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#1
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Computer Weirdness
HW:
MB: P8Z77-M CPU: Core-i3, 3.3 ghz, Ivy Bridge 16 gigs ram Intel SSD WD-HDD Win7-64 bit Everything played nice for like four months, then I started getting seemingly unrelated issues like: - Adobe Flash crashes in FireFox - FireFox trying, but failing, to open old pages on startup. - Win 7 locking up twice, including the mouse. - A crash with a brief window mentioning a memory error. - The monitor would sometimes have a brief jiggle and the brightness would change/flash quickly (a little brighter then back to normal). One thing that changed is I had to enable VT-x in the BIOS to use VirtualBox and Linux. After the memory error, I downloaded and (re-)installed all the drivers from ASUS. The GPU driver version was one level behind the Windows version but I used the ASUS downloaded driver since it is the latest on their website. I also noticed that my BIOS version did not support the Core-i3, so, I updated to the latest. Memtest86 does not report any errors, so, I hope some of this helped the situation. |
#2
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Computer Weirdness
geoff wrote:
HW: MB: P8Z77-M CPU: Core-i3, 3.3 ghz, Ivy Bridge 16 gigs ram Intel SSD WD-HDD Win7-64 bit Everything played nice for like four months, then I started getting seemingly unrelated issues like: - Adobe Flash crashes in FireFox - FireFox trying, but failing, to open old pages on startup. - Win 7 locking up twice, including the mouse. - A crash with a brief window mentioning a memory error. - The monitor would sometimes have a brief jiggle and the brightness would change/flash quickly (a little brighter then back to normal). One thing that changed is I had to enable VT-x in the BIOS to use VirtualBox and Linux. After the memory error, I downloaded and (re-)installed all the drivers from ASUS. The GPU driver version was one level behind the Windows version but I used the ASUS downloaded driver since it is the latest on their website. I also noticed that my BIOS version did not support the Core-i3, so, I updated to the latest. Memtest86 does not report any errors, so, I hope some of this helped the situation. Do you have any of your custom BIOS settings written down somewhere ? Since you updated the BIOS, you could try clearing CMOS. There will usually be a jumper, like "CLRRTC". You must remove all power, before using the jumper. Unplug the computer. Consult the manual for any additional details. Once the jumper is put back the way it was, power up, enter the BIOS, and restore the settings. ******* When I had a stability problem with my Core2 system, I found that entering the BIOS, and bumping Vnb (Northbridge voltage, the chip that talks to memory), that seemed to help. It only took an increase of one step, to go from occasional memory errors, to none at all (even after Prime95 all night). Your architecture is different, but you might still have some useful controls in the BIOS. One other thing I'd experiment with, is operating any "whizzy" hardware features, in manual mode. For example, if you had "Digi+ VRM", if that could be disabled, I'd run it in a fixed operating mode. And see if that helps or not. I doubt the VT-x setting made that much difference. It shouldn't have anything to do with the operating conditions for the memory DIMMs. I was a bit surprised at my stability problem. The system was flawless for months, then one day I was running several heavy duty things at the same time, and I started getting memory errors. I loaded memtest86+, and sure enough, could see problems there as well. I tried reseating the DIMMs, in case it was a contact problem. Didn't help. Then I started fooling with the voltages, and on a hunch, headed for Vnb instead of VDimm. And just as quickly as my memory problem had shown up, it was gone again. I can only conclude, that somehow, either the voltage regulator had drifted out of spec (unlikely), or, the silicon in the Northbridge had a parametric shift. But I hadn't been "torturing" the Northbridge - it was operating at pretty Plain Jane settings. And yet, I started getting errors. Tweak it - if no satisfaction, you've likely still got a little warranty time left. The Asus warranty may be three years, but it's measured from the date stamped on the box. The serial number, has two characters as the lead digits, and those specify year and month. Like "3A" would be manufactured in 2013 October. (I think this is documented on the Asus site somewhere.) And my three years would be measured from there. When I purchased my current Asus motherboard, it had been sitting in a warehouse for 1.5 years, so my three year warranty was basically cut in half (only 1.5 years left). Paul |
#3
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Computer Weirdness
I cleared the CMOS RTC RAM and loaded the BIOS defaults. However, most of
the BIOS is on 'auto' (voltages, AI Overclock, etc.). I changed two things: - Set the SATA mode to AHCI for my SSD. - Change the performance setting to 'quiet'. One thing did change with the new BIOS, the CPU temperature. Originally, the CPU ran anywhere from 18c to 22c without load. Now it runs at 28c to 30c without load. |
#4
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Computer Weirdness
I also experienced random internet disconnects.
"geoff" wrote in message: .... I started getting seemingly unrelated issues like: - Adobe Flash crashes in FireFox - FireFox trying, but failing, to open old pages on startup. - Win 7 locking up twice, including the mouse. - A crash with a brief window mentioning a memory error. - The monitor would sometimes have a brief jiggle and the brightness would change/flash quickly (a little brighter then back to normal). |
#5
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Computer Weirdness
Things seem to be stable now. I updated the BIOS to the latest, updated all
the drivers from the ASUS website, and uninstalled the AI Suite components except the monitor and system information. It seems like components such as GPU boost, added instability. I'm using ASUS drivers even if Win 7 has a newer one. |
#6
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Computer Weirdness
On 20/06/2013 02:37, geoff wrote:
Things seem to be stable now. I updated the BIOS to the latest, updated all the drivers from the ASUS website, and uninstalled the AI Suite components except the monitor and system information. It seems like components such as GPU boost, added instability. I'm using ASUS drivers even if Win 7 has a newer one. Good move. I avoid using any Asus utility software - very buggy in my (long) experience of using Asus products. To be honest, all the useful tweaks and settings can be done via the BIOS settings. For system monitoring, 3rd-party products with a long history of support are the way to go for stability (eg speedfan, cpu-z etc.) This list includes a lot of 'good stuff': http://www.techradar.com/news/softwa...m-tools-705029 -- Rob |
#7
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Computer Weirdness
I avoid using any Asus utility software ...
My machine had one BSOD and when streaming Bloomberg, the video seem to get worse over time, so, I completely removed AISuite (the ASUS tool), even though I only had the monitor and system information installed and replaced it with SpeedFan and CPU-z. Video works great and no BSOD so far. |
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