lately my computer's been shutting off for "no reason" every now and then. i thought it could be my HD cos i've been having problems with it, so i took that out... but it happened again.
whenever i've looked, all the temperatures seem fine, so i figured the culprit could be my PSU. it's the thing that came with my case, the Antec NEO HE 430W. i'm no expert in voltages, but they dont look all that great to me:

+3.3V: 3.28V
+5V: 4.78V
+12V: 11.90V

looks pretty crappy to me?? but if this has no bearing i have no idea what could be causing this...

Your voltages are within spec (+/-5%), only just on the 5V. I would RMA it.

another antec PSU problem. rma the psu.

Hello,

The 12v is well withing the 5% -- it would have to go below 11.4v, or above 12.6v to be out of spec.

The 3.3v would have to go below 3.135v, or above 3.465v to out of spec.

And the 5v is close to being out of spec (4.75v-5.25v).

Have you tested the RAM? (Outside of Windows?) Has the Windows Registry been cleaned? What about any new hardware, or programs installed recently?

yea the 5V is a bit questionable to me too. but it all's worked fine before... will or can 4.78V inflict any actual damage on the system? if i cant get it to work i'll throw it off my porch. much more satisfying than RMA. faster too.

i have installed 3DS Max 9, and i really cant call it very stable. i cant remember if this started before i installed that or not, but i have a FEELING it did. though maybe it didn't. and the computer does crash even when it's not on. BUT THEN AGAIN 3DS Max tends to leave some processes running even after u shut down the program. (great, huh?)

i haven't tested RAM. what's a good (nay, best) program for that? and is it in any way possible to do that without creating a bootable floppy or CD?

MemTest, and yes, with a bootable USB stick. Choose "making a bootable usb stick" from the pull down menu.

If you have a DFI mobo you can also just enable memtest in bios and boot the machine.

Also what did you use to measure the voltages? software or hardware? software measurments are not very accurate.

well with that unsteady 5Volt rail if you have anything running off the 5v rail it could cause a weird system error and could restart.... or if your house 120v outlet fluxuates alot then that could cause it to restart.. doesnt have to be a power outage just has to be unstable

Yeah well, software reports my voltas at 11.99 4.91 3.26 asmd i have no multimerte heret to veryfi thaty.

So scheck with a muiltimetert before just to maeke shuer.

if you do a search, you will find that there is a thread on the unreliability of Antec NeoHE PSU. the last time i looked at the thread, the poll had over 40% users having defective units.

Try your system with another psu to make sure that is not the problem.

Have you been drinking nici?

Hello,

I like running MemTest x86 or Prime95 from the Ultimate Boot CD to test the RAM outside of Windows. Just download it and burn the ISO file to make a bootable CD. They link to a free burner (in the FAQ) that can do this: http://www.terabyteunlimited.com/utilities.html

Just sleep madness...

ARGHH!

ookey. i ran memtest. and surprise surprise the computer shut down again after a while. i tried less aggressive memory settings... and it didn't really help.

if the memory would be faulty, wouldn't it just fail the test or something, instead of complete shutdown? so this in mind... it has to be the PSU... right? i know there have been a lot of problems with the PSU, especially with my mobo, but it worked fine for months!

or is there something wrong with the mobo??

Hello,

Did you run MemTest in Windows, or from a bootable CD or memory stick? What is your RAM voltage? Are you undervolting anything, or overclocking anything?

i ran memtest from a bootable CD... and i was overclocking... but then i removed the overclock and it still shuts down.

i have 4 sticks of memory u know... could be that 1 of em is messing this up... so can i test individual sticks somehow... without actually removing them?

and what SHOULD happen when memory fails in memtest? is it normal for the computer to just shut down?

hmm. so now i was watching a video on the computer and POOF it shut down again, but this time i blew a fuse too! and it's not even the first time. it's happened a few times - i just forgot about it.

so i guess it's safe to say the problem is the PSU?? i called the store and they're bitching about it... (bitching = wont give me a new PSU before they get the one tested ) so i guess i'll just go buy a new PSU from another store... it's all i can come up with.

It could be the motherboard either. Look at capacitors - they should be clean and have flat top surface. If they leak or look bulged (like that), then they need to be replaced.