black screen appears, GPU fans run at maximum speed and top fans (SYS_FAN3) cease operation upon startup or power on
black screen appears, GPU fans run at maximum speed and top fans (SYS_FAN3) cease operation upon startup or power on
I've been using this system for roughly two years now. The issue only appears right after startup or when waking up from sleep, provided I don't move the mouse or start using the PC immediately. For instance, if I wake it up with a mouse click or just press the keyboard, and then leave it on the lock screen for 10 to 20 seconds, this problem occurs (black screen, GPU fans spinning, top fans stopping connected on SYS_FAN3). It happens similarly when starting from sleep. This doesn't occur every time—it happens about 75% of the time.
When this happens, the only solution is to shut down the PC by turning off a switch on the PSU or unplugging the power cable; I can't disable it by holding the power button. However, if I begin using the PC right after waking up or starting, everything functions normally without issues. During the first year of this problem, I also observed that the BIOS would reset after shutdowns, and now for the past year, the BIOS no longer resets at all.
What I've tried so far:
- Switched to a different GPU—Gainward RTX 2060 Ghost to ASUS DUAL RTX 2060
- Updated the PSU from be quiet! Straight Power 11 750W (failed after half a year) to Pure Power 12 850W
- Re-seated RAM
- Re-seated the GPU and its power cable
- Checked CMOS battery and BIOS settings
- Disabled XMP, updated drivers, reinstalled GPU driver
- Reinstalled Windows 11
- Disabled automatic restart
Unfortunately, none of these fixes worked. I suspect the problem lies with the motherboard. Do you have any suggestions or workarounds in Windows or BIOS before considering a replacement?
Motherboard: Gigabyte AORUS B450 Elite V2
BIOS is current and follows factory settings
What BIOS version are you using on your motherboard? If you've updated the BIOS (please specify which version) did you reset the CMOS after confirming the flash was successful?
Switching GPU: New model from Gainward RTX 2060 Ghost to ASUS DUAL RTX 2060
Use DDU to eliminate all GPU drivers (Intel, AMD and Nvidia) in Safe Mode, then install the latest drivers manually via an elevated command—right-click the installer and select Run as Administrator.
I also observed the BIOS was reinitialized after power-off
Are you experiencing any electrical issues? Specifically, do you feel a slight tingling when touching the metal part of your case while bare feet touch a tiled floor? Have you considered replacing the CMOS battery with a new cell?
Reinstalling Windows 11
Did you regenerate the installer for the operating system, installing it offline and manually adding all required drivers in an elevated command while disconnected from the internet? Were all drives except the one you intended to install removed?
RAM: G.Skill Ripjaws V (Black) (4x8 GB) 32 GB 3200 MHz
Does the problem occur with two RAM sticks installed in slots A2 and B2?
Processing cooling: How is the CPU being cooled and what temperatures are recorded during issues?
The motherboard is a **Gigabyte AORUS B450 Elite V2**.
The BIOS is current and follows factory settings.
Could you confirm the BIOS version you're using? If you've updated it to the newest release, did you reset the CMOS after confirming the flash was successful?
I am running the latest BIOS – **F68d**. Yes, I cleared the CMOS once the update completed.
I switched the GPU from a Gainward RTX 2060 Ghost to an ASUS DUAL RTX 2060.
Using DDU in Safe Mode helped remove all GPU drivers (Intel, AMD, Nvidia). After installing the latest drivers via an elevated command, everything worked smoothly. Previously, I performed a full driver reset two months ago.
I also observed that the BIOS restarted after power-off.
Are you experiencing any electrical concerns? For example, do you feel a slight tingling when touching metal parts of your case while bare feet touch a tiled floor? Have you considered replacing the CMOS battery with a new one?
No electrical issue detected. The CMOS voltage is currently 3.26V, which suggests the battery may not be faulty. The BIOS reset problem seemed to resolve after the first year, but now it persists for the past year.
I recently reinstalled Windows 11.
Did you rebuild the installer, install the OS in offline mode, and manually add all required drivers via an elevated command? Were all drives except the one for installation disconnected?
Yes, I created a fresh OS installer, installed it offline, and added necessary drivers—GPU, Chipset, Ethernet, SerialIO, Storage—manually. I also removed other drives to ensure no accidental formatting occurred.
RAM: **G.Skill Ripjaws V (Black)** (4x8 GB) – 32 GB, 3200 MHz
The problem appears when using two RAM sticks in slots A2 and B2.
Yes, it does. Initially, the first setup used dual-channel RAM (2x8 GB each in A2 and B2), which caused the issue even then. About a year ago, I added two more sticks.
Processing temperature is managed with a **Be Quiet! Pure Rock 2 cooler**. When the issue occurs, temperatures reach around 30-40 degrees Celsius.
Power supply change:
Switched from a Be Quiet! PSU to a Pure Power 12 850W unit.
Did you replace any cables during this upgrade?
Yes, I replaced all relevant cables and used the new PSU’s specifications.
Hello!
I fixed the issue by disabling Wake-on-LAN in BIOS, and the error stopped happening again. It looks like there might be a bug with that feature or something else. The Ethernet driver is up-to-date, and the BIOS was also current before. I always kept it updated when a new version came out.