0x124 BSOD during WoW. Culprit?

[KnickNut3]

My girlfriend has experienced 10+ BSODs while playing WoW on my desktop. Sometimes they occur after 10 minutes, sometimes 2 hours. "WhoCrashed" analyzed the dump files, all with a variation on the message posted at the bottom.

I've tried to go through some stress tests to figure out the offending hardware. My PC is 5 years old and I'm happy to buy a new component (I'm actually considering upgrading some or all of it anyway, suggestions welcome on that front), but what I don't want to do is buy a new video card when it's my CPU or motherboard, or vice versa.

I ran a AIDA64 stress test with no errors. Core temps reached 87C-89C, motherboard 70C, but no errors. For my GPU, I ran FurMark for a half hour. The temp got up to 98C after a few minutes but seemed to throttle itself (fps slowed about 25%) and settled at 77C. Again, no errors or crashes.

Any suggestions on my next step? Thanks!

Rig:
CPU: Intel CORE I7 920 2.66GHZ-8M 4.8GT/S S136
MB: ASRock X58 Extreme LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard
VC1: ASUS EAH4870 Radeon HD 4870 1GB GDDR5 PCI Express x16 (for desktop)
VC2: Radeon HD 5670 (to display videos on TV as HTPC)
HD: 1TB Barracuda 7200.12 SATA 3Gb/s Internal Hard Drive
MEM: OCZ Gold 6GB (3 x 2GB) DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800)
HSF: XIGMATEK HDT-S1283 120mm Rifle CPU Cooler
CASE: Antec Sonata III 500 ATX Mid Tower w/ 500W Power Supply

Whocrashed:

This was probably caused by the following module: hal.dll (hal!HalBugCheckSystem+0x1E3)
Bugcheck code: 0x124 (0x4, 0xFFFFFA80063CA038, 0x0, 0x0)
Error: WHEA_UNCORRECTABLE_ERROR
file path: C: \Windows\system32\hal.dll
description: Hardware Abstraction Layer DLL
Bug check description: This bug check indicates that a fatal hardware error has occurred. This bug check uses the error data that is provided by the Windows Hardware Error Architecture (WHEA).
This is likely to be caused by a hardware problem problem. This problem might be caused by a thermal issue.
The crash took place in a standard Microsoft module. Your system configuration may be incorrect. Possibly this problem is caused by another driver on your system that cannot be identified at this time.

 

[Smoove910]

right off the bat I'm wondering if your powersupply is strong enough to run both those videocards. Have you tried removing one and seeing if the problem persists?

Although this thread is for Win 8, it does offer some support for my thoughts:
http://www.tomshardware.com/answers/id-2039223/whea-uncorrectable-error-bsod-message.html

 

[meeshu]

PSU's that come with cases are usually of lower grade compared to third party PSU's. It is possible that the PSU is not quite able to provide required power due to lower grade components, and perhaps due to PSU aging as well.

Would really recommend getting a quality PSU rated at a minimum of 500W to replace the existing PSU for a start. One such good quality unit is the - Antec HCG-520M.

The system temperatures seem to be a bit too high. It may be that the BSOD's are due to excessive temperatures. Better cooling is recommended, particularly for the CPU. You might have to get a liquid cooling unit for the CPU (good liquid cooler is the Corsair H110). And extra fans may be required to help with cooling (front intake fan, and rear or top exhaust fan).

 

[Ketchup]

Does the crash only occur during online gaming?

 

[inachu]

Because you have two video cards I would think 500 PSU is bare minimum.
740W PSU are pretty cheap now.

 

[KnickNut3]

Thanks for the responses.

It's only crashed during WoW. So playing online games, yes.

I really don't think it's the PSU. The PSU is a higher-quality one (when I bought it, at least). Don't have the exact model number on me. That second graphics card is inactive during gaming and is very low-power to begin with. All the PSU calculators I've found say I need 320W without the second card and 350W with, 400W "recommended." Also, the voltages have been rock solid in my stress tests. Wouldn't they fluctuate if the PSU was faltering? Or am I mistaken? Sorry, I'm just looking for a little more concrete evidence that the PSU is the culprit.

I also forgot to mention, the CPU fan is adjustable. The temps I got were on the low fan setting (trying to stress it as much as possible), and it still passed the test. If I run the fans on high, which they were running during a few of the BSODs, the temps during the stress test stay in the 78C-80C range. So I really don't think I need liquid cooling for a CPU running at stock speeds.

Someone suggested that the "0x0" parameters in the minidump implies a PCIe error. Any troubleshooting suggestions along those or any other lines? Or, in general, other troubleshooting steps I can take before purchasing new components in hopes they work?

 

[meeshu]

PSU's age and eventually fail regardless of quality. But quality PSU's usually last longer.

Get hold of another (spare) working PSU and swap it for the present PSU. This will then confirm or eliminate the present PSU as being faulty.

The fact that the system appears to throttle back indicates excessive temperature(s). To avoid inconvenience of throttling and to prolong component lifespan, better cooling should really be considered.

Make sure ALL drivers are up to date, including sound (card). Out of date or corrupt drivers can and do cause all sorts of problems such as freezes, shut downs etc.

If there is no improvement in the situation with continuing BSOD's after testing with another PSU and after updating drivers, then the motherboard or the video card(s) are suspected of being "faulty". If possible swap out video cards with another for testing (don't forget to change drivers if required). If there are still problems then the motherboard is most likely faulty.

 

[Ketchup]

One thing you might want to try is to upgrade the drivers for the network card, since you are only seeing the issue with online gaming.

 

[denis280]

Because you have two video cards I would think 500 PSU is bare minimum.

+1

One thing you might want to try is to upgrade the drivers for the network card, since you are only seeing the issue with online gaming.

also this