I recently upgraded my gaming setup, switching from an old GTX 1070 to a new GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 5070 Ti and also replaced my 600W PSU with a Seasonic Focus GX-850. Since the upgrade, my PC freezes completely while gaming, but everything runs fine during regular use like browsing or watching videos. I've tried several games, including Grim Dawn, Darktide, and Vermintide, and the freezing seems to happen after about 10-20 minutes of gameplay regardless of the graphics settings. I've checked cable connections multiple times and even turned on XMP in BIOS. I also adjusted some settings using the Nvidia App, which initially seemed to help, but the freezes continue. I'm looking for any advice on what could be causing these issues and how I can troubleshoot further.
5 Answers
I recommend downloading HWInfo64 to log your system's voltage rails during gameplay. This can help you identify if your PSU is having issues when the crashes occur.
Have you tried using the DDU tool to completely uninstall your previous GPU drivers? Sometimes leftover files can cause issues with new hardware.
Keep an eye on your CPU and GPU temperatures while playing. If they're overheating, that could definitely lead to system freezes. Also, consider checking your BIOS for updates, as sometimes newer GPUs need these to function properly.
I haven't checked the BIOS lately, but I did force the PCIe slot to Gen 4 as I've heard that can help with stability. I'm going to look into BIOS updates next.
Make sure all your GPU connectors are seated properly in the PSU. I thought mine were fine too until I realized one was slightly loose, which caused frequent freezes.
I've checked them multiple times, and they're all snug. I even switched to a dedicated cable for the GPU from the PSU.
16GB of RAM should generally be enough, but with Windows 11, you might want to monitor your memory usage closely. Check Event Viewer for any specific errors that occur when the crash happens; it could hint at what's failing.
The RAM hasn't changed from my previous setup, and I haven't seen issues with it until now. The only critical error in the Event Viewer is a vague hardware failure that doesn't specify anything.
Yes, I used DDU to clean everything out before installing the new GPU.