System acting all-around strange, but no errors?

[AVT]

Ever since first reformatting and installing Windows 7 (back on Vista 64 now) my system has been acting seemingly unstable.

Some of what's going on:

1) Various applications will randomly cause system to black screen. Sometimes I get a "nvidia driver has recovered" message 5 seconds later, sometimes not, and system locks up.

2) Artifacts, especially in WC3. Once in a few days in COD4. Oddly, they seem to show up when the card is least stressed. Sometimes I'll have to reboot 3-4 times to get the game to play 5mins without artifacts+locking up, sometimes it runs 5-6hrs no problem and never appears at all until I turn the system off & start it next day. Card stays at 40-45c at all times, doesn't even get hot with most games - cooled via AC Accelero S1 + fan, so heat can't be the problem.

3) Memtest: pass. IntelBurnTest: stable. Prime95: stable. ATITool: no artifacts. Absolutely no errors anywhere, everything tells me my system's 100% stable.

4) Issue is a LOT worse on Nvidia 185s than 181s.

I have no idea what's going on at this point. I just reinstalled Nvidia drivers, hopefully that helps. If not, I'm going to reformat tomorrow. System is in sig. Anyone got any ideas?

 

[Nenu]

As a test, unplug all USB devices you can.
Move your keyboard and mouse to another connector.
I had a very strange problem with my system when using the 185 drivers as well, it was tracked down to a USB port which doesnt initialise properly on boot but works fine with any other NVidia driver installed.
I also have numerous USB devices that when plugged in make my system less stable.
Others have reported similar a similar issue.
Failing that...

Its possible the VRs (Voltage Regulators) or memory on the gfx card are overheating.
Check behind each memory module to see how hot they are, same for the VRMs.

If you want an easy way to see if there is a heat problem somewhere that has no temp sensor, blow a housefan at the PCs insides.
If it is suddenly more stable, you know what to look for.

 

[AVT]

As a test, unplug all USB devices you can.
Move your keyboard and mouse to another connector.
I had a very strange problem with my system when using the 185 drivers as well, it was tracked down to a USB port which doesnt initialise properly on boot but works fine with any other NVidia driver installed.
I also have numerous USB devices that when plugged in make my system less stable.
Others have reported similar a similar issue.
Failing that...

Its possible the VRs (Voltage Regulators) or memory on the gfx card are overheating.
Check behind each memory module to see how hot they are, same for the VRMs.

If you want an easy way to see if there is a heat problem somewhere that has no temp sensor, blow a housefan at the PCs insides.
If it is suddenly more stable, you know what to look for.

Wow, I had no idea USB ports could even possibly be a cause. I'll definitely try moving things around.

Both my RAM and Video Card RAM have heatsinks on them, so that can't possibly be the problem, especially since both can run fine without anything on them.

I do have a case coming for another build, though, so I'll be able to move the system temporarily there, and it should run a lot cooler than my current one.

edit: Looks like this might have something to do with USB. I switched my keyboard+mouse to PS/2 and unplugged all USB ports, and can't get WC3 to artifact+freeze upon changing resolution.

 

[Nenu]

Wow, I had no idea USB ports could even possibly be a cause. I'll definitely try moving things around.

Both my RAM and Video Card RAM have heatsinks on them, so that can't possibly be the problem, especially since both can run fine without anything on them.

I do have a case coming for another build, though, so I'll be able to move the system temporarily there, and it should run a lot cooler than my current one.

A heatsink does NOT guarantee they will be running within specced temp, thats your job once you own it.
It can still EASILY be the problem, you shouldnt dismiss advice so readily when you have no clue as its really annoying for us.
You are also forgetting the VRMs I mentioned in the post you quoted.

Better case airflow may be the solution.
Try out blowing a big fan at the PC, its hardly any effort and we've tried hard for you, time for you to do something!

 

[sirmonkey1985]

A heatsink does NOT guarantee they will be running within specced temp, thats your job once you own it.
It can still EASILY be the problem, you shouldnt dismiss advice so readily when you have no clue as its really annoying for us.
You are also forgetting the VRMs I mentioned in the post you quoted.

Better case airflow may be the solution.
Try out blowing a big fan at the PC, its hardly any effort and we've tried hard for you, time for you to do something!

on the 8800GS cooling is a non issue.. the actual card has almost no heatsink on the ram and vrm's..

OP'er try the 186.xx beta/whql drivers.. if you had problems with the 185.xx drivers like the rest of us have.. those should fix it.. i ended up going back to the 182.xx drivers just because im sick of dealing with nvidia's garbage drivers..

 

[AVT]

on the 8800GS cooling is a non issue.. the actual card has almost no heatsink on the ram and vrm's..

OP'er try the 186.xx beta/whql drivers.. if you had problems with the 185.xx drivers like the rest of us have.. those should fix it.. i ended up going back to the 182.xx drivers just because im sick of dealing with nvidia's garbage drivers..

I already went back to the 181s which were 100% stable on my system before.

Stability is a LOT better now, seems 100% stable with no USB devices connected. Still, I've gotten one crash earlier today with just my iPhone plugged in while playing COD4.

I'm going to reformat later today while I transfer the system to another case, hopefully that fully resolves the issue. Thank goodness my data's already backed up, shouldn't take me too long.

 

[sirmonkey1985]

I already went back to the 181s which were 100% stable on my system before.

Stability is a LOT better now, seems 100% stable with no USB devices connected. Still, I've gotten one crash earlier today with just my iPhone plugged in while playing COD4.

I'm going to reformat later today while I transfer the system to another case, hopefully that fully resolves the issue. Thank goodness my data's already backed up, shouldn't take me too long.

you might want to check to see if there is a newer bios that fixes the usb problem.. both of my boards which arent the same as yours had usb problems and were fixed with bios updates..

 

[AVT]

you might want to check to see if there is a newer bios that fixes the usb problem.. both of my boards which arent the same as yours had usb problems and were fixed with bios updates..

Reformatted, and haven't been able to reproduce any problems yet. Thus, looks like it was a Nvidia driver problem after all, but only time will tell.

 

[Nenu]

on the 8800GS cooling is a non issue.. the actual card has almost no heatsink on the ram and vrm's.

Didnt realise it was an 8800GS :blush:
Reading comprehension ftw and soz OP for my last post.