PC crashes on hard drives in specific games if GPU power reaches maximum.
PC crashes on hard drives in specific games if GPU power reaches maximum.
System details: CPU model Ryzen 3800x, Board Aorus X570 Elite (May 2023), RAM G.Skill Trident-Z DDR4-3200 (2x16GB), GPU Strix RTX 3090, Power supply Corsair RM850x (2019), OS Windows 11 Pro (latest stable). The issue began around May 24th when I played Palworld for about two hours. Lights would flicker, screen would freeze briefly, then restart into BIOS without any BSOD or error—screen goes black during boot. SSD and boot partition weren’t recognized until a power cycle. (Further info inside spoilers: early signs, troubleshooting steps, and a summary below.) The problem started when I loaded a save; the game froze for a few seconds, then booted again. I suspected a power surge at first but didn’t notice any error messages until it stopped working entirely. After installing a 1TB WD Blue Gen3 SSD, the issue persisted—my main 2TB SSD also failed to boot for a couple of days. I tried using AOMEI partition assistant and even backed up the data onto my HDD. Once fixed, I could boot normally with Windows Recovery and Palworld saved files worked without crashes. Still, the SSD issue remained until I reinstalled Windows from a USB drive. After that, crashes only occurred during saves and kept removing the SSD from boot options until I reset everything. At this stage, I opted to reinstall Windows entirely on the main SSD since I already had backups. After a fresh Windows install, I only added Steam and the game itself, but the problem continued. I experimented with different drivers—including some from 2020—but none helped. Since the GPU only crashes briefly after loading a save, it’s unlikely a driver problem; it works smoothly for a short time. I used Afterburner to cap GPU power at 40% and it stopped crashing. TL;DR and your question: After several attempts—reinstalling drivers, using an older GPU driver, resetting the OS, and backing up data—I found a temporary fix by limiting GPU power to 40% via Afterburner. It appears this is either a hardware fault or a rare game bug. Another point: I didn’t test other games besides Valorant, which ran fine at full power. To isolate the problem without replacing parts, you could try: checking GPU voltage stability, using a different USB port, or running diagnostics with tools like HWMonitor. If you want, I can guide you through those steps. Also, since a power surge seems likely, testing PSU health or GPU cooling might help later.)
850w needs to operate near its maximum capacity to handle the 3090 spikes during gaming. I wouldn't recommend using less than 1000w in a setup with 3090 or 4090 units. The power surge could harm your PSU, causing it to wear out quickly and stop delivering power when needed. For the 2080ti models, I'm using a 1600w PSU. PSUs tend to lose efficiency over time, and surges can speed up this process. When a system experiences heavy demand—like loading a tough game—it means the power isn't being provided reliably during spikes, leading to crashes or BSODs.
I don't believe so. My RM850x never failed or complained with a 7900XTX at PL+15 (430W TDP plus 100W CPU...) and it handles sudden spikes well (OCP above 1100W). Unless there was damage during the power issue. To @holycows, have you tried changing your power cables (and how many are you using? Pigtails aren't advised)?
I completed a 3DMark test right now at full capacity, and my power source maintained around 390W continuously without any problems. It seems my PSU might be worn out and struggle with sudden power demands, yet it can provide steady output. I haven’t changed my power cables yet—I’m using three separate ones, each without any connectors.
Everything you said screamed faulty storage until limiting the GPU power fixed it. That doesn't make sense to me. Unless you use an M.2 slot under/close to the GPU, then it could be overheating the SSD because of the heat from the GPU. It will heat up the case regardless so I would still have a look at the storage. And it doesn't have to be overheating directly, it could just crash at higher temps.
I used HWinfo on my secondary screen during testing and noticed SSD temperatures reaching around 50°C. That’s only slightly above normal—please confirm if I’m right. I’ll retest later with a fan blowing on the heatsink to check if it prevents the crash.
At 50°C NVMe drives perform well, and HDDs stay within safe limits. NVMe reaches its peak at around 70°C, though older versions might exceed this. For continuous use, I’d consider 70°C the upper bound, though earlier models likely handled higher temps without issues.