overwatch, would it freeze up my whole computer? Would getting a small SSD help with the load?

No that's not the cause or solution CMonkey and more lightly to be a lack of RAM memory or DIMM failure.
Please list you full system specs for better advice.

Specs:
CPU: i3 6100
GPU: AMD rx 480
RAM: 1 8Gb stick corsair vengeance
PSU: EVGA 500w White
Mobo: MSI z170-a Pro
HDD: 1 TB WD

Some things I have noticed: Low 3.3v (3.04)
When running memtest86, it slowed to a crawl. Eventually I had to skip the test as it hadn't gone a single percent in a good few hours (wasn't a problem on the first pass). The test was "Modulo 20 ones & zeroes" There had been no errors up until that point.

Well the 3.3 Rail is definitely under spec which would effect RAM. This can be PSU or MB voltage regulation.
Where are you getting the 3.3 Rail voltage readout from.? Within Windows (under load) or Bios.?
With Memtest86, just run 1 DIMM module at a time and see if it makes any difference.

I would also run CHKDSK on your HDD just to eliminate a possible drive failure.

 

[CMonkey]

What I mean by this is, if it had to write too much information while playing a game like Overwatch, would it freeze up my whole computer? Would getting a small SSD help with the load?

No that's not the cause or solution CMonkey and more lightly to be a lack of RAM memory or DIMM failure.
Please list you full system specs for better advice.

Specs:
CPU: i3 6100
GPU: AMD rx 480
RAM: 1 8Gb stick corsair vengeance
PSU: EVGA 500w White
Mobo: MSI z170-a Pro
HDD: 1 TB WD

Some things I have noticed: Low 3.3v (3.04)
When running memtest86, it slowed to a crawl. Eventually I had to skip the test as it hadn't gone a single percent in a good few hours (wasn't a problem on the first pass). The test was "Modulo 20 ones & zeroes" There had been no errors up until that point.

Well the 3.3 Rail is definitely under spec which would effect RAM. This can be PSU or MB voltage regulation.
Where are you getting the 3.3 Rail voltage readout from.? Within Windows (under load) or Bios.?
With Memtest86, just run 1 DIMM module at a time and see if it makes any difference.

I would also run CHKDSK on your HDD just to eliminate a possible drive failure.

The readout was from MSI CommandCenter. The 3.3v was taken while under load but is always around 3.04, even while idle. I ran ChkDsk a while ago and there weren't any problems. Since I have one stick, wouldn't metest only test that stick anyway?

 

[MeanMachine41]

What I mean by this is, if it had to write too much information while playing a game like Overwatch, would it freeze up my whole computer? Would getting a small SSD help with the load?

No that's not the cause or solution CMonkey and more lightly to be a lack of RAM memory or DIMM failure.
Please list you full system specs for better advice.

Specs:
CPU: i3 6100
GPU: AMD rx 480
RAM: 1 8Gb stick corsair vengeance
PSU: EVGA 500w White
Mobo: MSI z170-a Pro
HDD: 1 TB WD

Some things I have noticed: Low 3.3v (3.04)
When running memtest86, it slowed to a crawl. Eventually I had to skip the test as it hadn't gone a single percent in a good few hours (wasn't a problem on the first pass). The test was "Modulo 20 ones & zeroes" There had been no errors up until that point.

Well the 3.3 Rail is definitely under spec which would effect RAM. This can be PSU or MB voltage regulation.
Where are you getting the 3.3 Rail voltage readout from.? Within Windows (under load) or Bios.?
With Memtest86, just run 1 DIMM module at a time and see if it makes any difference.

I would also run CHKDSK on your HDD just to eliminate a possible drive failure.

The readout was from MSI CommandCenter. The 3.3v was taken while under load but is always around 3.04, even while idle. I ran ChkDsk a while ago and there weren't any problems. Since I have one stick, wouldn't metest only test that stick anyway?

If it's 3.04V under load then you may have to swap out the PSU, have it tested under load or the MB is not regulating Voltage on that rail properly.
With Memtest86, I run tests for 3 passes per module and then test all together,again 3 passes.

 

[CMonkey]

What I mean by this is, if it had to write too much information while playing a game like Overwatch, would it freeze up my whole computer? Would getting a small SSD help with the load?

No that's not the cause or solution CMonkey and more lightly to be a lack of RAM memory or DIMM failure.
Please list you full system specs for better advice.

Specs:
CPU: i3 6100
GPU: AMD rx 480
RAM: 1 8Gb stick corsair vengeance
PSU: EVGA 500w White
Mobo: MSI z170-a Pro
HDD: 1 TB WD

Some things I have noticed: Low 3.3v (3.04)
When running memtest86, it slowed to a crawl. Eventually I had to skip the test as it hadn't gone a single percent in a good few hours (wasn't a problem on the first pass). The test was "Modulo 20 ones & zeroes" There had been no errors up until that point.

Well the 3.3 Rail is definitely under spec which would effect RAM. This can be PSU or MB voltage regulation.
Where are you getting the 3.3 Rail voltage readout from.? Within Windows (under load) or Bios.?
With Memtest86, just run 1 DIMM module at a time and see if it makes any difference.

I would also run CHKDSK on your HDD just to eliminate a possible drive failure.

The readout was from MSI CommandCenter. The 3.3v was taken while under load but is always around 3.04, even while idle. I ran ChkDsk a while ago and there weren't any problems. Since I have one stick, wouldn't metest only test that stick anyway?

If it's 3.04V under load then you may have to swap out the PSU, have it tested under load or the MB is not regulating Voltage on that rail properly.
With Memtest86, I run tests for 3 passes per module and then test all together,again 3 passes.

How would I be able to check the voltage regulation? I ran memtest86 again and it came up with no errors and ran smoothly this time. Would a low 3.3v really cause this much damage?

 

[CMonkey]

New Info: There are two different ways on CommandCenter to track voltage. One says 3.3 voltage is 3.374. The other says 3.04. Are there any better ways to track voltage? I don't know which of these values to use. EDIT: It seems that at the lowest settings, crashes become more rare. But bumping up texture quality raises the freeze rate a lot. Does this help anything?

 

[MeanMachine41]

There are other more accurate ways to test your system and check voltages under load and a stability test will determine if its your system that's unstable, your game or maybe Windows drivers.

Download HWMonitor and Aida64 and put them side by side on your desktop.
In Aida64, go to the Tools menu and run the stress test. Check boxes for CPU, FPU and Cache only.
Other subsystem tests can be done separately.
Run the test for 10mins whilst observing your temperatures and stop the test if temps reach 80C.
Take screen shots at the 10 min mark.
In HWMonitor, I want to see all rail voltages in HWMonitor and temperatures with 100% Utilization on all cores.
Use your favorite file host or IMIGUR to host the screen shots. Once image files are uploaded to IMIGUR, go to your Images and obtain the BBurl as a link here for analysis.

From this analysis, I will get a good idea if the PSU is doing its job and general stability.

 

[CMonkey]

http://imgur.com/a/Yy4Pi
I hope that is what you wanted. I couldn't find specific rail voltages for HWMonitor but Aida64 had them.

 

[MeanMachine41]

http://imgur.com/a/Yy4Pi
I hope that is what you wanted. I couldn't find specific rail voltages for HWMonitor but Aida64 had them.

Thanks for the report CMonkey Just what I was looking for.
I see no problems with Voltages under stress so your PSU is doing it's job and your temperatures are OK at Max 69C on a 3.7GHz frequency OC.

Extend the test for 30mins and Run the other tests on your GPU and DIMMs if you like. I think your CPU is OK temperature wise and Vcore is optimal. If the system is still crashing then the problem lies elsewhere.

The ultimate test is Realbench which is a Realword test and if you can complete that test then, your 24/7 stable.

 

[CMonkey]

http://imgur.com/a/Yy4Pi
I hope that is what you wanted. I couldn't find specific rail voltages for HWMonitor but Aida64 had them.

Thanks for the report CMonkey Just what I was looking for.
I see no problems with Voltages under stress so your PSU is doing it's job and your temperatures are OK at Max 69C on a 3.7GHz frequency OC.

Extend the test for 30mins and Run the other tests on your GPU and DIMMs if you like. I think your CPU is OK temperature wise and Vcore is optimal. If the system is still crashing then the problem lies elsewhere.

The ultimate test is Realbench which is a Realword test and if you can complete that test then, your 24/7 stable.

I tested for the memory, GPU, and the disk, and my PC froze up. At first, it was very jittery and I could barely scroll up through the list. I'm going to test disk, memory, then GPU and come back with hopefully a culprit.

 

[CMonkey]

http://imgur.com/a/U17ta It was the GPU that caused the display to freeze. I tested it alone and at first the display was jittery, but then at around 3 minutes it froze. I bought it from Newegg during a Black Friday sale, so would I be able to return it if it is indeed a hardware issue?

 

[MeanMachine41]

http://imgur.com/a/U17ta It was the GPU that caused the display to freeze. I tested it alone and at first the display was jittery, but then at around 3 minutes it froze. I bought it from Newegg during a Black Friday sale, so would I be able to return it if it is indeed a hardware issue?

Well if the GPU is at stock default settings and drivers don't fix it then RMA the unit back to place of purchase.
To test your GPU, Go here for MSI afterburner: https://www.guru3d.com/files-details/msi-afterburner-beta-download.html
It's just another test to confirm if your GPU is the culprit.

 

[CMonkey]

The test didn't crash my PC, although the GPU sat at 80 degrees Celsius. Probably shouldn't be that high but I can't change the fan speeds for some reason. I'll run the Aida64 test again to see if it freezes.

 

[CMonkey]

I ran Aida64 again and my PC froze immediately. Would this mean that it is my GPU? My friend offered to run the GPU in his PC to test it if need be.

 

[CMonkey]

So even after the Afterburner test, is it still probably my GPU?

 

[MeanMachine41]

So even after the Afterburner test, is it still probably my GPU?

Not 100% conclusive yet.
The best test is if your friend would test it for you in his system or swap your card out with another. 80C is high and your case cooling air flow is probably part of the issue.

 

[CMonkey]

So even after the Afterburner test, is it still probably my GPU?

Not 100% conclusive yet.
The best test is if your friend would test it for you in his system or swap your card out with another. 80C is high and your case cooling air flow is probably part of the issue.

I have a Sapphire r7 250 I could use, although would it being a cheap card affect anything?

 

[MeanMachine41]

So even after the Afterburner test, is it still probably my GPU?

Not 100% conclusive yet.
The best test is if your friend would test it for you in his system or swap your card out with another. 80C is high and your case cooling air flow is probably part of the issue.

I have a Sapphire r7 250 I could use, although would it being a cheap card affect anything?

It shouldn't if its the same driver however performance would be effected. Give it try.

 

[CMonkey]

So even after the Afterburner test, is it still probably my GPU?

Not 100% conclusive yet.
The best test is if your friend would test it for you in his system or swap your card out with another. 80C is high and your case cooling air flow is probably part of the issue.

I have a Sapphire r7 250 I could use, although would it being a cheap card affect anything?

It shouldn't if its the same driver however performance would be effected. Give it try.

It will most likely take me a few days to get it done. My friend's GPU is Nvidia so we're figuring out the best way to go with this. If it doesn't work right then I'll just install the 250 and test.

 

[MeanMachine41]

Not 100% sure if your MB supports Nvidia as MB specs only indicate support for Crossfire and no indication for Nvidia. Need to check with MSI.
Remove the card and try your iGPU. You would not have the same performance but its another check to see if the dedicated card is at fault.

 

[CMonkey]

Not 100% sure if your MB supports Nvidia as MB specs only indicate support for Crossfire and no indication for Nvidia. Need to check with MSI.
Remove the card and try your iGPU. You would not have the same performance but its another check to see if the dedicated card is at fault.

It does support his card but if you think swapping in the 250 will be better then I'll do that.

 

[CMonkey]

Not 100% sure if your MB supports Nvidia as MB specs only indicate support for Crossfire and no indication for Nvidia. Need to check with MSI.
Remove the card and try your iGPU. You would not have the same performance but its another check to see if the dedicated card is at fault.

So I tested the other GPU and it ran fine so I'll probably be sending it back to MSI for repair or replace.

 

[CMonkey]

Edit: it was crashing when on the home screen so i tried to reset the harddrive (I figured that all the suddden restarts had gotten to the pc) it has not done anything since then. Whenever i used to reset the computer it wouldnt launch at all even after waiting hours. With this happening i would just restart again eventually it launched right. Should i launch with a bootable restore thumbdrive to reset the pc?