I'm experiencing a frustrating issue with my PC that causes it to shut down completely when I try to run demanding applications like games. Instead of a blue screen, it just turns off and restarts immediately. I've got a decent setup including a Gigabyte X570 Aorus Elite WiFi motherboard, an AMD Ryzen 5 3600 CPU, a PowerColor Red Devil RX 5700 XT GPU, and 16GB of G.Skill Trident Z Neo RAM, all powered by a SilverStone SST-ST85F-GS (850W) PSU.
Here's the lowdown: everything runs fine during normal activities, like browsing the web or watching videos. However, under load, the system sometimes restarts unexpectedly. The timing is inconsistent; it can crash within minutes or last longer. I've run some tests: OCCT occasionally passes, but can cause a shutdown; Prime95 showed no issues; FurMark runs fine on its own, but the FurMark Knot sometimes causes crashes. I've also checked the event viewer and noted some errors related to power and hardware that have me wondering whether this is a PSU failure, a GPU instability, or perhaps a problem with the CPU or memory. I'm confused because the GPU driver sometimes fails without shutting down the entire system. What should I test next to figure this out?
4 Answers
I faced a similar issue with my system, and it turned out to be a faulty PSU. What helped me was running a combined stress test with FurMark and Prime95; I could reproduce the shutdown almost instantly. If you haven't tried stressing the CPU and GPU together like that, it might be worth a shot. It seems like those shutdowns often point to PSU problems rather than GPU failures, which usually show different signs like graphical glitches or crashes without the whole system powering down.
Definitely check your PSU. I've had similar shutdowns happen to me, and in both cases, it was a faulty power supply. If it’s older than a few years, it might struggle with handling the load, especially under stress.
How old is your PSU? I noticed that model from SilverStone is from 2015. If it's been running since then, it might not be holding up well under load anymore. You mentioned you got it in 2019, so if it's around 5-6 years old, that's decent, but be cautious!
Make sure all your cables are securely connected and not bent too much. I had a shutdown issue similar to yours and found out that the motherboard power cable was overly crimped due to my cable management. After fixing that, everything worked perfectly.
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