Issue with Windows/System after Overclocking
Issue with Windows/System after Overclocking
I recently assembled a new setup with overclocking in mind. Here are the details:
ASUS Sabertooth R3.0 "TUF Series".
AMD FX 8350 Black Edition, boosted to 4816 MHz at 1.4625V "Stable" with a 480mm radiator water cooler.
Four 4GB GSkill Sniper Series cards, overclocked to 2349 MHz at 1.5V "Stable" air cooling.
Two XFX GTR RX480 Black Edition units, modified to 1400 MHz core and 2200 MHz memory with +0.048V "Stable" air cooling. Includes 150 PCIE slots in UEFI. Stock is 100.
Two Samsung EVO 850 drives, one 250 GB and one 500 GB, non-Raid.
Corsair AX1200 1200W power supply.
Above are the "Stable" settings I achieved after weeks of effort. I ran Prime95 in blend for extended periods to test memory and CPU performance. Conducted multiple trials with Valley, Heaven, and Timespy to identify the most stable GPU overclock. No throttling was observed. I kept CPU temperatures below 50°C and GPU temps under 80°C during testing. Recently, I sought further gains for personal satisfaction. I realized I couldn't extract more performance from my CPU without throttling. Thus, I focused on adjusting the GPU settings. I've consistently used MSI Afterburner for overclocking without issues. I tried increasing the Core speed to 1420MHz, reaching +0.084V, but encountered artifacts in benchmarking tools. I kept pushing voltage until it stabilized at +0.096V, matching my previous system's (single) 390X. With the 390X, the system shut down after a few minutes, but with the 480-series it remained stable. The same pattern occurred with the 480 models. Eventually, I disconnected the power supply. After that, the system no longer detected VGA and emitted speaker beeps. I reset the BIOS by removing the MOBO battery for about 30 minutes, resolving the issue. The system booted normally afterward.
The puzzle remains: when idle in Windows, it functions without problems, but shuts down after prolonged use. Only during gaming, internet use, or homework does it power off. I tested various fixes—clean driver installs, registry cleanup, reinstalling MSI Afterburner—but nothing resolved the problem. I’m seeking advice and any suggestions to help. Thank you.
Remove any overclocking from your hardware and attempt it again. If it works, try overclocking the CPU once more. If successful, revert the CPU overclock and consider overclocking the GPU as before. This approach is the simplest for beginners to follow.
AHA! I discovered the cause but I'm not sure why! While adjusting settings, I changed Windows Power Saving Mode from High Performance to Balanced. The system worked well then. Later, I switched back to High Performance and it began shutting down again! WTF?
I'm not sure if it will help, but I managed to locate several Warning, Critical, and Errors in my event log. I'm not sure how to upload them to this place.
chenuki :
By shutdown do you mean the system turns off without any issues and either stays off or restarts?
I understand it powers off. That’s what occurs. The system starts with windows running (high performance power mode must be enabled for this to happen), then it suddenly shuts down. This is unusual. I can press the keyboard and the system comes back on as if it were in sleep mode. BUUUUT, instead of going straight to the login screen as expected when in sleep mode, it completes the whole setup process. The BIOS screen and Windows loading screen appear normally. However, everything works perfectly even with balanced power mode enabled. Another odd occurrence is that when the computer runs properly (balanced power mode on) and I manually shut it down through Windows, pressing a key or using the mouse causes the LED lights to illuminate. But nothing else happens.
I think your computer might be entering Hybrid Sleep/Hibernate and then not waking up correctly.
Would you like me to suggest these adjustments:
- Power Options -> Select power button behavior -> Unavailable settings -> Turn off "Fast startup"
- Power Options -> Set power plan for High Performance -> Advanced power settings -> Sleep -> Turn off "Allow hybrid sleep"
- Shut down the PC -> Restart it manually (not just restart)
I plan to test this when I get home. I ran a system file checker scan just for fun, and it came up clean. I’ll let you know once I try your advice. Thanks!