My PC sometimes powers off completely during gaming, with no warning or blue screen. I suspect the power supply, but I'm not sure whether a 750W unit should be sufficient. During a 10-minute extreme OCCT stability test, the GPU reached about 400W, the CPU about 100W, the GPU core temperature was 53°C, the hotspot reached 110°C, and the CPU reached 75°C. AMD Adrenalin also showed the GPU staying below roughly 400W while gaming. Could this be caused by transient power spikes, a faulty PSU, high hotspot temperatures, or incorrect power connections? The system uses a Ryzen 7 7800X3D, RX 9070 XT 16GB, 32GB of RAM, Corsair RM750e 750W Gold, and an ASUS Prime LC 360 ARGB cooler.
3 Answers
A 750W supply may be marginal depending on the exact RX 9070 XT model and how it handles short power spikes. A GPU showing 400W continuously can briefly spike much higher, potentially making the PSU’s protection circuitry shut the system off. That doesn’t automatically mean the PSU is defective, but a higher-wattage, quality unit would provide more headroom. Make sure every GPU power connector is fully seated and use separate PSU cables rather than daisy-chaining one cable.
The shutdowns may be caused by transient loads rather than the average power reading. Software often shows the sustained draw but misses very brief spikes above 600W. Check whether the shutdown happens in every demanding game or only one title, and review Windows Event Viewer for a Kernel-Power event. Also try reducing the GPU power limit or undervolting it as a temporary test.
The 110°C GPU hotspot is worth investigating, even though the core temperature looks fine. Check that the card’s cooler is mounted properly, its fans are working, and the case has good airflow. If the hotspot remains unusually high or the difference between core and hotspot is very large, the card could have a cooler or contact issue. Separately, verify that the motherboard, CPU, and GPU power connectors are installed firmly.
I’m using the Gold version. Could these shutdowns damage the other components? It happens occasionally, and I can’t replace the PSU immediately.