Hello

Last weekend I build a new system (only kept the 4-year old PSU and HDD’s):

Asrock z87 extreme 4

I5 4670k

Gigabyte GTX 670 Windforce

2 x 4 GB GSkill Ripjaws RAM

Coolermaster 212 Evo

Kingston 60 GB SSD (for Windows 7)

PSU (4-years old): Corsair VX550 watt

Now I’m having problems when playing Skyrim (have not yet had the chance to test other games). After about playing for maybe 15-30 minutes the game crashes to desktop. Sometimes I get artifacts (lightblue triangles) right before it crashes. No other warning signs: no lag, no stutters, no fans heavy spinning, … almost constant smooth 60 fps.

When I go to check my GPU and CPU temps right after crashing everything looks very normal (the Gigabyte gtx 670 keeps under 55 degrees celsius). I used a program to check my memory ingame to see if it is the dreaded “Skyrim 3.1 GB limit" and I never went above 900 MB.

I ran FurMark for half an hour and the GPU kept under 60 degrees celsius and didn’t show any artifacting or crashing.

After searching the internet for a few days I can’t find a satisfying answer. I read some stuff about a bios update for the Gigabyte gtx 670 and I also found that this GPU can have problems with PCI-E 3.0. However I’m a little hesitant to flash the bios at this moment.

Personally I’m beginning to blame the (4 year old but quality) PSU. I think in theory it should be able to power my system but maybe it lost some of its “power”? Could lack of power while gaming just crash the game (and cause artifacting) instead of powering off the whole system?

Any ideas?

Is this on a vanilla install, or are you using mods?

Yes, I'm using mods, mostly a few texture mods like aMidianborns and Skyrim 2K Textures, and the ReaVision ENB. I already removed most of the script-heavy mods like Frostfall, Wet & Cold, ... to test if those were the culprit. On my previous (much less powerful) build I used to have the same mods (with the script ones), except for the Skyrim 2K textures and ENB and I never had problems with the mod-setup. I would be surprised if it was graphical overload because before crashing the game runs very smooth (almost constant 60 fps, even with RealVision full with the extra options). Also, there are no stutters, lag or an heavy load sound from the GPU. The crash comes very "unexpected" or "unannounced", If you know what I mean (English is not my first language).

Maybe another thing is the fact that I had the new GPU (gtx 670) a month before the rest of my new pieces, so I ran it along my old E8500, 4 gb RAM build. Of course I had stutters then (probably because of the old CPU) but even then it never crashed. The GPU also performed well then in games like Company of Heroes, Wolfenstein (2009), Left4Dead 1 & 2, ... The artifacting and crashing started when integrating the GPU in the new build.

Before buying the new pieces I had the idea that my "old" 550 watt PSU could handle the new build because the new pieces shouldn't draw more power than the old ones. Am I wrong here? Or am I just being paranoid about the PSU being the culprit?

I don't have any definite answers for you, but since I happen to have a minute to spare while passing by, here are some observations:

• Your issues arose after using HD texture mods, and you did not mention, whether you have a 32-bit or a 64-bit OS (though your RAM would suggest 64 bits). At least the official Hi-Res textures DLC is incompatible with a 32-bit OS, and is guaranteed to crash if used on one. To the best of my understanding, it may be because the continuous feeding of new textures to the GPU as you move about may be too much for system resources in a 32-bit OS, if the textures are very large.
• It may be a good idea to check, that you have firmly and properly connected all the power connectors to the GPU, and that all the power cables are unbroken and in seemingly good condition.
• Your PSU is single-rail, so any power deficiency should be more or less system-wide. I usually like to use a relatively affordable AC power meter to see how much power my gaming rig uses, so I can make a simple overall comparison of actual power used vs. the PSU's rating. Effective ratings do deteriorate over time.
• I am not sure, but I think your GPU may be factory overclocked, which may perhaps make it somewhat sensitive to the operating environment.
• My gut feeling is, that it might perhaps indeed be the time to get a new PSU. Your current PSU may fail sooner or later anyway, and if I were in your situation, I would consider pre-emptively getting a replacement, to test if it would make a difference now, and to have it readily available if/when needed later on.

is that your card ???? Gigabyte GTX 670 Windforce 3X OC 2GB

http://eteknix.eteknixltd.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/front.jpg

http://eteknix.eteknixltd.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/back.jpg

then obviously you need that bios update:

GIGABYTE Outs Corrective BIOS Update for GeForce GTX 670 WindForce 3X OC

Apparently, GIGABYTE's GeForce GTX 670 WindForce 3X OC graphics card (model: GV-N670OC-2GD) is riddled with stability issues that can only be corrected with a graphics card BIOS update.

The stability issues apparently relate to the way the GPU is addressing overclocked Hynix GDDR5 memory chips.

The company released a pair of BIOS files, version F4 based on NVIDIA source BIOS 80.04.31.00.58 and version F12 based on NVIDIA source BIOS 80.04.31.00.09.

The two were posted recently, but are date-stamped 13-Jul-2012. The two don't change the clock speeds the card ships with: 980 MHz core, 1058 MHz GPU Boost, and 6.00 GHz memory.

Graphics card BIOS updating is a trickier process than motherboard BIOS updates, and you need to be really sure what you're doing. !!!!!!

Find the BIOS files, and related documentation in the link below.

http://www.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=4211#bios

Get that utility and see what BIOS version - revision do you have !!!

http://www.techpowerup.com/downloads/2297/techpowerup-gpu-z-v0-7-4/mirrors

GOOD LUCK !!!!! and read carefully the instructions from gigabytes BIOS update page !!!!!