So my daw computer is almost two yrs old. Earlier this yr it started acting kind of wonky. Like, if I were using the mouse it would slow down; if watching video or listening to audio it would start to break up then freeze and the computer would shut off. It's gotten worse in that now it will only stay on a few minutes. Although, today i took it aprt to clean and have a look. I noticed the thickest connector going to the motherboard was loose, so i connected it again and put it back together
I booted up, and to test, started up ableton live. I threw in a couple of loops, then imposcar and created a midi loop for it. Then i added alchemy and then decidied to hook up my midi keyboard, as it had been playing the loop for about ten minutes, I hoped the problem was solved.
Just as i sat the keyboard on the table, I noticed the cpu meter in Live jump up around 63 and then the computer shut off. Note, alchemy wasnt playing a pattern, just merely loaded.
So, I'm back to suspecting the psu.
The psu is a 750 watt Rosewill
oops, not anymore see my third post.
Bad psu?/browser causing severe cpu spike
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- KVRAF
- 1844 posts since 16 Jul, 2004 from Deepest Yorkshire
Do you have HDDs or SSDs?
It sounds more like a thermal problem to me as a bad PSU won't usually make it past HDD spinup or you'd get delayed write failures. With a loose connector it should not boot just beep, if it can. If you have only SSDs then it might be power related.
Depending on your motherboard you can monitor temps and voltages with SpeedFan or something similar. You can also buy PSU testers pretty cheap, but make sure it's the right standard (ATX whatever) and get a one by a PSU manufacturer such as Antec or Thermaltake.
It sounds more like a thermal problem to me as a bad PSU won't usually make it past HDD spinup or you'd get delayed write failures. With a loose connector it should not boot just beep, if it can. If you have only SSDs then it might be power related.
Depending on your motherboard you can monitor temps and voltages with SpeedFan or something similar. You can also buy PSU testers pretty cheap, but make sure it's the right standard (ATX whatever) and get a one by a PSU manufacturer such as Antec or Thermaltake.
I miss MindPrint. My TRIO needs a big brother.
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- something special
- Topic Starter
- 8571 posts since 16 Mar, 2002 from Birmingham, Alabama
Two HDD drives.
I had some monitoring software, temps and voltages were always within norm..although, heh, never had it open to monitor when the computer shut down.
Although I remember one voltage was always really close to the minimum.
I had some monitoring software, temps and voltages were always within norm..although, heh, never had it open to monitor when the computer shut down.
Although I remember one voltage was always really close to the minimum.
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- KVRAF
- 1844 posts since 16 Jul, 2004 from Deepest Yorkshire
Sorry, I can't help you much then. I suggest, if possible, getting the monitor software to log to a file and then going through it, checking event viewer or for memory dumps (to see if it's software related). You could also disconnect the HDDs and boot from a live CD. This will check stability at reduced power.
Voltages are fine if they are in range as the limits are usually set conservatively. A simple way to check temps is to have a hand near an exhaust fan whilst it boots and is on. If it keeps getting hotter and never settles then there is an issue.
Voltages are fine if they are in range as the limits are usually set conservatively. A simple way to check temps is to have a hand near an exhaust fan whilst it boots and is on. If it keeps getting hotter and never settles then there is an issue.
I miss MindPrint. My TRIO needs a big brother.
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- something special
- Topic Starter
- 8571 posts since 16 Mar, 2002 from Birmingham, Alabama
Interesting..have been playing in Cubase 5, with Maschine loaded, along with Waves Redd on an audio track.
Have been playing one of the tracks from Maschine's Halycon Sky over and over for about fifteen minutes.
Running the Open Monitor software, all four cores are jumping around below 20%.
Leaving Cubase open and playing, and opening either Chrome or Firefox, the cpu jumps directly to 60 and things started bogging down
and the audio from Cubase/Maschine started cutting out.
I immediately closed the browser(s) and cpu usage went back down below 20 on all cores and Cubase/Maschine went merrily on playing.
What's with the browsers causing such a spike?
Now that I think of it, everytime the computer has shut down, i've been online with a browser open.
So, it's not the psu..
Have been playing one of the tracks from Maschine's Halycon Sky over and over for about fifteen minutes.
Running the Open Monitor software, all four cores are jumping around below 20%.
Leaving Cubase open and playing, and opening either Chrome or Firefox, the cpu jumps directly to 60 and things started bogging down
and the audio from Cubase/Maschine started cutting out.
I immediately closed the browser(s) and cpu usage went back down below 20 on all cores and Cubase/Maschine went merrily on playing.
What's with the browsers causing such a spike?
Now that I think of it, everytime the computer has shut down, i've been online with a browser open.
So, it's not the psu..
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- KVRAF
- 1844 posts since 16 Jul, 2004 from Deepest Yorkshire
Check Browser Addons and Anti-Virus/Security Software.
If you get the Process Explorer from the SysInternals Suite you can more closely monitor programs and see what's causing it.
If you get the Process Explorer from the SysInternals Suite you can more closely monitor programs and see what's causing it.
I miss MindPrint. My TRIO needs a big brother.
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- KVRist
- 452 posts since 8 Jul, 2004
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- KVRAF
- 2185 posts since 10 Jul, 2006 from Tampa
Well, the PSU may not be in the best shape anymore, but it's probably not what's causing the problem.bluedad wrote:Interesting..have been playing in Cubase 5, with Maschine loaded, along with Waves Redd on an audio track.
Have been playing one of the tracks from Maschine's Halycon Sky over and over for about fifteen minutes.
Running the Open Monitor software, all four cores are jumping around below 20%.
Leaving Cubase open and playing, and opening either Chrome or Firefox, the cpu jumps directly to 60 and things started bogging down
and the audio from Cubase/Maschine started cutting out.
I immediately closed the browser(s) and cpu usage went back down below 20 on all cores and Cubase/Maschine went merrily on playing.
What's with the browsers causing such a spike?
Now that I think of it, everytime the computer has shut down, i've been online with a browser open.
So, it's not the psu..
Load Firefox in "Safe Mode" (with the add-ons disabled) and see if you still have the problem. Google and Firefox may be trying to update themselves when you open them, and that added "stress" on your system may be enough to draw what's left from your PSU. (Google Chrome is supposed to update itself in the background any time Windows is running; Firefox usually waits until you load it to check for updates.)
But neither of these should be enough to stress your PSU to the point where it can't deliver enough power to the computer. It could also be that your CPU is overheating from the stress. The computer will also shut down for that reason.
Steve
Here's some of my stuff: https://soundcloud.com/shadowsoflife. If you hear something you like, I'm looking for collaborators.
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- KVRAF
- 5752 posts since 29 Sep, 2010 from Maui
Another thing to check out would be your graphics card. Dunno what your running, but GPU
acceleration believe it or not is one thing that pretty much everything you describe has in common.
A bad or failing GPU can produce all the symptoms you have noted, although this may be difficult to test.
-Cheers
acceleration believe it or not is one thing that pretty much everything you describe has in common.
A bad or failing GPU can produce all the symptoms you have noted, although this may be difficult to test.
-Cheers
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- KVRian
- 1045 posts since 3 Jul, 2006
Do you see any nasty messages in the windows Event Viewer?
