Member Avatar for bigtequila

Hello People,

I recently built a system for myself to replace a very old Dell I was running. I went with a MSI PM8M 478-Socket MicroATX board (big mistake going 478. . .realized that two weeks later), Intel Pentium 4 2.8ghz, a Western Digital 80gb Caviar hard drive, 512mb Kingston ValueRAM, XFX GEForce 6200. The system, as "budget" as it is, has run pretty well - but what was a small and infrequent problem since the birth of this computer a month ago has grown into a crippling illness.

The computer freezes. It started slowly, a once in a while sort of deal. Now it freezes every 10-15 minutes and sometimes even before I get past the Windows loading screen. It also freezes in Safe Mode, which leads me to believe I have a hardware issue. Here's what I've done so far:

Replaced the hard drive with a known working hard drive. Freezes persisted.

Switched out the stick of RAM with known working RAM. Also ran MemTest86 on existing stick - no errors. Freezes persisted.

Ran Norton AV, Spybot, Adaware, TrojanHunter, etc. . .some small issues found. Again freezes persisted.

The only other two hardware components I can imagine to be at the root of my headache are the power supply and the processor.

My question is this: since I don't have an extra of either lying around here how can I best figure out whether it is one of these two components? Any light that anybody can shed on my problem will be vastly appreciated.

Thanks in advance,
-Mike

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  • Latest Post Latest Post by lasher511

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As pointed out, freezes that look like overheating can still be CPU-related even when motherboard sensors report normal numbers. Reported temps can be misleading; a failing CPU, poor heatsink contact, or socket/contact problems can produce hard freezes with little or no warning. ’s follow-up (stability restored after swapping the CPU) matches a common troubleshooting pattern: when swapping the processor cures random hangs across BIOS/OS/Safe Mode, the fault is almost certainly on the CPU or its immediate cooling/contact path.

Practical checklist for anyone hitting similar symptoms:

  • Record system logs and any minidumps before rebooting (Event Viewer on Windows). Those files are valuable for later analysis or RMA.
  • Verify PSU voltages with a multimeter or PSU tester: acceptable ranges are roughly +12V = 11.4–12.6V, +5V = 4.75–5.25V, +3.3V = 3.135–3.465V.
  • Visually inspect the motherboard for bulging/leaking capacitors and examine VRM/heatsink mounting.
  • Confirm heatsink seating and reapply fresh thermal paste; check socket/pin condition and use antistatic precautions when handling the CPU.
  • Run a CPU stress test (Prime95/other) while monitoring temps to try to reproduce the freeze; a bench test with minimal components (mobo, CPU, one RAM stick, PSU, video) helps rule out case shorts or add-in cards.
  • Before RMA, document BIOS version, system config and serials; keep original purchase info and any error logs.

These steps reduce guesswork and give manufacturers the evidence they typically want for warranty replacements.

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Member Avatar for lasher511

From the information given my best bet would be that it is the CPU. however it just sounds like your CPU is overheating you should not need to replace it unless the heat has done some damage to it. my suggestion would be to buy a better heat sink and Fan or even go out and buy a water cooling system.

Member Avatar for bigtequila

From the information given my best bet would be that it is the CPU. however it just sounds like your CPU is overheating you should not need to replace it unless the heat has done some damage to it. my suggestion would be to buy a better heat sink and Fan or even go out and buy a water cooling system.

Thanks for the response.

I'm not inclined to think the CPU is overheating. I was monitoring temps today via a tool provided by MSI (my motherboard manufacturer). It was freezing all over the board, at 35C and 40C - obviously shouldn't happen with any CPU. You were right, however, to conclude that it was the CPU. I switched it out with another known-working P4, and the system ran fine with no hitches. So I got on the phone to Intel, and, after hours on hold, they agreed to send me a new CPU once I shipped them the old one. So hopefully the problem is solved. Thanks again for your response, though.

-Mike

Member Avatar for lasher511

No problem glad you got it working.

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