Since upgrading to a Ryzen 7 7800X3D, my PC has randomly lost power without warning and then reported Kernel-Power event 41 in Windows. One CPU apparently failed during this process, and after receiving a replacement I also installed a new be quiet! Pure Power 13M 850W power supply. The system currently uses an ASUS TUF Gaming B650M motherboard, Ryzen 7 7800X3D, GeForce RTX 4070, 32GB of DDR5, and the new 850W PSU. The shutdown happened again while playing Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024, although other games run normally at ultra settings and a 3D benchmark completed successfully. CPU and GPU temperatures during gaming are around 60–70°C. Could the wall outlet be unstable, or is the power supply insufficient? I'm also concerned that continuing to play the simulator could damage another CPU.
4 Answers
It’s worth testing the electrical side, but the wall outlet is not the most likely explanation if the rest of the system is stable. Plug the PC directly into a known-good outlet without a questionable extension lead or power strip, and if possible try a UPS that reports input voltage. You can also test the computer at another location. If it still shuts off, the outlet is probably not the cause.
A temperature of 60–70°C does not suggest overheating, and a normal protective shutdown should not usually destroy a CPU. Inspect the AM5 socket and CPU installation carefully, confirm the cooler is mounted correctly, and check the motherboard for any damaged socket pins or power-delivery issues. If the shutdown continues with BIOS defaults, current firmware, and another known-good power cable, the motherboard or replacement PSU may need to be tested or replaced under warranty.
Because it happens specifically with Flight Simulator, check for a game-specific system or driver problem rather than assuming the GPU is simply too weak. Try a clean graphics-driver installation, verify the game files, and test with lower settings or a frame-rate cap. A hard power cut can also point to motherboard protection circuitry, unstable memory settings, or a PSU/cable fault that only appears under a particular load pattern.
That 850W power supply is comfortably sufficient for a 7800X3D and RTX 4070, so wattage alone is very unlikely to be the issue. Kernel-Power 41 only tells you that Windows detected an unexpected loss of power; it does not identify the cause. Since the temperatures are reasonable, I’d start by updating the motherboard BIOS and chipset drivers, loading BIOS defaults, and temporarily disabling EXPO, PBO, undervolting, and any overclocking. Also make sure the CPU EPS cables and GPU power cable are fully seated and connected directly to the PSU where possible.
The fact that other games and a 3D benchmark work doesn’t completely rule out instability. Flight Simulator can create a different mix of CPU, GPU, memory, and storage load, so testing with EXPO and PBO disabled would be useful.