Constant PC problems, please help ASAP-

[qwertyK]

hey there,

I'm making this thread because I'm in desperate need of help with my custom built Windows 10 PC. It's been a nightmare, and despite having very decent specs like a Core i5 4460, 8GB RAM, an SSD, and a lovely 1080p monitor, I hate it. Problem, after problem, after problem. Firstly, I had a dog of a time trying to build the darn thing. In the process of removing a screw that had lost its thread (don't even go there) I scratched the back of my shiny new Z97 motherboard. Oh joy.

I then can't get my GPU drivers installed, and can't get it to sleep. Thankfully, this is soon fixed. But then I have LOADS of intermittent BSODs. CACHE_MANAGER, IRQL_NOT_LESS_EQUAL, you name it, I had it. Memtest said memory was fine. Kept on blue screening.

I've heard loads of people raving about Windows 10, I made a leap of faith and decided to get it, despite bad experiences with it. It was great. That is, until my user ID seems to have magically become corrupt. I can't change my password, add a PIN, add a Microsoft account. I'm typing this on my 2nd user account,because I had to create a new one, just so I can have a new username. And now what? The bloddy @ key on my Cooler Master Devastator keyboard seems to not work anymore. I had to sign up for this forum using the on screen keyboard. Its only a few months old (Februrary I built it). I think this PC is actually cursed. I actually had to replace my orgininal FX6300 and ASUS 760g board that was intented to be in it because the CPU overheated like hell and there was terrible coil whine on the motherboard. Jokes aside, I want to know what I can do about this PC. I'm very frustrated, and this experience just puts me off PC-building. It's only my 2nd build. 1st build had no problems. Almost starting to wish I just put up with my slow Sempron PC and called it a day.

Any help, words of advice and support would be very much appreciated. Thank you.
Alex Kensit

PC specs

Intel Core i5 4460 (stock cooler)
Gigabyte Z97 D3H
1x8GB HyperX FURY RAM at 1600mhz
ASUS GT-610 2GB (yes I know its a potato, don't do any gaming)
120GB Kingston v300NOW SSD
1TB WD Caviar Blue
EVGA W1 500W
Corsair Spec 01 Blue
Windows 10 Home 64 bit (upgraded from Windows 7)
Samsung 24x dvd drive


EDIT: Keyboard is now working, for some reason windows messed it up.

[smargh]

Photo of the scratch?

[Phage]

I find this little crash dump analyser useful.
http://www.resplendence.com/whocrashed
But I would guess that the scratch or similar damage is causing the issue.

[flearider]

depends how deep the scratch is ..as said a pic says a thousand words ..if you have cut a trace line .. well game over ..
and what screw did you remove ? ..
but other things will cause bsod's have you set the bios up right ? mem timings ?

[kompukare]

Intermediate BSOD, hardware problems and the like are very hard to diagnose.
Rather than wasting hours trying things randomly, my strategy is to try a different OS.
1) A bootable Linux is a quick way to see if the basic hardware is working (plus most distros give you MemTest86+ too on their boot menu). So creating one of those on a UBS stick to boot from is the first step.

2) Bootable Windows is possible but not as useful as it can be hard to install the right drivers. Therefore it is better to install a second copy of Windows preferable to another HDD/SSD.

In the OP's case, I would try the linux first.
If that is all okay, run the MemTest86++ (not the same as the Windows mem test).
Finally, install a clean new copy of Windows to another drive. I would use Win7 or Win8 for this (you don't need a licence key since the trial period is way enough to do any diagnostics).

Also, before doing any of this I would remove the (useless) Geforce 610 as it's slower than the built-in graphics on the i5-4460. One less variable.

[Bonebreaker777]

Can't but agree with the suggestions in the last post.
Memtest your PC - or even better, try Active Boot Disk Suite. Live and plenty of tests to try.
Try a live OS, if not then a hard installed one over a spare medium.
Run more tests. Remove all but the essential hardware - like WiFi add on cards or GPUs, all HDD & SSD beside the one housing the OS, etc.
Windows 8 better for testing (more and better automatic hardware recognition, .NET included in installation, etc).

Have fun and let us know.

[pp05]

As always make sure you have enabled AHCI in BIOS if your primary drive is the SSD.

Do you have onboard graphics? Set your PC up with bare minimum and see how that works. Then add graphics and any additional hardware you want after that. Keep an eye on your cpu temps although these days they usually throttle down until you need need more grunt.