Computer Slowdown/Crashing/Rebooting Problem

SilentP · 10-09-2009, 11:26 AM

So, I've been having a kind of complicated issue with my computer recently, and I'm hoping to be able to get some help. I'll try to keep this as brief as possible.

Awhile ago, I got 2 sticks of 1GB ram from a friend who didn't need them anymore. I already had 2 sticks of my own, so in total I now have 4GBs of ram. Now I think the problems started when I d/l'ed the Crysis (game) demo, but it might have been before then. Either way, I'm pretty sure it started a couple of weeks after I installed my friend's old ram. But it became a bigger problem after I tried playing the Crysis demo. The game was running really slowly, and then eventually my computer crashed altogether. After that, it started rebooting endlessly. It would boot as far as the Windows XP loading screen, and then reboot again and start all over.

After doing a bit of research online (with another computer), it seemed like the issue was with the ram, so I naturally took out the two newest pieces to see if that would fix it, and the computer did start up normally again. I decided to see if I'd be able to get the Crysis demo working without those two sticks of ram, to see if they had been what caused the problem the first time. Again, I had the same issue, again my computer crashed, and again it went into an endless stream of reboots.

So, out of curiousity, I decided to put the new two sticks of ram back in, and lo and behold, the computer started up normally again anyway. Since then, however, I've been having trouble playing streaming videos online (it works fine for awhile, but eventually it starts stuttering and slowing down), and playing games (I've tried really old games that I ought to be able to play no problem, and it always slows down, eventually crashes, and does the endless rebooting thing).

I've tried taking out each piece of ram to make sure it's not a problem with just one of them, and no matter which piece I take out, the computer starts up again normally. But eventually it always starts slowing down again.

So basically, I'm not sure if there's a problem with ALL my ram, and I should just buy some completely new ram, or if something else might be at fault. I don't really want to buy new ram only to find that doesn't fix the problem, but unfortunately I don't have any other DDR2 ram I can try with this computer (all the other computers in my house are... pretty old). Any other way I can figure out what the problem is?

I should also mention that I d/l'ed this Microsoft Memory Diagnostic program (http://oca.microsoft.com/en/windiag.asp) and tried it out, and when it ran properly, it didn't find any faults with my ram... but my computer did sometimes crash in the middle of the test. -_-'

AHEM. So, hope that's not too long, and... makes sense. Any help would be greatly appreciated. :)

**Tyree** · 10-09-2009, 11:36 AM

Mixing RAM brands is always a crapshoot and filling all the RAM slots on a Mobo can cause Voltage issues.
Crysis, as understand , is a pretty demanding game. Perhaps your PC is not up to it?
Posting your PC specs might help us furnish you with a more definitive answer.
Prebuilt-Brand Name & Model Number
Custom build- Brand & Model of Mobo-CPU-RAM-Graphics-PSU.

SilentP · 10-09-2009, 11:59 AM

Yeah, it seems like my computer was not up to playing Crysis, though I was running it on the lowest settings, and was basically just checking to see if I'd be able to play it at all (which is why I d/l'ed the demo).
All the slots on my mobo are being used with all 4 sticks of ram, although like I said, I have been having the same problems even when I took some out.

Here are my specs:
Motherboard: ASUS M2A-VM (I recently updated the bios on this to see if that would help for some reason, but... it did not :P)
CPU: AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core Processor 6000+
RAM: 2 x Crucial Technology 1024 MBytes DDR2 333MHz
2 x Corsair 1024 MBytes DDR2 400MHz
Graphics: Sapphire ATI Radeon HD 3650, 512MB DDR2
PSU: 500 W, but I... can't remember the model or anything.

**Tyree** · 10-09-2009, 03:24 PM

As I said, I'm not a gamer but I use a 3650 in one of my PC's and it is fine for my use but I doubt it is capable of serious gaming.
A better graphics card and PSU would be required.

SilentP · 10-09-2009, 03:36 PM

No no, I'm not asking about what I'd need to run Crysis, I've given up on that. I'm just asking how I can find out what might be causing the crashing problem I've been getting recently, and the endless loop of reboots that follows a crash.

**Tyree** · 10-09-2009, 04:10 PM

Do you get the problems with two sticks of RAM?

SilentP · 10-09-2009, 04:30 PM

Yeah. And I get the same problems no matter which sticks I leave in there (the 2 corsair, or the 2 crucial technology).

10-09-2009, 11:26 AM	#1 (permalink)
SilentP Registered User Join Date: Oct 2009 Posts: 4 OS: XP 64-bit	Computer Slowdown/Crashing/Rebooting Problem So, I've been having a kind of complicated issue with my computer recently, and I'm hoping to be able to get some help. I'll try to keep this as brief as possible. Awhile ago, I got 2 sticks of 1GB ram from a friend who didn't need them anymore. I already had 2 sticks of my own, so in total I now have 4GBs of ram. Now I think the problems started when I d/l'ed the Crysis (game) demo, but it might have been before then. Either way, I'm pretty sure it started a couple of weeks after I installed my friend's old ram. But it became a bigger problem after I tried playing the Crysis demo. The game was running really slowly, and then eventually my computer crashed altogether. After that, it started rebooting endlessly. It would boot as far as the Windows XP loading screen, and then reboot again and start all over. After doing a bit of research online (with another computer), it seemed like the issue was with the ram, so I naturally took out the two newest pieces to see if that would fix it, and the computer did start up normally again. I decided to see if I'd be able to get the Crysis demo working without those two sticks of ram, to see if they had been what caused the problem the first time. Again, I had the same issue, again my computer crashed, and again it went into an endless stream of reboots. So, out of curiousity, I decided to put the new two sticks of ram back in, and lo and behold, the computer started up normally again anyway. Since then, however, I've been having trouble playing streaming videos online (it works fine for awhile, but eventually it starts stuttering and slowing down), and playing games (I've tried really old games that I ought to be able to play no problem, and it always slows down, eventually crashes, and does the endless rebooting thing). I've tried taking out each piece of ram to make sure it's not a problem with just one of them, and no matter which piece I take out, the computer starts up again normally. But eventually it always starts slowing down again. So basically, I'm not sure if there's a problem with ALL my ram, and I should just buy some completely new ram, or if something else might be at fault. I don't really want to buy new ram only to find that doesn't fix the problem, but unfortunately I don't have any other DDR2 ram I can try with this computer (all the other computers in my house are... pretty old). Any other way I can figure out what the problem is? I should also mention that I d/l'ed this Microsoft Memory Diagnostic program (http://oca.microsoft.com/en/windiag.asp) and tried it out, and when it ran properly, it didn't find any faults with my ram... but my computer did sometimes crash in the middle of the test. -_-' AHEM. So, hope that's not too long, and... makes sense. Any help would be greatly appreciated. :)

10-09-2009, 11:36 AM	#2 (permalink)
Tyree Mentor Hardware Team Join Date: May 2009 Location: Illinois Posts: 5,566 OS: XP Pro-7RC-Mandriva My System	Re: Computer Slowdown/Crashing/Rebooting Problem Mixing RAM brands is always a crapshoot and filling all the RAM slots on a Mobo can cause Voltage issues. Crysis, as understand , is a pretty demanding game. Perhaps your PC is not up to it? Posting your PC specs might help us furnish you with a more definitive answer. Prebuilt-Brand Name & Model Number Custom build- Brand & Model of Mobo-CPU-RAM-Graphics-PSU. __________________ Posting your PC specs will help us to help you quicker and more efficiently.

10-09-2009, 11:59 AM	#3 (permalink)
SilentP Registered User Join Date: Oct 2009 Posts: 4 OS: XP 64-bit	Re: Computer Slowdown/Crashing/Rebooting Problem Yeah, it seems like my computer was not up to playing Crysis, though I was running it on the lowest settings, and was basically just checking to see if I'd be able to play it at all (which is why I d/l'ed the demo). All the slots on my mobo are being used with all 4 sticks of ram, although like I said, I have been having the same problems even when I took some out. Here are my specs: Motherboard: ASUS M2A-VM (I recently updated the bios on this to see if that would help for some reason, but... it did not :P) CPU: AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core Processor 6000+ RAM: 2 x Crucial Technology 1024 MBytes DDR2 333MHz 2 x Corsair 1024 MBytes DDR2 400MHz Graphics: Sapphire ATI Radeon HD 3650, 512MB DDR2 PSU: 500 W, but I... can't remember the model or anything.

10-09-2009, 03:24 PM	#4 (permalink)
Tyree Mentor Hardware Team Join Date: May 2009 Location: Illinois Posts: 5,566 OS: XP Pro-7RC-Mandriva My System	Re: Computer Slowdown/Crashing/Rebooting Problem As I said, I'm not a gamer but I use a 3650 in one of my PC's and it is fine for my use but I doubt it is capable of serious gaming. A better graphics card and PSU would be required. __________________ Posting your PC specs will help us to help you quicker and more efficiently.

10-09-2009, 03:36 PM	#5 (permalink)
SilentP Registered User Join Date: Oct 2009 Posts: 4 OS: XP 64-bit	Re: Computer Slowdown/Crashing/Rebooting Problem No no, I'm not asking about what I'd need to run Crysis, I've given up on that. I'm just asking how I can find out what might be causing the crashing problem I've been getting recently, and the endless loop of reboots that follows a crash.

10-09-2009, 04:10 PM	#6 (permalink)
Tyree Mentor Hardware Team Join Date: May 2009 Location: Illinois Posts: 5,566 OS: XP Pro-7RC-Mandriva My System	Re: Computer Slowdown/Crashing/Rebooting Problem Do you get the problems with two sticks of RAM? __________________ Posting your PC specs will help us to help you quicker and more efficiently.

10-09-2009, 04:30 PM	#7 (permalink)
SilentP Registered User Join Date: Oct 2009 Posts: 4 OS: XP 64-bit	Re: Computer Slowdown/Crashing/Rebooting Problem Yeah. And I get the same problems no matter which sticks I leave in there (the 2 corsair, or the 2 crucial technology).