Blue Screen Issue

[Fuzzy Bandit 10]

Yo, I originally had an issue involving blue screens, which my original post below explains.

I fixed this issue by buying a more powerful PSU (Power Supply Unit) to handle the power needed by my video card in this pretty resource-intensive game.

I upgraded from a 300W PSU to a 750W PSU and it cost me £44.99.

I will keep this top post updated with other solutions to different blue screen issues. Just send me a PM with your solution details in it, including original problem (in detail) and exactly how you solved it. Any URLs or the like that you used on the way would also be appreciated.

Cheers!

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Original Post

Hi,

I've been having this issue for a while and simply put it down to my videocard overheating, but recently, after feeling temperatures, I've come to doubt that hypothesis.

The issue is that, when playing ARMA 2 (demo and/or full release with the latest patch) or America's Army 3, I get a blue screen. Unfortunately, there is absolutely no consistency to the issue. The only clue I've gotten is that when the video settings are set on "High", although the computer can take it and run at a steady 20 fps, blue screens seem much more frequent. When set to low, blue screens do not seem to appear as much, although they have in certain cases.

I also play Empire: Total War, which is a very heavy game in terms of specs, and requires a lot to run, but that seems to play absolutely fine, even on high settings.

I can play ARMA 2 semi-comfortably by lowering all the graphics down to the bottom, but it's annoying knowing that my computer should be able to take it but just decides to blue screen!

Could there be a certain similar problem for both games? Maybe a certain setting that is common between the two?

Another thing to add (which is why I expect it to be something to do with my video card) is the way the blue screen appears. The game will suffer small half-second pauses a couple of seconds apart, and then after about three or four of these, the screen will go completely... well... messed up. Many different, short, horizontal multicoloured lines will appear for half a second, and then the blue screen will appear.

I can also tell you (if it helps at all), that I have two monitors, and the game runs on one while the other just shows an extended desktop.

All graphics card and sound card drivers are up-to-date, and I'm confident that the anti-virus software (Windows OneCare) is good, and I always keep it up-to-date, so I heavily doubt it's a virus.

I can't give you any specific specs right now as I'm not on my computer while typing this, but I can say I use a quad core if that helps, as well as using Vista 32 bit.

Any advice or suggestions is much appreciated, and just tell me if you want more information!

Cheers,

Jack.

Edited July 5, 2009 by Fuzzy Bandit

[von_paulus 0]

Another thing to add (which is why I expect it to be something to do with my video card) is the way the blue screen appears. The game will suffer small half-second pauses a couple of seconds apart, and then after about three or four of these, the screen will go completely... well... messed up. Many different, short, horizontal multicoloured lines will appear for half a second, and then the blue screen will appear.

I'm afraid you've a problem with your graphic card. High temperatures may be the cause. But I suspect that is already damaged. You'll have to replace it.

[Fuzzy Bandit 10]

You'll have to replace it.

Would adding a fan or something suffice? If temperature is the issue, maybe I could simply add another fan? Also, would such things as overheating appear in the Event Log?

I'd rather not fork out a whole lotta money for a new graphics card if it's unnecessary is all. :)

[echo1 0]

What sort of PSU do you have?

[Placebo 28]

What rating in W is your PSU?

[Fuzzy Bandit 10]

Sorry, I'm not in with the techno lingo! :D

What's a PSU?

[echo1 0]

It's a Power Supply Unit. We'd need to know the manufacturer and it's wattage rating. If you don't know, the easiest way to do is to open the side of your computer and read the label on the side of the PSU.

Also, which video card do you have?

Edited July 1, 2009 by echo1

[Fuzzy Bandit 10]

I can't give you any specific hardware information right now, as I'm typing this on my work computer. Later on today when I get home I'll bump this topic with my PSU, its wattage rating and my video card.

Thanks for the help so far!

[von_paulus 0]

Sorry I forget about the PSU factor. Yes I'd look also into the PSU. ch_123 is right.

When you "push" the card to high settings it will demand more PSU power. If your PSU is one of those less reliable brands or with less power (amp/w) it might cause problems with your graphic card. So please try to tell us which is your PSU and what is your rig (processor, graphic card).

Thanks ch_123. :)

[Fuzzy Bandit 10]

Sounds like a likely diagnosis - as I said, I'll give specific hardware details when I get home this afternoon. Thanks for all the hard work so far guys! :)

[Zerolimit 10]

It's funny you mention Arma 2 and AA 3 that cause you to blue screen.

I also experience bsod during both these games with the same description you provided.

TBH it's rather strange and random that it only happens on both of these games only (for me atleast).

does your blue screen say the same thing?

"Attempt to reset the display driver and recover from timeout failed."

My rig is

CPU- Phenom II 940 - quad

MB- Asus M3A78-T

Vid- EVGA 8800gt KO edition

4Gig Ram

850w PSU

Windows 7 RC 64-bit

(Not meaning to Hijack or anything)

Edited July 1, 2009 by Zerolimit

[Fuzzy Bandit 10]

(Not meaning to Hijack or anything)

Not at all! It's good to find someone with the same issue!

I too only have issues on these two games, and can even play Empire: Total War (an extremely resource-heavy game) on high settings with no such issue.

For those that were asking about my video card is an "ATI Radeon HD 4800 series". I'll just check my PSU now - I'll bump the topic with it.

---------- Post added at 04:39 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:32 PM ----------

After a lot of messing around, I've discovered that my PSU wattage is 300W.

The damned thing was written in small print on the underside of the PSU! I had to get a hand-held mirror to read it! :D

[von_paulus 0]

It might be PSU. 300W for a 4800 series it might not be enough. Try to calculate the power needed in your rig by using this calculator:

http://www.extreme.outervision.com/psucalculatorlite.jsp

@Zerolimit you could also see your PSU and calculate the power needed.

[Fuzzy Bandit 10]

Looking at the calculator it looks like I need ~500W!

Are PSUs expensive or difficult to replace?

[Zerolimit 10]

updated, that was foolish of me to leave out. but anyways my PSU is 850w so not an issue.

I notice that my crash/ bsod occours when i do an action, that or its just plain coincidence.

For instances my last crash was when i was trying out commander in the tutorial. it happened just as i click next button after i spawned.

[Ferox.UK 0]

yeah,i get these BSOD's too . i have a 8800gt,hiper 580w psu so no problems on the psu front.looks like a nvida thing as i have tried many drivers.....but it will crash or bsod eventually.......:mad:

[echo1 0]

Looking at the calculator it looks like I need ~500W!

Are PSUs expensive or difficult to replace?

Get a Corsair HX620, they're available from most good online retailers and are probably the best value for money ones. Although the calculator says 500W, it's always good practise to leave an overhead of about 100W. 300W... Feck me, it's a wonder it even turned on!

but anyways my PSU is 850w so not an issue.

What make? Who made it is far more important than the amount of watts it claims to put out.

[Fuzzy Bandit 10]

Feck me, it's a wonder it even turned on!

Strange! :D EMPIRE works fine... :)

[echo1 0]

An RTS, even a really detailed one like Empire is not going to strain your computer nearly as much as an FPS. I was slightly exaggerating - the 500W figure you got refers to its maximum power intake. When it's at a reasonably low load, it may only be taking 200-300 W in order to run. So that's why it only screwed up when you were playing heavy-weight FPSes. Anyway, taking out your old unit and replacing it with that Corsair unit I recommended will make the problems go away.

[von_paulus 0]

I seconded everything ch_123 said.

Corsair is a good maker. You've also bequiet. The quality of the PSU will ensure that the components (motherboard, CPU, Graphic cards, etc) will have the right power that they need to operate correctly. It will also ensure you that will be minimal (if any) fluctuations. That's why ch_123 is always asking about the maker. Most of the PSU's you'll find in the market are made in China with bad quality components. They are cheaper but can cause problems when your machine is in stress. But I'm afraid both makers are expansive. But think as an investment, your rig will be thankfull. :)

Edited July 1, 2009 by Von_Paulus

[Zerolimit 10]

What make? Who made it is far more important than the amount of watts it claims to put out.

Coolermaster

also adding vid card temps whilst playing arma is around low 70's.

Edited July 2, 2009 by Zerolimit

[von_paulus 0]

Coolermaster it's OK. It's a good maker.

Temps are acceptable.

So you only have BSOD's when you push the graphic card?

Edited July 2, 2009 by Von_Paulus

[Zerolimit 10]

only on ARMA 2 and far less often in Americas army 3. I've push my card many times in other games. I find the problem only specific to these games, the problem must lie in the game right?

[Bulldogs 10]

Sorry if this post has already been noted or if it's now irrelevent but I only really cruised this thread:

In all honesty, I would consider upgrading the PSU. Even if it doesn't turn out to be the problem (which it's highly likely it is), running on a low powered PSU can cause bad performance, and in some cases (rare cases) even damage your hardware.

You were wise to chose Corsair, Antec is also a good choice.

When it comes to PSU's with current systems at least 400w is needed with 500w+ preferred for maximum potential.

That said, this is 500w with a good 90+ rating PSU. If you go cheap with the PSU then you end up with a power supply that can't supply enough power (it distributes the power badly and you end up with a 300w PSU labeled as a 500w PSU)

To make matters worse, it has no spike protection and can overload your components dealing damage to your hardware.

Just something to keep in mind if and when you decide to get a new PSU.

[von_paulus 0]

only on ARMA 2 and far less often in Americas army 3. I've push my card many times in other games. I find the problem only specific to these games, the problem must lie in the game right?

Or in a combination of factors....

Does the BSOD create a rpt file in ARMA II?

Can you read the BSOD?