Hey everyone! My PC is about a year old, running on Windows 11, and I'm starting to wonder if that might be causing some issues. I have an Intel i5 13600K paired with an MSI Pro Z790 WiFi motherboard, and I'm dealing with persistent bluescreens, unexpected restarts, and crashes while playing Valorant, particularly related to the GPU. I've tried almost everything I can think of for months, but nothing has worked so far. I just saw there's a new BIOS update that claims to update the Intel microcode to 0x12F, but I haven't installed it yet. I'm at my wit's end here and really need to talk to anyone else who's experiencing similar problems because it's been really frustrating!
2 Answers
Did you purchase the CPU separately or as part of a prebuilt system? If it's a boxed version, you can RMA it to Intel since they’ve extended the warranty for the 13th/14th gen CPUs. If it's a tray version, reaching out to the store you bought it from is a smart move. Just remember, next time, maybe consider going with AMD or Qualcomm for more stability in your builds.
It sounds like you're really going through it! The first thing to do is get your dump files. These are crucial for diagnosing BSODs. If you can boot into Windows normally or even in Safe Mode, check the C:WindowsMinidump folder for any crash logs. If you find any, zip them up and upload them to a file-sharing site like catbox.moe or mediafire.com. Make sure to have several dump files, as they give a clearer picture of what's causing the crashes. Also, changing the dump type in your system settings can help get more detailed logs—here's a guide on that if you need it!
I bought it as a tray CPU, and I talked to the store about sending it in for repair/replacement. I think that’s probably my best option right now. I also kinda regret going with Intel; if I'd known better, I might've chosen AMD for my first build!