[Shenraiz]

Hello, I'm new here and I just had some questions about my computer, hoping someone might know the answer.

I have a one year old HP a6323w with an ATI Radeon HD 4500 (latest drivers). Everything else in the computer is factory. The problem started about a week ago, it would crash and get a BSOD when I played games or something that used the graphics card. Now it's doing it pretty much whenever it feels like. I wish I could get a screenshot of the BSOD but as I recall it basically is a "STOP!" message that says the computer was shut down to avoid damage to the computer and suggested I try another graphics adapter among other things. Also, with the monitor plugged into the onboard graphics adapter it won't even turn on so I'm not sure what the deal is there. I ended up formatting the hard drive thinking it was about time for a cleaning, maybe even a virus but the issue persists after reinstalling XP 32 bit. A few other issues that seem to happen is the sound card gets a little glitched out and sounds strange and when I try to play videos sometimes they move 2x as fast, regardless of software used.

The internal fans seem to be running fine and it is pretty hot here so I thought maybe the temperature on the graphics card or something was getting too hot. I downloaded SpeedFan to see if there was a heat issue but I'm not sure what the average should be. Everything seems to be under 40C except for Temp2 which is currently at 50C which doesn't necessarily sound that good.

System specs:
Operating System: Windows XP Professional (5.1, Build 2600) Service Pack 3 (2600.xpsp_sp3_gdr.100216-1514)
Language: English (Regional Setting: English)
System Manufacturer: HP-Pavilion
System Model: GX627AA-ABA a6323w
BIOS: Phoenix - AwardBIOS v6.00PG
Processor: AMD Athlon(tm) 64 X2 Dual Core Processor 5200+, MMX, 3DNow (2 CPUs), ~2.6GHz
Memory: 3070MB RAM
Card name: ATI Radeon HD 4300/4500 Series

Thanks in advance if anyone is able to figure out the issue and let me know if you need any further information.

[TekTime]

Hi There!

I didn't see a mention of your power supply. What's the make, model and wattage of your power supply?
(that could be the culprit of your problems).

Do you see a temp for "Core" in speedfan? What is your Core temp at idle and under load?

(Load-while running multiple tasks/gaming/videos, or Idle-while browsing the web etc).

[Shenraiz]

The power supply is a Bestec ATX-250-12Z with 12V, 250W max. The core temperature is currently at around 57C, much higher than it was last night. I'm almost considering getting some sort of cooling unit for the computer, especially since it is summer. Also, since the post my computer has BSODed maybe 7 times. I put it in safe mode and it hasn't done it since, if that helps any. Thanks!

[ChrizZ]

Hey Shen, I think it might be your RAM overheating. I formatted and my PC still bluescreened every 10 mins. So I took my case off my PC and put the RAM in the oppersite slots and I haven't bluescreened once yet (over 20 hours)

[aliasme]

Your system is only one year old, but you're running XP SP3? Did you buy it with XP, or did you switch it from Vista?

OEM power supplies make me cringe; you might want to consider buying a quality PSU to replace the Bestec unit.

Safe mode isn't likely to crash because safe mode doesn't use the Radeon drivers, it only uses a standard Windows VGA driver. I tend to think your PSU can't supply enough juice for the videocard, which makes the PSU overheat, and everything goes downhill from there. That Bestec lump sells for $30 online, which tells you it isn't worth owning. You also might want to read this:

http://www.fixya.com/support/t185150..._hp_model_5187

Not good news for Bestec...

Hope you don't smoke the motherboard before you replace that PSU.

[TekTime]

I agree with aliasme, Bestec is nowhere near my list of favorites.

In my experience repairing HP computers, where Bestec 250W and 350W power supplies were used, there was a very high failure rate. Also, that type of PSU is notorious for taking out several motherboard components when it goes bad. The last computer that I repaired with a Bestec -
had a dead CPU and motherboard; both taken out by the PSU.

A bad power supply not only causes unreliability, but shortened life spans for hardware components.

---

With that dual core AMD and the Radeon Video card, your computer is waaaaaay underpowered with that PSU.

[Shenraiz]

Thank you for the replies. After formatting my computer and moving to a new place the issue seemed to have stopped for a while but picked back up a day or two ago. I've taken the ram out and upgraded the video drivers as well as uninstalled my anti-virus software from researching the problem but it doesn't seem to help much. I'll try picking up a new power supply here soon to see what that does. Is there a specific output I should get and is there a way to check on the motherboard and video card what I need or should I just pick up something with a higher output to offset the video card's requirements?

[dustyjay]

I am going to agree that the bestec power supply is a weak point in your computer. Though the ones used by HP/Compaq seem to be regulated better than the retail Bestec power supplies and though they may burn out they don't usually take out the system components. I would also say that the power supply is quite underpowered. I would personally replace it with a quality manufacturer unit such as Antec, OCZ, Corsair, PC Power & Cooling Thermaltake of at least 350Watts

[aliasme]

Just to chime in here again, you're getting good advice about replacing that OEM PSU. Buy the best PSU you can afford; as has been mentioned, bad ones kill hardware, which gets VERY expensive VERY fast. I'm no longer a fan of Antec (fur clients had failures in less than six months of use), but the others dustyjay suggested are all quality products. I consider Thermaltake and Corsair to be the best values, but shop around. Check out the prices, features, and reviews on Newegg to help you decide which one meets your needs.

[Shenraiz]

I purchased a new, 400+ watt Antec power supply a little more than a week ago and I still seem to be getting the BSOD as well as other random "hiccups" with the computer. I've tried different ram in different slots as well as different graphics cards. Is it safe to assume that there's now an issue with the motherboard?

[TRS-80 vet]

Pull the vid card, and plug into the onboard chip. Don't forget to configure for the integrated video in BIOS on first re-boot.