computer keeps freezing

[gordy5522]

Hi can anyone help, my computer keeps freezing up when playing games like call of duty 4 or frontline fuels of war it just started to happen, been playing cod 4 with no problem until now, all drivers updated directx, nvida but i have just got a new lcd monitor which i am not running at high res. When it freezes it locks the computer up, ctrl alt del nothing works so I have to turn my computer off and restart.
my spec.
atlon 64 3200
nvida 7300gs 256md
1500 drr 333mhz
asrock motherboard
Have done clean install of win xp still the same, I am starting to think its a hardware problem.

Cheers
gordy

[madrat]

I seam to remember when my PC did this it was down to the memory.

But have you checked the temp of your CPU

[kerrywez]

Hi if the only bit of memory you have is one 1500 drr 333mhz stick, then you must be at the limits of your memory. It might well be the CPU temperature, if it goes too high everything will shut down to save any damage to the CPU. Is there any more noise coming from the fan, that you have noticed lately, if there is it might be a sign that the fan is starting to run it's bearings? Both of which madrat has said.

You might also have far too much running in the background, using up precious memory.

Hope that it is not too serious and you can fix it yourself, as I know what they charge to just look at a puter, if it is the fan it will be easy enough to sort out, just buy a new one, plenty of them on Ebay. There is also plenty of memory out there and it is no big job to slip in another memory stick or two.

Very best regards Wez

[spangle]

Hi Gordy,

You haven't stated if the system is overclocked or tweaked in any way. If it is, reset back to optimum settings in bios.

I'd do the following to diagnose:

1. You state 1500 RAM, if that's 1.5GB then remove the RAM and leave one stick in then test. If the issue continues, swap out the RAM so you test each stick. You can use Memtest86 to fully test your RAM, leave it running overnight for a full test.

2. Backout your gfx driver and use the one your card came with on the cd.

3. Power supply. While playing games your system will pull the most power. I've seen this many times on gaming systems where the PSU is tired or a cheap unbranded one. What's the rating of your PSU? and the brand/model number (written on a sticker on the PSU).

4. Turn off or quit all non essential tasks and apps. Use msconfig from the run menu to do this.

The most likely cause for this in order imho would be:

gfx driver
PSU
gfx card overheat
faulty RAM

I'd say it's unlikely that the cpu is overheating as the bios will kill the power in most cases, not lock the system. The gfx chipset could overheat causing this issue, so make sure the vents are clear of dust etc.

It's also worth turning of Cool'n'Quiet as that's been known to cause problems.

Try those 1st then report back.

[gordy5522]

Thanks for the help found out it was the cpu fan, all seems to be okay now

cheers

gordy