Current CPU and storage setup causes frequent crashes during Windows startup.
Current CPU and storage setup causes frequent crashes during Windows startup.
Hello! I've faced some issues with my computer recently, mainly experiencing frequent blue screens. I was looking for better stability and improved performance, so I upgraded about a week ago. My previous setup was:
- Intel i5 7600K
- 16 GB DDR4 (3000 MHz) from Corsair LPX Vengeance
- Asus Z170p motherboard (latest BIOS since 2018)
- SSD booted in
- Kingston A2000 500 GB (NvMe ~1500 MB/s)
- Secondary SSD: Crucial MX500 1 TB
- GTX 1070 Ti by GALAXIUM
- Seasonic Focus GX, 80+ Gold, 550W PSU
I switched to a Samsung 970 EVO Plus, added another 1 TB SSD, and upgraded the CPU to an i7 6700K. After reinstalling Windows on the new drive, things stabilized. However, problems started soon after.
Initially, the Windows installation took over two hours due to repeated failures. Once everything was configured, I began overclocking the CPU. My i5 7600K ran at around 4.8 GHz with 1.3V, but I adjusted it to 4.5 GHz and 4.6 GHz, settling at 1.325V. Games like CSGO and benchmarks performed well—Cinebench reached ~6000 all-core, and 3DMark scores improved.
After loading PUBG, I encountered blue screens both during startup and in-game. Lowering the CPU to 4.5 GHz helped, but the issue persisted. I tried reinstalling Windows and reconfiguring BIOS settings, but the problem remained.
Event logs showed consistent errors: volmgr 161 followed by kernel 41. After a few attempts with SFC/SCANOW, everything seemed fine. The hardware reports were normal, and CrystalDiskInfo showed no issues.
I checked the event logger and minidump files, but found a failure ID related to an Intel processor image. Despite multiple attempts—reseating the CPU, using different drives, and reinstalling everything—I still couldn’t boot Windows smoothly.
Now I’m frustrated. The BIOS defaults are set, and the motherboard appears fine. I’ve tried everything online and offline, reinstalled SSDs multiple times, even replaced the CPU. Still, blue screens interrupt my workflow. It’s been a long struggle trying to get back on track.
Please help me understand what’s going wrong—I’ve been doing this for years and don’t want to give up.
Include the dump files as specified in the BSOD Posting instructions thread.