I've been experiencing some frustrating issues with my PC over the past few months. Initially, I thought it was just normal wear and tear, but things got weird after I upgraded to Windows 11. I performed some BIOS updates and replaced a few cables, which seemed to help at first, but now the problems have returned worse than before.
My computer frequently freezes—the audio keeps playing but gets stuck on a loop, and sometimes it restarts on its own, while other times I have to force a restart because it just won't respond. After a few crashes today, I turned on Secure Boot, thinking it might help since there was an error related to it.
I'm really at the end of my rope with this! If anyone could take a look at the Event Log from around 10:40 PM when it crashed, that would be amazing. I have an Infinity X88 GTX Gaming PC and I really need some guidance here.
3 Answers
I can relate, these issues can be maddening! One thing you might want to consider is looking into the BIOS settings. If Secure Boot is toggled on, it could cause certain components to behave unexpectedly. Drivers are often a common issue after an OS upgrade; NVIDIA and audio drivers are particularly known for causing problems. It might help to try rolling back to older versions for troubleshooting if nothing else works.
It's tough to pinpoint exactly what's wrong solely based on the freezes, but your best first step could be to check the Event Viewer logs as suggested. Just make sure that all your drivers—especially graphics and audio—are up to date, as Windows 11 can be a bit finicky with those. Also, running a memory check might be a good idea if you haven’t done it already! If you notice any specifics in the logs that concern you, just toss them out here!
From what you’re describing, it sounds like you’re dealing with a hardware issue. The freezing and looping audio are bad signs. If you share the Event Viewer logs from around 10:40 PM, I can help identify what's causing the crashes—typically, it could be Kernel-Power 41 or WHEA-Logger errors.
There are a few potential culprits: overheating components like your CPU or GPU, a failing power supply, issues with RAM, or maybe some corrupted drivers—especially since you're on Windows 11 which has new driver requirements. Also, enabling Secure Boot after installing Windows can sometimes lead to conflicts. Lastly, ensure your storage drive is in good shape; failing drives can definitely cause these kinds of issues. Let me know if you need help pulling those logs!
I’m keeping an eye on this too and have noticed that similar problems happen with ASUS motherboards when the PCIe is set to AUTO. I switched mine to Link Speed Gen 3 and that helped. Make sure to check your drivers too; I've done updates and firmware checks but sometimes it takes a bit to find the right settings that stabilize things.