New PC Crashing D:

[Mojo]

The PC is as follows.

GIGABYTE GA-P35-DS3L
3.0 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo E6850
eVGA 512-P3-N802-A1 GeForce 8800GT
Crucial Ballistix 2 GB (2x 1 GB) 1066 DDR2 (PC2 8500)
Memorex DVD16+/-DL4RWID2
Western Digital Caviar WD1600JS
Seasonic S12-500

AC Input                       100-240V ~7A 50/60 Hz 
DC Output              +3.3V   +5V  +12V1  +12V2  -12V  +5VSB 
Maximum Output Current   30A   30A  17A      16A  0.8A   2.0A 
Maximum Combined        180W  180W  396W    396W  9.6W    10W 
500W

I finished setting it up a few hours ago this morning and have encountered a problem. After running FFXI for a while(around 20 minutes), my PC will turn off. It runs smoothly and gradually drops in FPS before this happens. I don't get a blue screen message when I restart or anything of that nature. It ran fine for the four hours that it took to install and update FFXI, although that isn't very resource demanding so I can't see it causing a critical failure. I have a few ideas of what it could be(RAM or PSU mainly) but I need help to thoroughly diagnose the problem(I really don't know how to go about it). I tried updating video card drivers, in case anyone wants to know, but to no avail.

[viperlasson]

Sounds like overheating, either the cpu or gpu. Is the CPU properly mounted? Did you remember to put thermal paste on the CPU? CPU fan spins? GPU fan spins?

[Mojo]

Good job, you nailed it. I ended up turning my PC off for a while to do something else. When I returned and continued to try diagnosing the problem, my PC ended up crashing eventually. When I touched the CPU heat sink, it actually burned me. The CPU power cable doesn't appear to be long enough and ended up obstructing the CPU fan. I'll have to buy an extension cord for it. Since we're on the subject, what would you consider a decent and practical cooling solution? Installing the fan that came with the CPU made me fear for my motherboard. Also, just to make sure I'm doing it right, what is the proper way to install the CPU + fan?

[Avanarius]

for the stock intel heatsink I would highly recommend at least some good thermal paste such as artic silver 5 or an equivilant. Other then that you have to make sure all 4 tab things are pushed through the mobo and secure in place, they won't be able to move if they're properly in place and you have to turn the top to release them.

While the computer is in bios you can look at the temperatures and put some additional pressure on the heatsink, if you notice the temperature drop by anything it means the heatsink isn't properly installed.

A good 3rd party heatsink is the thermalright 120, it's large but it's probably the best air cooler on the market.

[viperlasson]

Sweet, glad I helped you find the problem.

Here is a good cpu heatsink for you (I put this one in my friend's core2duo and it perfect)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6835186134

I also recommend buying 3rd party thermal paste, Arctic Silver 5 is a highly well-known product
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6835100007

Here's a little install procedure, first clean the top of your CPU to get all the old thermal paste off. You can use cotton balls and rubbing alcohol to get this done. After its clean, put a very thin layer of the AC5 on the CPU, you can use a credit card to swipe it clean and flat. Then place it in the socket and install the heatsink. There should be a little instruction booklet with pictures to aid you in the heatsink box. If you have any problems with the install reply again and I'll try to help. :D

[Mojo]

Upon further review, I'm fairly sure I installed the stock heat sink and fan correctly(It comes with some thermal compound already on the bottom so you can't really leave that out). Is there any kind of software that would enable you to monitor the temperature of your CPU while running windows? The ambient temperature in my room is close to freezing(I'm not kidding), so if it does well with the extended power cable, I might just leave it the way it is.

Edit: Oh yeah, is there a simple method to remove the heat sink? That thing was a bitch to put in, I don't even want to think about removing it.

[Cephius]

If you're using XP, the best option is Speedfan, which is a simple program which you can set to show your CPU/GPU temperature in the system tray. Other options are Rivatuner, and Everest which is a good option if you have Vista. You have to pay for or find a key for Everest, though.

[Avanarius]

it's actually easier to remove it then to get it on, just turn all 4 of the tabby thingies in the direction the arrow points to release them I believe then pull each of them up one by one to get it off the board.