II.JG1_Vonrd Posted March 22 Share Posted March 22 I just recently installed a Pimax Crystal. Everything was working fine for a couple days but last night I had a complete PC crash (powered off). Looking at @Flappie's DCS log troubleshooting it was due to Windows and only MSCTF.dll was present in the log. I use both VoiceAttack and SRS currently and have used Viacom in the past (Viacom was difficult to completely remove, it seemed to leave crumbs all over the place). I need both VoiceAttack and SRS and am reluctant to remove the one voice recognition profile that I've found. Any suggestions besides removing VA and SRS? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hiob Posted March 22 Share Posted March 22 (edited) Power off or reset? Either way, from my experience it is unlikely that some random software tools cause this kind of shutdown. Are you absolutely sure, that you aren‘t stressing your system on a hardware level? Shutdowns like this are often caused by a faulty or overstressed PSU or a CPU that is overclocked with problematic parameters. Hard to diagnose from a distance of course, but in case of a crash to off, I would examine the power supply. If it resets immediately and restarts, I would assume unstable bios settings (cpu, ram, load line/voltage)…. maybe check the temperatures of the running system. Edit: It would help a little if you gave some information on your system hardware and of you have done any kind of tuning. Edited March 22 by Hiob "Muß ich denn jedes Mal, wenn ich sauge oder saugblase den Schlauchstecker in die Schlauchnut schieben?" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
II.JG1_Vonrd Posted March 22 Author Share Posted March 22 (edited) Power off, no reset. CPU - AMD Ryzen 5 7600X MOBO - Gigabyte B650 Aorus Elite AX Memory - G.Skill DDR5-6000 (2 ea 32Gb) Graphics card - PNY GeForce RTX 4080 Storage - 2 each 2TB P3 NVMe PCIe 3.0 M.2 Internal SSD VR - Pimax Crystal using OpenXR latest build OS - Mindows 11 Pro 64 bit PSU - FOCUS-GX-1000 Gold No overclocking or any other modifications. Is there a program that will make a log of system temps in order to still be able to see them post crash? I have Core Temp but don't see how to keep a log. Edited March 22 by II.JG1_Vonrd Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hiob Posted March 22 Share Posted March 22 I mean just in general, while it is running DCS for example, see if any temps (cpu or gpu) are remarkable high. My only suggestion right now would be to disable xmp on the ram and see if that improves stability. I don’t have personal experience with the AM5 plattform yet, but I read that RAM is a rather delicate topic (or can be). See if there are any performance settings in the bios that you can disable for testing. Also there is program called OCCT which is perfect for stress testing the various components of a system. Have you built the system yourself? "Muß ich denn jedes Mal, wenn ich sauge oder saugblase den Schlauchstecker in die Schlauchnut schieben?" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hornblower793 Posted March 22 Share Posted March 22 I don't think Voiceattack / Vaicom will have done this as I run them happily with a Crystal. I agree with Hiob that system stress is worth investigating Windows 11 Home ¦ Z790 AORUS Elite AX motherboard ¦ i7-13700K ¦ 64GB Corsair Vengeance DDR5 memory @ 5600MHz ¦ Samsung 990 Pro 1TB SSD for OS, Samsung 980 Pro 2TB SSD for DCS ¦ MSI GeForce RTX 4090 Gaming X Trio 24GB ¦ Virpil WarBRD base with VFX grip, Thrustmaster A10c and F/A-18 grips ¦ VKB Gunfighter Mk4 and MCG Pro ¦ Thrustmaster Warthog Throttle ¦ VKB STECS Throttle ¦ Virpil TCS rotor base with Shark and AH-64D grips ¦ MFG Crosswinds ¦ Total Controls Multi-Function Button Box ¦ Pimax Crystal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
II.JG1_Vonrd Posted March 22 Author Share Posted March 22 1 hour ago, Hiob said: I mean just in general, while it is running DCS for example, see if any temps (cpu or gpu) are remarkable high. ave you built the system yourself? Yes. About a year ago and no problems. I agree that the voice recognition is unlikely. It was where the DCS log file was pointing though. It is probably due to system stress. I'm going to run some high usage missions and I have temps and cpu / gpu usage shown through MSI Afterburner / HWinFO64. I do have settings pretty high. I suspect the CPU. What's the best stuff to turn down in settings to reduce CPU load? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hiob Posted March 22 Share Posted March 22 No matter how much you stress the cpu with game settings, it should never crash. Just slow down and cause stuttering. If the system crashes due to high loads, it is not set up correctly (or has some faults). Try to research about your bios settings. As mentioned, I would start with lowering the ram speeds (just load default save settings). I asked if you built yourself to reckon if you are comfortable with opening your system. Check for good airflow and cooling and make sure all cards and ram sticks are seated properly. Maybe check the manual of your psu if you have properly connected the gpu to different power rails (depending on your psu - not every connector provide the same power). It is very hard to pin point random crashes from a distance unfortunately. "Muß ich denn jedes Mal, wenn ich sauge oder saugblase den Schlauchstecker in die Schlauchnut schieben?" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PawlaczGMD Posted March 22 Share Posted March 22 42 minutes ago, II.JG1_Vonrd said: Yes. About a year ago and no problems. I agree that the voice recognition is unlikely. It was where the DCS log file was pointing though. It is probably due to system stress. I'm going to run some high usage missions and I have temps and cpu / gpu usage shown through MSI Afterburner / HWinFO64. I do have settings pretty high. I suspect the CPU. What's the best stuff to turn down in settings to reduce CPU load? Such a hard crash indicates a hardware problem, it really could be almost anything. You can try this: -Burnin test in FurMark for a few minutes. -Prime95 for CPU/memory test (run for a few hours) -Memtest86 for memory test (run until completed) Any failures here will indicate a problem with less or more specific component, respectively. It could also be your PSU failing to deliver power, although if it is 1000W then it's really unlikely. 2 hours ago, Hiob said: I mean just in general, while it is running DCS for example, see if any temps (cpu or gpu) are remarkable high. My only suggestion right now would be to disable xmp on the ram and see if that improves stability. I don’t have personal experience with the AM5 plattform yet, but I read that RAM is a rather delicate topic (or can be). See if there are any performance settings in the bios that you can disable for testing. Also there is program called OCCT which is perfect for stress testing the various components of a system. Have you built the system yourself? I also second to disable RAM XMP. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
II.JG1_Vonrd Posted March 22 Author Share Posted March 22 (edited) 23 minutes ago, Hiob said: It is very hard to pin point random crashes from a distance unfortunately. I totally understand and thanks for your help! I just ran some high stress missions and had no issues at all. Temps were fine... GPU 58c, CPU 68c. Going to try Enigma for multiplayer stress. Maybe it was a fluke last night. I can't find any program that shows temps and usage in the VR headset other than fpsVR which works only through SteamVR. I am using OpenXR and don't want to use Steam. Anyway, just hoping that it was some sort of fluke. If it does happen again I will try all of your suggestions (I probably should regardless and will do so in future, but for now, I just want to enjoy my new toy. I thank you all very much for your help and suggestions. Edited March 22 by II.JG1_Vonrd Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hiob Posted March 22 Share Posted March 22 (edited) If there was any problem with cpu or gpu cooling, it had probably shown already. Those temps seem perfectly fine. It doesn’t free you from proper stress testing with some of the aforementioned tools though. Have you ruled out that the power failure was outside of your PC? Faulty multiple socket outlet? Too much load on a single socket….. Is there sufficient airflow to your power supply? If it really stays a one off occurrence, you can probably dismiss it as a random fluke. However, I would keep an eye out and if it happens again, definitely search for the cause thoroughly. Bedtime for me - good luck! Edited March 22 by Hiob "Muß ich denn jedes Mal, wenn ich sauge oder saugblase den Schlauchstecker in die Schlauchnut schieben?" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
II.JG1_Vonrd Posted March 23 Author Share Posted March 23 Thank you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hawkeye60 Posted March 23 Share Posted March 23 (edited) One other thing to check Locate the Windows log file It may give clues, not present in the DCS logs. It will also point to any other software or hardware issues it finds. Has helped me before to find a pesky issue. Finely, be sure the USB power profile is set to off. Windows will shut down ports to save energy. A last resort, Use the windows restore point tool to go back to just before you installed the software. Only works if you create them in advance, at least with Win 10 Edited March 23 by Hawkeye60 "Yeah, and though I work in the valley of Death, I will fear no Evil. For where there is one, there is always three. I preparest my aircraft to receive the Iron that will be delivered in the presence of my enemies. Thy ALCM and JDAM they comfort me. Power was given unto the aircrew to make peace upon the world by way of the sword. And when the call went out, Behold the "Sword of Stealth". And his name was Death. And Hell followed him. For the day of wrath has come and no mercy shall be given." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buzzer1977 Posted March 23 Share Posted March 23 10 hours ago, II.JG1_Vonrd said: I just recently installed a Pimax Crystal. Everything was working fine for a couple days but last night I had a complete PC crash (powered off). Looking at @Flappie's DCS log troubleshooting it was due to Windows and only MSCTF.dll was present in the log. I use both VoiceAttack and SRS currently and have used Viacom in the past (Viacom was difficult to completely remove, it seemed to leave crumbs all over the place). I need both VoiceAttack and SRS and am reluctant to remove the one voice recognition profile that I've found. Any suggestions besides removing VA and SRS? Probably a hardware issue and not VA or SRS. Most likely insufficient cooling or insufficient power supply or damaged hardware from insufficient cooling or insufficient power supply. AMD Ryzen 9 5950x, MSI MEG x570 Unify, G.Skill 128GB DDR4-3200, MSI RTX3090 Ventus 3x 24GB, Samsung PCIe 4.0 M.2 1TB 980 Pro, Seagate PCIe 4.0 M.2 2TB FireCuda 520, Quest 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hiob Posted March 23 Share Posted March 23 Good Morning. 1000W is powerful enough though. Unless improperly installed or faulty, it isn’t underpowered. The Windows event viewer is a good idea though! "Muß ich denn jedes Mal, wenn ich sauge oder saugblase den Schlauchstecker in die Schlauchnut schieben?" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flappie Posted March 23 Share Posted March 23 Is the PC connected to a surge protector? Don't accept indie game testing requests from friends in Discord. Ever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hiob Posted March 23 Share Posted March 23 @II.JG1_Vonrd Can I ask again what, precisely, happened? You played nicely along and then all of a sudden the machine went completely dark with no warning? In that case, I would bet 10 to 1 that it was either an outside problem with the power or (more likely) the over-current protection of your psu kicked in. In that case windows event viewer may or may not registered an entry. If there was some buildup to the shutdown, some instability of any sort, I would probably keep an eye on cpu and ram (and maybe the gpu). Note that the over-current protection can be triggered by faulty system components (incl. the psu). "Muß ich denn jedes Mal, wenn ich sauge oder saugblase den Schlauchstecker in die Schlauchnut schieben?" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silverdevil Posted March 23 Share Posted March 23 7 hours ago, Flappie said: Is the PC connected to a surge protector? i was going to ask the same thing as a previous post i saw this was the corrective action. in all my years in IT (coming up to 35), i never heard this before. but not impossible i suppose. another reason to have a good UPS and not use a surge protector. UPS does a good job of conditioning power. AKA_SilverDevil AKA Forums My YouTube “It is better to keep your mouth closed and let people think you are a fool than to open it and remove all doubt.” — Mark Twain Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
II.JG1_Vonrd Posted March 23 Author Share Posted March 23 Thank you all again for your input. The crash has not occurred again and everything seems to be stable. The PC (and all peripherals) are plugged into a surge suppressor strip. I'm beginning to think it was a momentary power loss and I didn't notice it since I was in the headset. We have had storms running through the SF Bay area and PG&E does have occasional issues... . I'm considering this as a closed issue but I'm not going to click "Mark as Solution" since it remains a mystery. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hiob Posted March 23 Share Posted March 23 (edited) Maybe consider a UPS instead of a surge suppressor then. Edited March 23 by Hiob "Muß ich denn jedes Mal, wenn ich sauge oder saugblase den Schlauchstecker in die Schlauchnut schieben?" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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