I was happy with my PC until I used Prime95!!

mikeyb · 2003-03-20, 11:11

I’ve run Prime95 and now I’m depressed, it fails after Test 6 (after about 6 mins or so) saying something about a hardware failure, I’ve tried it several times now and the same result every time, the CPU temps does rise, it peaks at about 57- 58C, don’t know if that has anything to do with it. Should I be concerned? I had a couple of BSOD after a first put it together, 6 months or so ago, so I ran memtest86 for a day or so and no errors were found, the BSOD error message pointed at either memory or HD (Error in ntfs.sys Fault in non paged area).
I also ran a HD diagnostics, again, no errors found. Since then, the PC has worked fine so I haven’t been to worried about it, even under heavy stress, converting MP3’s using LAME, which I noticed takes up 100% of the CPU, it must be stressing it somewhat, and the temp does rise to about 57-58C and it all seems to work Ok, month after month. So, I then decided to run Prime95 on my trusty old PII450 system, more or less the same result, repeatedly fails at Test 4. Can this program be trusted? What sort of results are other people getting? I’m now running it on my works PC, a Dell Optiplex GX110, just to see what happens.

My system.

Asus A7V333 AMD 1.7XP
DDRPC2700 256MB (good quality)
Matrox G450 with latest drivers and I’ve updated the video BIOS
13GB 7200RPM Quantum HD
SBLive (default XP drivers)
Motu 24i with PCI 424 card (loaned from work)
Creative CDROM
Plextor CDRW
Enermax 350W PSU
XP Pro with SP1 (NTFS)
CoolEdit
Word & Excel
A few other bits and bobs, Winzip, Acrobat etc

BTW...nothing is overclocked, all set to defaults.

trif · 2003-03-20, 17:31

Prime95 is very sensitive to errors. MP3's don't have any error checking. Prime95 has a lot and the stress test has even more. If it is returning an error, it means your machine is making errors in calculations. It is a deterministic mathematical calculation. If the answer doesn't come out right, it isn't Prime95 making the error.

It is probably the hardware, but sometimes errors are caused by faulty sound or video drivers that don't properly restore the state of the FPU when returning from an interrupt.

outlnder · 2003-03-20, 19:52

I would say one of two things is causing your problem.

1. Windows XP. I could never get Prime95 to run in XP.

2. Sound card drivers. Use the ones from Creative Labs.

Good luck.

mikeyb · 2003-03-21, 09:06

Thanks for all your help. I fairly sure I've find the fault. It was failing multiple times, within 20 mins or so, ran Prime95 loads of times same result, it work for 1hr once wihtout failing. I swapped my DDR over and it hasn't failed once in 24hrs, it was failing multiple time in 24mins previously! So fingers crossed, I think it's cured, I'm a bit miffed though, I paid extra for so called 'good quality' DDR, Geil PC2700, which has beeen responsible for loads of grief, swapped it for a Crucial version of the same type and it works fine.

Belew follows details of the now redundant testing I did, might prove useful to somebody!!

Stage 1

Started first test run from a cold boot-up and ran Prime95 straight away. Temps: Ambient 19.3, CPU started at out at 40C, by test 6 or 7 CPU had reached 45C, temp seem to stabilise at 49C and then it failed at test 10 saying the following ‘FATAL ERROR: Rounding was 0.4999997914, expected less than 0.4, hardware failure detected’ repeated test and this time it failed at test 3, at no point did the temp go over 49C. I then ran it one more time, failed at test 2 at 50C, temp never went above 50C. IMHO the PC had not really warmed up yet, that was the whole point of this series of tests.

Stage 2

More tests, this time the PC has been idling for a few hours to let the temperature build up, idle temp, ambient temp 19.7, CPU 45C, rear case exhaust (I’ve fitted a temp probe there) 27.8. Start Prime95, temps in C.

Test CPU PSU Exhaust
3 51 28.5
4 52 28.6
5 53 28.8
6 53 28.9
7 53 29.1
8 54 29.2
9 54 29.3
10 54 29.4
11 54 29.4

Well surprise surprise, it’s still going strong at test 15, CPU temp has been steady at 54C for awhile now. After test 15 or so the test numbers go crazy, the CPU temp went up to 55C, exhaust 29.6.
It’s at test 401 and all Ok, CPU temp 56
It’s at test 820 and all Ok, CPU temp 56

Decided to post results.

At no point has the motherboard temp go above 28.

Have to take into account that there is no heat build-up from the HD or burner during these test, I just ran Prime95 and Asus Probe, so the result could be worse if I had hammered the HD or had the burner going, like when I’m doing ripping, encoding and burning MP3’s!!

So, there you have it, makes no sense really does it? The first test, when it was actually cooler, it failed!! WTF!!!

Stopped test, went and made a cup of tea, things have cooled down a tad, CPU at 49/50, ran Prime95 again, it fails within seconds, tried it 5 times in a row, exactly the same!

Swapped memory, stop/started Prime95 over 2 hrs, never failed once, ran it for over 24hrs, has not failed once.

QuintLeo · 2003-03-24, 04:20

Having never heard *of* "Geil", I have some MAJOR doubts about it being "good quality".

Crucial, on the other hand, has a generally good reputation.

BTW - I'm about 2 days away from building up a A7V333 myself with a Thoroughbred XP1800+ - I'm hoping it will make it up to 166(333) FSB with the Samsung PC2700 I got for it.

Just finished upgrading my main machine from a KT7A to a A7V266E - but I'm a little unhappy, the KT7A would unlock the Thoroughbred XP1800+ I had just put in that machine, the A7V266E won't. I'm gonna end up swapping my Palomino in there, I think - I hate to lose the CPU power - unless I can bump the FSB up a lot more than the KT7A ever managed.

Xyzzy · 2003-03-24, 04:50

Quote:

Originally Posted by QuintLeo

Having never heard *of* "Geil", I have some MAJOR doubts about it being "good quality".

http://www.geilusa.com/

I've read good things about GEIL, and bad things... Personally, I plan to stick with Crucial...

mikeyb · 2003-03-25, 11:52

QuintLeo - make sure you get the latest version BIOS for the A7V333 (1016 I think, I have 1015) earlier version reported incorrect temps to the Asus Probe software and could be out somewhere between 7 and 10C! Scared the hell out of me when I first built it, it was reporting the CPU as running in the mid to high 60's!!

Upgraded the BIOS to 1015 and got an instant 10C reduction in temp readings. Make sure you use the correct BIOS updater as well - you can trash your BIOS if you use the wrong one. The first A7V33 I had was faulty, it recognised the CPU randomly, it was very hit and miss, sent it back and got a replacement which has been fine, the supplier tested the returned one and agreed it was faulty. Geil memory is meant ot be 'premium quality' kit but I'm not so sure, I have now read several things now that seem to say that some of their memory is iffy, I'm certainly not going buying any more of their memory, I'll stick to Crucial.

QuintLeo · 2003-03-25, 15:16

I don't use ASUS Probe - tried it on a couple machines a long time ago, found it was too CPU cycle intensive and didn't work well and was NOT configurable.

I normally use Motherboard Monitor - though I've also used CPUCool, but it doesn't support some of my current stuff. I like MBMs "dashboard" better, though - more info in less space, and fairly easy to rearrange how I want it and just have it report what I want it to report.

mikeyb · 2003-03-25, 15:36

I'll think I'll give Mother Monitor a try then. AFAIK Asus Probe was working correctly, it was the BIOS update which corrected the readings, like you said, Probe does seem a bit of a dog, slow etc etc so I'll be glad to ditch it!

Erm...just downloaded Motherboard Monitor and it hangs on startup! The logo comes up and that's it, the application doesn't start. Any ideas?

2003-03-20, 11:11	#1
mikeyb Mar 2003 2² Posts	I was happy with my PC until I used Prime95!! I’ve run Prime95 and now I’m depressed, it fails after Test 6 (after about 6 mins or so) saying something about a hardware failure, I’ve tried it several times now and the same result every time, the CPU temps does rise, it peaks at about 57- 58C, don’t know if that has anything to do with it. Should I be concerned? I had a couple of BSOD after a first put it together, 6 months or so ago, so I ran memtest86 for a day or so and no errors were found, the BSOD error message pointed at either memory or HD (Error in ntfs.sys Fault in non paged area). I also ran a HD diagnostics, again, no errors found. Since then, the PC has worked fine so I haven’t been to worried about it, even under heavy stress, converting MP3’s using LAME, which I noticed takes up 100% of the CPU, it must be stressing it somewhat, and the temp does rise to about 57-58C and it all seems to work Ok, month after month. So, I then decided to run Prime95 on my trusty old PII450 system, more or less the same result, repeatedly fails at Test 4. Can this program be trusted? What sort of results are other people getting? I’m now running it on my works PC, a Dell Optiplex GX110, just to see what happens. My system. Asus A7V333 AMD 1.7XP DDRPC2700 256MB (good quality) Matrox G450 with latest drivers and I’ve updated the video BIOS 13GB 7200RPM Quantum HD SBLive (default XP drivers) Motu 24i with PCI 424 card (loaned from work) Creative CDROM Plextor CDRW Enermax 350W PSU XP Pro with SP1 (NTFS) CoolEdit Word & Excel A few other bits and bobs, Winzip, Acrobat etc BTW...nothing is overclocked, all set to defaults.

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
Happy 11/11/11 !	R. Gerbicz	Lounge	31	2013-02-04 04:04
Happy 22503!	10metreh	Lounge	5	2012-01-04 11:29
Happy 7/8/9	Uncwilly	Lounge	11	2009-08-08 18:30
Happy Odd Day	petrw1	PrimeNet	1	2009-05-07 16:31
Happy B-Day	TTn	15k Search	1	2006-03-22 23:55

2003-03-20, 17:31	#2
trif Aug 2002 CA₁₆ Posts	Prime95 is very sensitive to errors. MP3's don't have any error checking. Prime95 has a lot and the stress test has even more. If it is returning an error, it means your machine is making errors in calculations. It is a deterministic mathematical calculation. If the answer doesn't come out right, it isn't Prime95 making the error. It is probably the hardware, but sometimes errors are caused by faulty sound or video drivers that don't properly restore the state of the FPU when returning from an interrupt.

2003-03-20, 19:52	#3
outlnder Aug 2002 476₈ Posts	I would say one of two things is causing your problem. 1. Windows XP. I could never get Prime95 to run in XP. 2. Sound card drivers. Use the ones from Creative Labs. Good luck.

2003-03-21, 09:06	#4
mikeyb Mar 2003 2² Posts	Thanks for all your help. I fairly sure I've find the fault. It was failing multiple times, within 20 mins or so, ran Prime95 loads of times same result, it work for 1hr once wihtout failing. I swapped my DDR over and it hasn't failed once in 24hrs, it was failing multiple time in 24mins previously! So fingers crossed, I think it's cured, I'm a bit miffed though, I paid extra for so called 'good quality' DDR, Geil PC2700, which has beeen responsible for loads of grief, swapped it for a Crucial version of the same type and it works fine. Belew follows details of the now redundant testing I did, might prove useful to somebody!! Stage 1 Started first test run from a cold boot-up and ran Prime95 straight away. Temps: Ambient 19.3, CPU started at out at 40C, by test 6 or 7 CPU had reached 45C, temp seem to stabilise at 49C and then it failed at test 10 saying the following ‘FATAL ERROR: Rounding was 0.4999997914, expected less than 0.4, hardware failure detected’ repeated test and this time it failed at test 3, at no point did the temp go over 49C. I then ran it one more time, failed at test 2 at 50C, temp never went above 50C. IMHO the PC had not really warmed up yet, that was the whole point of this series of tests. Stage 2 More tests, this time the PC has been idling for a few hours to let the temperature build up, idle temp, ambient temp 19.7, CPU 45C, rear case exhaust (I’ve fitted a temp probe there) 27.8. Start Prime95, temps in C. Test CPU PSU Exhaust 3 51 28.5 4 52 28.6 5 53 28.8 6 53 28.9 7 53 29.1 8 54 29.2 9 54 29.3 10 54 29.4 11 54 29.4 Well surprise surprise, it’s still going strong at test 15, CPU temp has been steady at 54C for awhile now. After test 15 or so the test numbers go crazy, the CPU temp went up to 55C, exhaust 29.6. It’s at test 401 and all Ok, CPU temp 56 It’s at test 820 and all Ok, CPU temp 56 Decided to post results. At no point has the motherboard temp go above 28. Have to take into account that there is no heat build-up from the HD or burner during these test, I just ran Prime95 and Asus Probe, so the result could be worse if I had hammered the HD or had the burner going, like when I’m doing ripping, encoding and burning MP3’s!! So, there you have it, makes no sense really does it? The first test, when it was actually cooler, it failed!! WTF!!! Stopped test, went and made a cup of tea, things have cooled down a tad, CPU at 49/50, ran Prime95 again, it fails within seconds, tried it 5 times in a row, exactly the same! Swapped memory, stop/started Prime95 over 2 hrs, never failed once, ran it for over 24hrs, has not failed once.

2003-03-24, 04:20	#5
QuintLeo Oct 2002 Lost in the hills of Iowa 700₈ Posts	Having never heard of "Geil", I have some MAJOR doubts about it being "good quality". Crucial, on the other hand, has a generally good reputation. BTW - I'm about 2 days away from building up a A7V333 myself with a Thoroughbred XP1800+ - I'm hoping it will make it up to 166(333) FSB with the Samsung PC2700 I got for it. Just finished upgrading my main machine from a KT7A to a A7V266E - but I'm a little unhappy, the KT7A would unlock the Thoroughbred XP1800+ I had just put in that machine, the A7V266E won't. I'm gonna end up swapping my Palomino in there, I think - I hate to lose the CPU power - unless I can bump the FSB up a lot more than the KT7A ever managed.

2003-03-25, 11:52	#7
mikeyb Mar 2003 100₂ Posts	QuintLeo - make sure you get the latest version BIOS for the A7V333 (1016 I think, I have 1015) earlier version reported incorrect temps to the Asus Probe software and could be out somewhere between 7 and 10C! Scared the hell out of me when I first built it, it was reporting the CPU as running in the mid to high 60's!! Upgraded the BIOS to 1015 and got an instant 10C reduction in temp readings. Make sure you use the correct BIOS updater as well - you can trash your BIOS if you use the wrong one. The first A7V33 I had was faulty, it recognised the CPU randomly, it was very hit and miss, sent it back and got a replacement which has been fine, the supplier tested the returned one and agreed it was faulty. Geil memory is meant ot be 'premium quality' kit but I'm not so sure, I have now read several things now that seem to say that some of their memory is iffy, I'm certainly not going buying any more of their memory, I'll stick to Crucial.

2003-03-25, 15:16	#8
QuintLeo Oct 2002 Lost in the hills of Iowa 111000000₂ Posts	I don't use ASUS Probe - tried it on a couple machines a long time ago, found it was too CPU cycle intensive and didn't work well and was NOT configurable. I normally use Motherboard Monitor - though I've also used CPUCool, but it doesn't support some of my current stuff. I like MBMs "dashboard" better, though - more info in less space, and fairly easy to rearrange how I want it and just have it report what I want it to report.

2003-03-25, 15:36	#9
mikeyb Mar 2003 2² Posts	I'll think I'll give Mother Monitor a try then. AFAIK Asus Probe was working correctly, it was the BIOS update which corrected the readings, like you said, Probe does seem a bit of a dog, slow etc etc so I'll be glad to ditch it! Erm...just downloaded Motherboard Monitor and it hangs on startup! The logo comes up and that's it, the application doesn't start. Any ideas?