Athlon 64 and XP keep crashing!!!

[t1rhino]

My boss bought an Athlon 64 and the Asus SK8N-Deluxe.
He is using the retail hsf, and Infineon DDR400.
He says he can't even surf the internet b/c XP either blue screens or reboots.
He said the the computer temps will fluctuate from from 40-52C.
He is using the Antec Sonata case. (Not great, but should be okay).

I already told him it might be the memory. He is somewhat computer savy, and any suggestions are welcome!

[madmat]

Sounds like memory or power supply but probably memory.

[Mt_Goat]

I wouldn't even make a keychain out of that memory! ;)

But I do think that is the main culprit. He sure could have picked a much better case for functionality.

[Geeky1]

Step 1: Download EBCD (Emergency Boot CD) from http://mirror01.iptelecom.net.ua/~ebcd/

Step 2: Create bootable CD

Step 3: Boot boss' comp. from CD

Step 4: Run Memtest86's full test and see what happens

It could just be a bad windows install, but I'm betting it's the RAM. I seriously doubt it's the PS.

[profdlp]

Add a mediocre trombonist to the memory bandwagon. Personal experience tells me that IE is handy as a real-world memory tester, even if you don't care for it as a browser... :p

[Omega65]

Reinstall the heatsink. If your boss is just surfing the net the temps shouldn't fluctuate 12C/21F like that

Also drop the HyperTransport/System clock/FSB (or something like that) speed to 166 . That should run the memory at DDR333 speeds

A 400w PSU with 15+ A on the 12v rail should power a A64 just fine. They only use ~40-50w. But you moght want to upgrade to a better PSU just to be sure

[t1rhino]

Oh, he mentioned that he does lots of video/digital pic editing.

[TheSmJ]

Have you updated the BIOS to the latest version available?

[Thrax]

Sounds like memory.

[MediaMan]

t1rhino had this to say
My boss bought an Athlon 64 and the Asus SK8N-Deluxe.
He is using the retail hsf, and Infineon DDR400.
He says he can't even surf the internet b/c XP either blue screens or reboots.
He said the the computer temps will fluctuate from from 40-52C.
He is using the Antec Sonata case. (Not great, but should be okay).

I already told him it might be the memory. He is somewhat computer savy, and any suggestions are welcome!


As already given: step 1: update the bios. step 2: run DOCMEMORY from www.simmtester.com

[t1rhino]

Last night he bought some Corsair XMS Pro and a new hsf.
He says it is running great now. :)

[Thrax]

Surprise.