Hey folks, I've been running my PC smoothly for four years with the following specs:
- Intel i9-12900K
- Nvidia RTX 4090
- 32GB DDR4 RAM
- Asus Z690-A Gaming Wifi D4 motherboard
I recently had to replace my noisy Corsair H150i Elite Capellix AIO cooler, and thought about improving cooling further by adding a contact frame. I went for the Thermal Grizzly frame, but after installation, I had issues where the system wouldn't post, showing a DRAM LED issue. I had to repeatedly adjust the tightening, and in the end, decided to revert back to the standard ILM.
Things initially seemed fine after reverting—the system posted immediately. However, it quickly became unstable, crashing every 20-30 minutes with different BSODs like PFN_LIST_CORRUPT and IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL. I even faced boot loops and had to repair Windows a couple of times. I reseated the ILM and CPU numerous times, but while I achieved some stability, crashes still happened intermittently.
Currently, I've managed to stabilize things somewhat; the first few days showed decent uptime with some gaming, but crashes keep occurring—often after long sessions or shortly after launching games. I've tried several fixes like running SFC, DISM, reinstalling Windows, checking for bent pins, reseating RAM, and monitoring temperatures.
I'm at my wit's end with this random crashing, especially since I usually only deal with this sort of thing on my days off. I'd really appreciate any advice you might have! Thanks a lot!
3 Answers
I see you're dealing with a real headache! It might also be worthwhile to run some stress tests on your CPU and RAM to ensure everything is functioning correctly, especially since you modified the cooling setup. Testing with tools like Prime95 and MemTest86 can help identify any underlying hardware issues that might not show in standard checks. Keep us updated on your progress!
First things first, it's crucial to gather those dump files to analyze what's causing those BSODs. Check the C:WindowsMinidump directory for any files after a crash and upload them to a file sharing site like mediafire or catbox. More dump files will help in diagnosing the issue accurately. If you only have one, follow this guide to configure Windows to create more reliable small memory dumps going forward. Good luck!
I had similar issues after an update once. Have you looked into any recent Windows updates that might’ve caused instability? Sometimes reverting to a previous version can resolve these erratic crashes. And considering you’ve tried so much already, keep an eye on your power supply too—it could be feeding unstable power to your components, leading to those crashes.
That’s an interesting point! I haven’t checked into Windows updates. I’ll look into that and see if rolling back helps. Thanks for the tip!