X58A-UD3r rev1 has random, frequent, short term freezes

[Waiasaur]

Hi everyone,

Problem:
The basic problem is that randomly programs would freeze for 10-20 seconds, and then work normally again. Say I'm playing a game: the game will freeze but ventrilo (a voice communication client) works just fine and my friends will report that I'm lagging. Then some seconds later the game unfreezes as if nothing happened and all functions resume as normal. I've noticed that this happens in non games software as well whether it be a window or a web browser. I am lead to believe it may be a motherboard problem through process of elimination.

Other symptoms:
At one point the main power light for my computer would always blink as if it were in sleep mode, even though it was not. This problem resolved itself inexplicably.

My boot time is longer now than when I first got the computer a little under one year ago

On-board mobo indicator leds relating to voltage levels, temperature, and load levels light up even though temperatures are monitored to be below threshold, nothing is overvolted, and the computer is idling. From time to time, leds of one area will turn off while leds from other areas will turn on (ie. cpu led turns off but ram led turns on).

Since I got my mobo the northbridge temp reported extremely high according to hardware monitor. In the 80s (celcius). I put a fan in the empty drive bays blowing onto the mobo surface and this has drastically reduced temps.

When I first built the computer a little under 1 year ago, it wasnt like this.

It used to be overclocked, it no longer is as I troubleshoot this problem. Overclocking does not seem to affect this problem at all.

What I've attempted:
Got a new video card

Reformatted

Updated Bios

Cleared CMOS

Ran furmark and prime 95 blend test at the same time for 8 hours. I wasnt watching it for all 8 hours but when i came back to it, it was still going and didnt crash. No temperatures on anything exceeded 80 deg C.

System Specs:
Mobo: Gigabyte X58A UD3r rev1
CPU: Intel Core i7 930
GPU: HIS Radeon HD 5850
RAM: GSkill DDR3 3x2gb 1600 9-9-9-24
Powersupply: Corsair 750TX 750 Watts

Hypothesis:
When I first built the computer I wanted to test the voltage coming out of one of the fan headers. I accidentally touched the multimeter leads to something I shouldnt have and there was a spark (I know, I'm dumb). It took several months after this event for the freezing problem to occur though. I could have fried something that took time to degrade enough to show symptoms?

Thanks for reading! Sorry for the long post I tried to be as complete as possible.

Wai

[Aussie Allan]

  Do you believe in Ghosts !

  Aussie Allan

                          On a more serious note    Do you have a Logitech keyboard or mouse !

[Waiasaur]

I have a Logitech mouse and a saitek keyboard.

Yes ghosts are scary!

[Aussie Allan]

  If you have a spare, or can borrow, steal if you have too!.......make sure you have a copy of your drivers .....then remove the Logitech mouse and the drivers and reboot and test to see if this is the culprit........if not do the same for the key-board and report back with what you find.

 Aussie Allan

[Dark Mantis]

Yes I agree with Allan here. In fact if possible I would try a PS2 keyboard at least for faultfinding.

Try clearing the CMOS overnight. Please follow these instructions exactly


Remove the power cable from the mains supply and then press the power switch on the case for a few seconds just to drain any residual energy in the PSU capacitors.

Once done remove the motherboard battery overnight before replacing it.
 
Next plug back into the mains supply and boot.
 
You will now need to enter the BIOS by pressing DEL and load Optimised BIOS Defaults.

Make any other changes to the BIOS settings to suit your self like disabling the floppy drive, disabling the full screen logo and making the HDD the primary boot device and then press F10 to save and exit.


The PSU is a good quality one but that doesn't mean that it couldn't be faulty so if you are still having problems try and replace it with another of like size and quality just as a trial.

Post back afterwards and we shall see where to go from there.

[Waiasaur]

I will be moving to a new location soon so It may take me a few days before I have an opportunity to perform these tests but I will perform them asap.

A bit more description of the problem: My mouse and keyboard work just fine when this freezing occurs. Its just individual programs or windows freeze. It appears that only the windows I'm working on will freeze, but if a window I'm not working on freezes I wouldn't know because I'm not using it (the whole can you hear a tree fall if nobody is around. I play most of my games in window mode and have dual screen if that matters. Everything seems susceptible to freezing: games, basic file windows, web browsers, instant messengers, etc. When it freezes it will say its not responding, and the mouse cursor turns into the blue circle signifying its waiting for the program to respond. After a few seconds of this it will start responding again and work completely fine. When this freezing occurs other windows work and i can alt+tab to do other stuff, Like tell my friends on ventrilo that my game froze and that's the reason I'm standing still getting shot at =[.

I will try the keyboard and mouse tests when I get the chance. Please provide more suggestions if you've got any. Thanks for your help!

Wai

[SAJINP]

I had the same problem
Pc spec
------------------
System Information
------------------
Time of this report: 1/18/2012, 22:41:55
       Machine name: SAJINPRINCE-PC
   Operating System: Windows 7 Enterprise 64-bit (6.1, Build 7601) Service Pack 1 (7601.win7sp1_gdr.110622-1506)
           Language: English (Regional Setting: English)
System Manufacturer: Gigabyte Technology Co., Ltd.
       System Model: X58A-UD3R
               BIOS: Award Modular BIOS v6.00PG
          Processor: Intel(R) Core(TM) i7 CPU         950  @ 3.07GHz (8 CPUs), ~3.1GHz
             Memory: 6144MB RAM
Available OS Memory: 6142MB RAM
          Page File: 3339MB used, 8943MB available
        Windows Dir: C:\Windows
    DirectX Version: DirectX 11
DX Setup Parameters: Not found
   User DPI Setting: Using System DPI
 System DPI Setting: 96 DPI (100 percent)
    DWM DPI Scaling: Disabled
     DxDiag Version: 6.01.7601.17514 32bit Unicode

------------
DxDiag Notes
------------
      Display Tab 1: No problems found.
        Sound Tab 1: No problems found.
        Sound Tab 2: No problems found.
          Input Tab: No problems found.

--------------------
DirectX Debug Levels
--------------------
Direct3D:    0/4 (retail)
DirectDraw:  0/4 (retail)
DirectInput: 0/5 (retail)
DirectMusic: 0/5 (retail)
DirectPlay:  0/9 (retail)
DirectSound: 0/5 (retail)
DirectShow:  0/6 (retail)

---------------
Display Devices
---------------
          Card name: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570
       Manufacturer: NVIDIA
          Chip type: GeForce GTX 570
           DAC type: Integrated RAMDAC
         Device Key: Enum\PCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_1081&SUBSYS_087E10DE&REV_A1
     Display Memory: 4063 MB
   Dedicated Memory: 1248 MB
      Shared Memory: 2815 MB
       Current Mode: 1920 x 1080 (32 bit) (60Hz)
       Monitor Name: Generic PnP Monitor
      Monitor Model: SyncMaster
         Monitor Id: SAM0656
        Native Mode: 1920 x 1080(p) (60.000Hz)
        Output Type: DVI
        Driver Name: nvd3dumx.dll,nvwgf2umx.dll,nvwgf2umx.dll,nvd3dum,nvwgf2um,nvwgf2um
Driver File Version: 8.17.0012.8562 (English)
     Driver Version: 8.17.12.8562
        DDI Version: 11
       Driver Model: WDDM 1.1
  Driver Attributes: Final Retail


The problem is this board does not like memory that runs at 1600 mhz.
This seems to be related to a discrepancy between memory and Processor. This specific Processor requires 1066Mhz - 1.5 volts memory. We can also use 1333Mhz - 1.5 volts but the memory controller will downgrade the speed to 1066. Working over these specifications will cause some issues on the system as random reboots, the system freezes and many other problems since we are forcing the Processor to downgrade the speed and probably the voltage since most of the 1600Mhz RAM works at 1.6 or 1.65 volts. This may also damage the memory controller on the Processor voiding its warranty.

Steps i did to resolve.
I got rev 2.0 from gigabyte (Swapped out the board).
The problem still persisted.
I then enabled XMP memory profile setting in the bios.
This resolved the random stuttering problem.
I saw the voltage was set to high though.
So i set all the memory timings manually
8,8,2 (If i remember correctly) for my Corsair Dominator memory and I raised the voltage to the maximum intel recommended to not damage the processor.
Your Ram manufacturer should list the timings on their website for your ram and don't forget to raise the voltage and set the multiplier so the memory runs at 1600 mhz.
You can just use the XMP profile setting and it will set everything for you but it is very aggressive with voltage etc.. and you might damage something lonmg term but it still resolves the problem.

[dikal]

I don't think that your problem is the same.
Can you list all the components of your system, in detail (PSU, RAM, VGA, disk drives, everything) ?