Having problems with PCS PC.

[TaylorSc0tt]

Recieved the PC last month. I turned it on and set it up and it ran smoothly for about a few days.

I have some computer knowledge when it comes to components and can usually self diagnose them but there are so many variables I don't know what to do.

Black screen followed by a restart.
This happens once or twice a day randomly.
Happens while doing nothing at all, sitting in a voice call, browsing or gaming.
I have ran a prime95 stress test for 1 hour without it happening.
Event viewer shows Kernal-Power Event ID 41

What I've tried:
Reset Windows
Reinstalled drivers for motherboard, cpu and gpu (uninstalled using ddu)
^ Restarted less but due to core performance boost being disabled and other optimisations performance in game was unstable and poor.
Currently the PC is setup like this:
Core performance boost on
RAM expo 1/2/auto doesn't seem to make a difference (currently on auto)
GPU default settings in AMD Adrenalin
CPU has PPT limit set to 90W (this has reduced temperatures while performance remaining the same)

A few things regarding the PC;
- The power supply isn't the best but it should be enough?
- made and error with the order as it reset and had to do it again and ordered one stick of 32 instead of 2 sticks of 16 so I'm going to try to get another stick soon.
- The cooler isn't the best but temperatures aren't too hot, they don't exceed 90 degrees by default and don't exceed 80 with the current settings.

Case
FRACTAL POP SILENT CASE TG (WHITE)
Promotional Item
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Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X Six Core CPU (4.7GHz-5.3GHz/38MB CACHE/AM5)
Motherboard
ASUS® PRIME B650-PLUS (AM5, DDR5, PCIe 4.0)
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR5 5200MHz (1 x 32GB)
Graphics Card
16GB XFX RADEON™ RX 7600 XT SWFT - HDMI, 3 x DP
Graphics Card Support Bracket
PCS GRAPHICS CARD SUPPORT BRACKET
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB CORSAIR ELITE MP600 NVMe PCIe M.2 SSD (up to 7000 MB/R, 6200 MB/W)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 650W CX SERIES™ CX-650 POWER SUPPLY
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
PCS IceFlow WHITE 100 ARGB High Performance CPU Cooler - WHITE
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
ONBOARD 2.5Gbe LAN PORT
Wireless Network Card
NONE OR ONBOARD Wi-Fi (MOTHERBOARD DEPENDENT)
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
NO OPERATING SYSTEM REQUIRED
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
NO RECOVERY MEDIA REQUIRED
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Microsoft® Edge
Warranty
3 Year Standard Warranty (6 Month Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Christmas Delivery No Longer Guaranteed
Miscellaneous
PCSpecialist 2023 Holo Sticker Sheet
Welcome Book
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Logo Branding
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Packaging
PCS Trade Pack - New 2023

 

[Martinr36]

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[paul1224]

I'm not the most knowledgeable but my first question would be how did you install Windows if you didn't order the OS from PCS?

You would need to make sure you aren't using the PCS version as that isn't configured correctly so would need to do a clean install of Windows (not a reset).

If you haven't done, that would be my first step to make sure you have a stable OS before troubleshooting further.

As an aside, if you do purchase more RAM make sure it exactly matches what you already have otherwise it may cause issues.

 

[Scott]

This is what I would do, 1 at a time until a crash presented, then move onto the next:

To help mitigate the RAM I would turn off Expo. Run at the default settings without any OC.
The PSU wasn't a good selection unfortunately. It should be enough and it would only really come into play when working the system hard, so if it happens during normal day to day operation then it would suggest a fault if the PSU was to blame.
Remove the GPU and see if it happens while running off of the on-board video.

If you can post up information regarding the above, and the files requested, we can delve in a bit further. My guess at the moment would be PSU or RAM. I think if it was the GPU you wouldn't get the restart, it's usually a CTD..... although not unheard of.

 

[TaylorSc0tt]

I'm not the most knowledgeable but my first question would be how did you install Windows if you didn't order the OS from PCS?

You would need to make sure you aren't using the PCS version as that isn't configured correctly so would need to do a clean install of Windows (not a reset).

If you haven't done, that would be my first step to make sure you have a stable OS before troubleshooting further.

As an aside, if you do purchase more RAM make sure it exactly matches what you already have otherwise it may cause issues.

When I turned the PC on it booted into a Windows install, I didn't need the key that's why I selected no OS. Where I then used Windows reset.

 

[TaylorSc0tt]

I will upload the files when I can and next at the computer.

 

[BlessedSquirrel]

When I turned the PC on it booted into a Windows install, I didn't need the key that's why I selected no OS. Where I then used Windows reset.

As advised you can’t use the test environment as it’s not configured. You need to clean install your own licensed copy.

A windows reset isn’t sufficient, must be a clean install

 

[TaylorSc0tt]

As advised you can’t use the test environment as it’s not configured. You need to clean install your own licensed copy.

A windows reset isn’t sufficient, must be a clean install

I will do a clean Windows install, just ran a ram95 stress test for 1 hour with expo off (gpu still in) trying to replicate the crash and it didn't happen so I don't have any files with any info. Will upload them if it happens again after a clean install.

 

[TaylorSc0tt]

This is what I would do, 1 at a time until a crash presented, then move onto the next:

To help mitigate the RAM I would turn off Expo. Run at the default settings without any OC.
The PSU wasn't a good selection unfortunately. It should be enough and it would only really come into play when working the system hard, so if it happens during normal day to day operation then it would suggest a fault if the PSU was to blame.
Remove the GPU and see if it happens while running off of the on-board video.

If you can post up information regarding the above, and the files requested, we can delve in a bit further. My guess at the moment would be PSU or RAM. I think if it was the GPU you wouldn't get the restart, it's usually a CTD..... although not unheard of.

Okay so fresh install, it ran stable for almost 24 hours with no games open just general stuff. Played a game for a few hours and just got my first restart. This was with expo on (auto) and GPU in. I have turned expo off after this and will see if I get another crash.
Here are the files (Minidump wasn't created for some reason)
Event Viewer - https://easyupload.io/84v121
System Information - https://easyupload.io/ameodu
Drivers - https://easyupload.io/ptqxd6

 

[ubuysa]

That sounds like a hardware problem, so the first thing to check is temperatures. Please download a temperature monitor (HWMonitor will be fine) and post a screenshots of the CPU, GPU, and motherboard temps (expanded).

Can you please also download the SysnativeBSODCollectionApp and save it to the Desktop. Then run it and upload the resulting zip file to a cloud service with a link to it here. The SysnativeBSODCollectionApp collects all the available troubleshooting data and will make diagnosing your problem much easier. It DOES NOT collect any personally identifying data. It's used by several highly respected Windows help forums (including this one). I'm a senior BSOD analyst on the Sysnative forum where this tool came from, so I know it to be safe.

You can of course look at what's in the zip file before you upload it, most of the files are txt files. Please don't change or delete anything though. If you want a description of what each file contains you'll find that here.

BTW. I know you're not having BSODs but the troubleshooting data in there may help diagnose these restarts.

 

[TaylorSc0tt]

That sounds like a hardware problem, so the first thing to check is temperatures. Please download a temperature monitor (HWMonitor will be fine) and post a screenshots of the CPU, GPU, and motherboard temps (expanded).

Can you please also download the SysnativeBSODCollectionApp and save it to the Desktop. Then run it and upload the resulting zip file to a cloud service with a link to it here. The SysnativeBSODCollectionApp collects all the available troubleshooting data and will make diagnosing your problem much easier. It DOES NOT collect any personally identifying data. It's used by several highly respected Windows help forums (including this one). I'm a senior BSOD analyst on the Sysnative forum where this tool came from, so I know it to be safe.

You can of course look at what's in the zip file before you upload it, most of the files are txt files. Please don't change or delete anything though. If you want a description of what each file contains you'll find that here.

BTW. I know you're not having BSODs but the troubleshooting data in there may help diagnose these restarts.

Sysnative files - https://easyupload.io/9ub1fb
Temps (HWInfo) - https://easyupload.io/xr33u9
Got the temps from 30 minutes of Forza Horizon 5 at max settings.

 

[ubuysa]

The first thing of note is that you seem to be missing what looks like a chipset driver...

Not Available    ACPI\AMDI0204\2&DABA3FF&0    The drivers for this device are not installed.

The support page for your PRIME B650-PLUS motherboard contains a very resent chipset driver (v7.01.08.129) dated 16th Jan 2025. I would suggest that in the first instance you download and install this driver.

I can also see that you've been having BSODs, I can see at least 5 in the Dxdiag log, there is also one in the System log, which only goes back to 28th Jan in any case. Where is the dump for that BSOD on 28th Jan? It's not in the upload and it should be! These will be you auto restarts I expect.

If you run some sort of garbage cleaner then please stop doing so. The dumps are vital tools for debugging your problems and without this dump there isn't much I can do. It's a very generic stop code (0x3B) and with an exception of 0xC0000005, indicating an invalid memory reference, but beyond that I can't tell you anything...

You've also been having live kernel events, these will cause a crash to desktop, or possibly a black screen. These are all graphics related with a stop code of 0x193, indicating a graphics issue. Please navigate to the folder C:\Windows\LiveKernelReports and search all sub-folders under there looking for dump files (.dmp). Upload any that you find.

In Summary

• Update that chipset driver.
• Stop deleting dump files!!
• Upload any live kernel dumps you find.

 

[TaylorSc0tt]

I must of missed that driver with the clean install, as for the dump files there are none in my minidump. I ran a disk cleanup when I initially set up the pc but haven't ran any type of clean since so I don't know why they are not there. I have read and copied the settings from https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/forums/threads/when-youre-seeking-help-with-a-bsod.71885/#post-502461.
I havn't had a restart since that one so I don't have any to upload now.
Here are the kernel dumps - https://easyupload.io/39bovu

 

[ubuysa]

In order to write dumps ALL of the following must be true...

• The page file must be on the same drive as your operating system
• Set page file size to "system managed"
• Set system crash/recovery options to "Automatic memory dump"
• The "Overwrite any existing file" box must be checked
• The "Write an event to the system log" must be checked
• The dump file location must be %SystemRoot%\MEMORY.DMP
• Windows Error Reporting (WER) system service must be set to MANUAL
• User account control must be running

In addition, the following can also prevent you seeing dumps...

• SSD drives with older firmware may not create dumps (update the drive firmware)
• Cleaner applications like Ccleaner delete dump files, so don't run them until you are fixed
• Bad RAM may prevent the data from being saved and written to a file on reboot, so if all else fails test your RAM

The three live dumps are all graphics failures (which were recovered by the Windows Timeout Detection and Recovery feature), but each of them fails in a slightly different way. These indicate a potential problem either with the graphics card or with the graphics driver. The version of amdkmdag.sys (the graphics card driver) that you have installed is a year old now...

0: kd> lmvmamdkmdag
Browse full module list
start             end                 module name
fffff807`ad530000 fffff807`b34fd000   amdkmdag T (no symbols)          
    Loaded symbol image file: amdkmdag.sys
    Image path: \SystemRoot\System32\DriverStore\FileRepository\u0399526.inf_amd64_e70e91471c1ecf3c\B399690\amdkmdag.sys
    Image name: amdkmdag.sys
    Browse all global symbols  functions  data  Symbol Reload
    Timestamp:        Wed Jan 10 23:31:50 2024 (659F0CC6)
    CheckSum:         05F7B433
    ImageSize:        05FCD000
    Translations:     0000.04b0 0000.04e4 0409.04b0 0409.04e4
    Information from resource tables:

I would look for an update to that Radeon driver, if you still see problems then I would begin to suspect the graphics card.

It's not possible to say whether the BSODs you had were graphics related but they could well have been.

 

[TaylorSc0tt]

I haven't recieved a crash in two days, I't's been a lot more stable since the clean install and turning expo off. So I still don't have a dump to upload. As for the driver Adrenalin says I'm all up to date and I can't find that specific driver to download. I have stopped playing Path Of Exile 2 where I experienced most of my crashes which is a poorly optimised game (Seen a lot of complaints)
I have updated the ssd firmware and will post the logs if I get another restart.

 

[ubuysa]

OK, that must be the latest driver then, which sounds curious, but still. If the problem was limited to that game then it's probably the game at fault.

 

[TaylorSc0tt]

The game was causing temps to go up to 90+ degrees which forced me to undervolt and temp limit to keep them down. In other games temps don't nearly go as high so I have everything default now. Still curious as to why a -5 undervolt was unstable though but I suppose the poor power supply and the game causing max load could cause the restarts? The last restart I got was after 3-4 hours of Forza so I'm starting to think the power supply is just not good enough. Of course without logs we wouldn't know so I'll upload it first thing if It happens again.

 

[Scott]

Any overclocking can cause instability unfortunately. When fault finding it's always best to revert everything to standard.

I wouldn't have chosen that PSU for a gaming build but it should still be up to the task of AM5 and a 7600XT so I would be surprised if it was the spec/model, but faults are always possible.

My immediate guess from what you are describing is instability with the undervolt paired with the memory OC.

I would pick up a decent cooler though. It's unfortunate that you didn't get advice on the build here prior to ordering. We would have avoided those pitfalls.

 

[TaylorSc0tt]

Any overclocking can cause instability unfortunately. When fault finding it's always best to revert everything to standard.

I wouldn't have chosen that PSU for a gaming build but it should still be up to the task of AM5 and a 7600XT so I would be surprised if it was the spec/model, but faults are always possible.

My immediate guess from what you are describing is instability with the undervolt paired with the memory OC.

I would pick up a decent cooler though. It's unfortunate that you didn't get advice on the build here prior to ordering. We would have avoided those pitfalls.

Right now with EXPO off and a ppt limit set to 90 I haven't had a restart in 2 days. The system feels really sensitive to any kind of tuning no matter how high or low. Is that normal for a system with no hardware faults? The last PC I had which was a few generations older with stock coolers and a bog standard power supply was pretty standard to overclock. Raised it until it was unstable and managed to get the clock pretty high and gained around 15-20% more performance across the board. Was playing same games prior to recieving this one and was just limited due to the fact the hardware was older and frames where not very high but was stable.

Previous PC was a Ryzen 5 5600x and a 1070.

​

 

[Scott]

They're all different. We call it the silicone lottery, some setups are fantastic, some aren't. I would fully expect standard voltage and standard EXPO to be fine, but with it being a new platform and chipset there can be tweaks to the BIOS to get things just right.

I wouldn't be undervolting an AM5 chip. A better cooler would be a far better option. We would have suggested the 7600 non-x which would have helped with cooling and voltage tremendously. The 7600 is a better chip in my opinion, tends to be cheaper too.

If all is well as it stands and nothing is blue screening or re-starting then my immediate guess would be the undervolt causing the chip to be unstable. That would account for a hard restart from the system. Memory issues tend to CTD (although both scenarios aren't unheard of). With the chip completely stock I would try EXPO on with default values and see how it goes. If it crashes, you have a couple of options but I would get in touch with PCS as it may just be bad RAM.

Check which BIOS revision you are running and see what's available from the manufacturer. If you're miles off of it contact PCS to see which version they would recommend. Keep in mind you cannot upgrade the BIOS without PCS permission, during the warranty at least, as any issues will void the warranty. They have a note of the BIOS revision in your account etc, so don't get caught out.