Is it related to the GPU? The screen becomes unstable and the computer restarts.
Is it related to the GPU? The screen becomes unstable and the computer restarts.
When playing a game, the screen suddenly turns black and appears corrupt, showing only bright white text. There’s no blue screen; it just displays this distorted image and restarts after roughly ten seconds. This issue hasn’t occurred often—about once every week to two weeks—but recently (while using Elder Ring), it happened about ten minutes ago. The error message reads a kernel power 41 fault each time. I recently replaced my graphics card in January, and the problem started roughly a month ago. Both GPU and CPU temperatures are normal and not overheating. RAM checks with various programs show no issues. I suspect the graphics card is the culprit and wonder if it can be fixed without needing a return merchandise authorization. Should I test another GPU to confirm if the problem lies there or is a broader hardware issue? My specs include an AMD Ryzen 7 5800X (undervolted, likely not the cause), two 16GB 3600MHz RAM sticks (ASUS G.SKILL), a GeForce RTX 3080 V2 OC from ASUS, and a ROG CROSSHAIR VIII motherboard. I have some pictures but don’t want to share them.
The device appears stable and consistent in power usage, but Q mode might be introducing unexpected behavior. Investigate how Q mode affects performance or settings.
I performed a stress test on the GPU twice. The first lasted roughly 30 minutes before it crashed, while I was streaming in Discord with a 4K video playing (also encountered a K ernel-power41 error). The second test ran for about 1 hour and 30 minutes with just monitoring software open. I stopped it because it kept running too long without crashing. The CPU temperature reached 94-96°C, which is unusual given the low usage during both tests—my fans were at their minimum in the first test and at their maximum in the second. This suggests the GPU might not be functioning properly, possibly due to overheating, though I’m unsure what could cause that. Also, the TDP exceeded 100% of its rating, so I’m likely to file a return if needed. I’ll probably start the RMA process over the weekend. Here are some images from the test (Test 2).