I recently upgraded my CPU and can now play more demanding games such as Cyberpunk 2077. However, my PC has completely shut down twice after roughly three hours of gameplay. I suspect my RX 6700 XT because it has always seemed to run unusually hot. Thermal pads and paste were replaced twice, but it still reached around 100–110°C while playing at medium settings. I had assumed those temperatures were normal, but now I'm worried the GPU or airflow is causing the shutdowns. Should I troubleshoot the system first, or replace the card with something like an RTX 3070? I can borrow a GTX 1080 Ti for testing, and I also still have a Ryzen 5 5600G with integrated graphics. My current CPU is a Ryzen 7 5800X3D, which does not have integrated graphics.
3 Answers
Find out whether the 100–110°C reading is the GPU core temperature or the junction/hotspot temperature. A hotspot near 110°C can be close to the card’s thermal limit, but it still suggests poor cooling, an uneven cooler mount, an airflow problem, or a faulty fan. Check that every GPU fan spins under load, inspect the case airflow, and monitor both core and hotspot temperatures. A full power-off can also come from the power supply, overheating elsewhere, or unstable power—not only the GPU.
The zero-RPM fan mode is normal at idle, but the fans should ramp up when the GPU is gaming. Adjusting the fan curve may help, although sitting around 47°C on the desktop is not automatically a problem. Log temperatures, clock speeds, fan speed, and power draw while gaming, and check whether the shutdown happens when the hotspot reaches its limit. Also verify that the GPU power cables are firmly connected and that the power supply is appropriate for the system.
Don’t buy another GPU yet. First determine whether the shutdown is actually caused by the graphics card. A Ryzen 7 5800X3D has no integrated graphics, but your old Ryzen 5 5600G can be used with its integrated graphics for a basic test. You could also borrow the GTX 1080 Ti. You shouldn’t need to completely remove your old drivers; tools such as DDU can cleanly switch between AMD and Nvidia drivers if necessary. Also check the motherboard’s diagnostic LEDs or connect a small PC speaker if your board supports one, since those can identify hardware faults during startup.
I have the old 5600G and some diagnostic LEDs, but I wasn’t sure how to interpret them. I may try running the system from the integrated graphics before buying anything.
A shutdown is not proof that the GPU is dead. Test with another graphics card or the 5600G’s integrated graphics and see whether the same game still causes the system to turn off.