Kajper's Info Corner

Thanks, I'll keep that in mind if I need it. One browser is plenty for today. 🙂 And about those betting sites, like I said... they aren't even showing up on Chrome anymore, so it's not like I can get them to work. If they were there, I could at least write them down, but—nothing. They just vanished.
I need Chrome for my banking... this Water is just an experiment... I'd really love for Chrome to just work... but whenever it's running, everything breaks.
Maybe they just disappeared by some miracle... maybe I should try pretending they won't load. 😉

Just wanted to give an update... after a fresh macOS reinstall, the issues seem gone. To be fair, my connection keeps dropping—not on the router side, but just on the PC itself—so I have to troubleshoot by restarting the network adapter to get things back on track. But hey, it’s been a week without any blue or black screens, and everything's fine, Chrome works great. 🙂

Edit:
Actually, scratch that... about ten minutes after I posted this, the screen went black again... same old driver error message... then it just recovered. It's not as bad as before, everything is running, it just flickered out for a second.
Is this just the start of a whole new saga? 🙂

So what did you end up getting? What was the final build? It’s kind of a pain trying to dig through this massive thread to find it 😁

Could be an issue with those Intel integrated drivers... there isn't any other way to look at it 😳

fadedorca66 said:So, what did you end up going with? What’s the final build look like? It's such a pain trying to dig through this massive thread to find it. 😁

Should I list out all the parts? Alright, let me dig up the receipt and I'll get back to you.

Robert Rodriguez2 said:Could be an issue with your Intel integrated graphics drivers... honestly, what else would it be? 😳

Yeah, that message about the Intel driver probably refers to that, but still... how do you even fix this? It’s not like my buddy—who actually knows his way around this stuff—hasn't tried everything. He went through the whole driver reinstall process and honestly? He can't find the problem anywhere.
Didn't happen again today. It only acted up once like you guys said it would... just a quick glitch that fixed itself. Everything's running smooth now.
Man, I really hope things stay this way. Can we just not have a repeat of that black screen scenario? You know, where the whole PC just dies until you hit restart? That was a nightmare.

Rachel Jones8 said:Should I list every single part? Fine, let me dig up my receipt and write it all down.

Yeah, that message about the Intel drivers probably refers to this, but... how do you even fix it? It’s not like my buddy (who actually knows his way around a PC) hasn't tried everything with the drivers... full reinstalls and all... he says there's zero issue to be found.
It didn't happen again today, though once it did exactly what you described... it glitched for a second, fixed itself, and then things were fine.
God, I hope it stays that way... and that it doesn't pull that black screen stunt again where the whole rig dies until a hard reboot.

Most likely, a newer driver update will patch this, so just keep an eye out for those.

fadedorca66 said:So what did you end up going with? What was the final build you bought? It's a pain trying to dig through this mountain of posts to find it. 😁

Here it is:

Intel Core i3 BOX
Asrock FM2 FM2A88M Extreme 4+
DDR3 4Gb (1x4) Kingston 1600MHz HX
Western Digital Blue 1TB SATA3 64MB
Chicony 400W 80plus PSU
Seagate ST250DM001 SATA
ZALMAN Z9 Case
PC Assembly - free
Zalman CNPS8000
USB multicard reader black

added later:
Western Digital Blue 120GB
DDR3 4gb (1x4) Kingston 1600MHz

Robert Rodriguez2 said:Most likely, a newer driver version will fix it, so you'll need to keep an eye on that.

How am I supposed to keep track of that? (Considering my "vast" IT expertise...)
Do I just look for an Intel processor update in Device Manager, or check the web, or
search online, or 🤷 🙂

1. Did you try updating the BIOS yet? Might be worth a shot if you haven't:
http://www.asrock.com/mb/AMD/FM2A88M...wnload&os=BIOS

Maybe just let your buddy handle that part for you.

2. Grab these 15.4 Beta drivers here and see if they help (if I remember right, you're running Windows 7 64-bit):

http://support.amd.com/en-us/downloa...Windows+7+-+64

3. I guess the next thing could be that the CPU is overheating (since it's got integrated graphics), which might cause the crashes. Modern browsers can actually be pretty heavy on the GPU, so who knows. Maybe download Core Temp:

http://www.cpuid.com/downloads/hwmon...nitor_1.27.zip

Send us a screenshot of the temps while the PC is just idling. Then, maybe run 3DMark to put some stress on the CPU and GPU:
http://www.ozone3d.net/benchmarks/fur/

And then shoot over a screenshot of the temperatures after it's been running for a few minutes. If it crashes during the test, the problem is probably somewhere there.

So far, I’ve only dared to try step number 3. (At least it hasn't crashed on me yet—no more black screens forcing a hard reboot lately)

View on imgur

When the guys were putting my PC together, they told me this cooler was plenty, maybe even overkill since I don't really do anything heavy. (I'm definitely not a gamer)

Here’s another one... now I've got five tabs open and YouTube music is blasting in the background.
View on imgur

Which numbers actually matter here? Where should I be looking? Is this for the Intel Core i3 or the Intel Radeon?
Are these temps okay... or what?

😲

Hitting 77°C at just 66% load? Yeah, that’s definitely not right... I think the max rated temp for that processor (which also houses the graphics) is supposed to be 74°C. I can only imagine what happens when you hit 100% load...

Maybe the heatsink isn't seated properly, or perhaps it's time to swap out the thermal paste.

Actually, Intel handles monitoring differently than AMD. That value you're seeing in Core Temp isn't actually the CPU temperature; they refer to that specific reading as "socket temp."

http://imageshack.com/a/img163/833/tbgx.png

http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/...=1#post5237937

There have been massive debates over what exactly defines what.

If you want the easiest way to cool down your PC without messing with any actual hardware, just pop the side panel off the case. It’ll boost airflow instantly. Sure, the temps won't drop a massive amount, but it’s enough to figure out if your cooling setup is actually failing you or not. Just make sure the PC is powered down before you pull the panel off, and watch out so a pet doesn't wander inside while it's open. 😬

Yeah, I nearly lost it when I saw my buddy's Athlon running that hot. Look, check the Core Temp, not the package temp like TimothyKim60 showed in his screenshot—those readings are totally off. I have no clue which sensor he's even pulling that package reading from... And btw, opening the side panel doesn't automatically mean temperatures will drop. It could actually make things worse depending on the airflow in the case and the ambient room temperature. I tried that exact thing with my old rig, popping the side open. In the end, I just kept it closed whenever I was actually measuring temps.

darkowl72 said:If you want to cool things down fast without messing with any hardware, just pop the side panel off. It’s like opening a window in a stuffy room. Airflow spikes immediately. Temps won't drop massively, but it's enough to see if your cooling setup is actually failing or just struggling. Just make sure the PC is off when you open it, and watch out for the family dog jumping inside. 😬

Learned this the hard way. Back when I was a kid, my cat decided an old Intel cooler looked like a bed. 😁
Now he won't even go near the rig. 🤣

Adam Moore3 said:Yeah, I nearly had a heart attack when I saw how hot my buddy's Athlon was running. Look, check CPU-Z, not the package reading that Timothy Kim60 showed in his picture; we're looking at incorrect readings here. I have no clue which specific sensor he's pulling that package data from... And by the way, opening the side panel doesn't automatically mean temperatures will drop. It could actually make things worse depending on the existing airflow in the case and the ambient room temperature. I tried that with my old rig—opening the side panel. In the end, I just stayed upstairs whenever I needed to run temperature checks.

Another thing that drives me crazy about HWMonitor is how inconsistent the interface is for everyone. Take that screenshot in the second link, for instance—for him, it explicitly labels the CPU (no need for CPU-Z to hunt for it).

He could just download AIDA64, go to Computer -> Sensor, and check the CPU temperature (not the "core" temp used by AMD). That CPU temp should match exactly what you see in CPU-Z via HWMonitor.

Timothy Kim60 said:Another thing that bugs me about HWiNFO is how inconsistent the readings look for everyone. Take that screenshot from the other link—it clearly just lists "CPU" instead of making you hunt for "CPUTIN."

You could just download CPU-Z, go to the sensor section, and check the CPU temperature (not just the individual core temps like you see on some AMD builds). That CPU temp will match the CPUTIN value in HWiNFO perfectly.

They probably used a different version of HWiNFO there; they release updates all the time. Or it might just be the motherboard and its specific sensors.🤷

Now you guys have just gone and confused me even more. 😁
So, is that temperature actually fine or what?

Timothy Kim60 said:Nah, AMD handles monitoring differently than Intel. That number you’re seeing in HWMonitor isn't actually the CPU temperature—it's what they call "socket temp."
I can't see any text to rewrite here! Just an image link. What am I working with?
http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/...=1#post5237937
There were huge debates over what was what.

My CPU is sitting at around 36-38° right now.

Adam Moore3 said:Yeah, I nearly lost it too when I saw how hot Athlon was running. Look, CPU, it’s not about the package like what The New Guy showed in that photo—we're talking about wrong sensor readings here. I have zero clue which package he's even pulling those sensor temps from... And hey, just because he pops the side panel doesn't mean the temps will actually drop. It could easily make things worse depending on the airflow and the room temp. I tried that exact thing with my old rig once. In the end, I just left the side open whenever I needed to check the temps.

My old rig used to have this display issue—I don't even know what the exact numbers were—but it would spin around 26-27°C. Once the summer heat hit, it’d jump up to like 35°C and just die on me completely. Once it cooled down a bit, I could turn it back on and everything would be fine. Any idea why?
This unit has its own display too—not sure exactly where it’s pulling the readings from, though. It usually sits right around 72 to 75 degrees. There’s even a boost button, probably for the fan or something, since my old one had that too... but honestly, I don't hear or feel any real difference when I mess with it.
Case feels ice cold. Even with the exhaust blowing out, the air is totally chilled.
It's sitting around 68 to 72 degrees in here. Heating's totally dead.
My rig is just over a year old. I haven't even opened it up myself—only took it to the shop once to get an SSD and some RAM installed. They even blew out the dust while they were at it. Still got all the factory stickers on it, too.
It’s been running fine lately. Aside from that one quick black screen—which fixed itself instantly—it seems like the reinstall did the trick. At least for now.
Should I be sweating this temperature spike even if nothing’s actually happening yet?

Edit: I just remembered... a buddy mentioned he ran a stress test on it, and everything seemed totally fine. Not sure if that even matters here?

Those temps look solid and right where they should be; 41°C at 66% load.