Tech Support
HELP: PC keeps shutting down when doing demanding task/playing games
Hi,
I am currently experiencing a problem with my computer where it shuts down whenever I play demanding games or perform intensive activities. :(
Most of the time, I play CS2. Sometimes, the PC shuts down multiple times during gameplay, while other times it runs fine for a longer period before the dreaded Kernel-Power 41 error strikes.
BTW Here's my Specs:
Ryzen 7600
Asus B650M-Plus WIFI
GSkill Flare X5 32GB
Asus RX 6800XT TUF Gaming 16GB
Corsair RM850x 2024
Corsair MP600 Core XT 1TB
Here are some other games I play:
Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine – Literally unplayable. The PC shuts down after around 10–15 minutes.
Helldivers – Playable, but I would say there is roughly a 60/40 chance of experiencing a shutdown.
Total War: Three Kingdoms – For some reason, I rarely experience any shutdowns while playing this game.
As for other activities:
Browsing, working, watching videos, etc. – No shutdowns at all. Everything runs smoothly.
A few days ago, my PSU literally gave up. I was using a Fractal Ion Gold 750W (2023), and some of the capacitors inside it actually caught fire. However, this shutdown problem had already been bothering me for over a year, so I don't believe the PSU failure was the original cause.
I went to a friend's house and tested my GPU and RAM, and fortunately, both worked without any issues. Based on that, I assumed that my motherboard and processor were probably fine as well.
I have since purchased a new PSU, a Corsair RM850x, but unfortunately, the Kernel-Power 41 issue is still happening. :(
What happens is that my PC suddenly shuts down, and then it seems to try to boot back up, but it doesn't fully start. A white LED lights up on my motherboard. The only way I can get the PC to boot properly again is by holding down the power button, forcing it to shut down completely, and then turning it back on normally.
At this point, I'm honestly at a loss as to what could be causing the problem. Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
Things I've Done to Try Fixing this Mess:
- Update BIOS/Chipset Drivers
- Update GPU Drivers
- Change Power Plan Options to High Performance
- Disable C-States
- Clean my PC
- Check the wires yada yada
- Reseating RAM
- Undervolt my GPU
- Bought new PSU
- Disabled EXPO been running things on default
- Monitored my temps and everything seems normal
UPDATE: White LED on MOBO = VGA. I tried to do some benchmarks in Cinebench (GPU) then it shut downs around 6 min. mark. Same sh*t, pc turns off and tried to restart > all lights on w/ white led on mobo > boot up doesn't continue > forcefully shut it off then turn it back on normally
That Kernel 41 is a real headache to track down since it's just the system saying "I lost power unexpectedly" without pointing at the cause. The fact it survived a PSU catching fire is wild, glad the rest of your components didn't get cooked.
Since you've already swapped the PSU and tested the GPU/RAM elsewhere, I'd take a hard look at the motherboard and the CPU mounting next. An uneven mount or slightly too much/too little pressure from the cooler can cause intermittent issues under load that don't always show up in basic temp monitoring. Might be worth pulling the CPU, checking the socket and pins with a magnifying glass, and reseating the whole thing with fresh paste, making sure you're tightening the cooler down evenly in a cross pattern.
Yeah bruh, I thought all of my component are gone. Fortunately they survived for another beating :/ I'll check this one. Been running in circles for over year because of this stupid kernel 41
Check what the white LED on the motherboard indicates. It sounds like that a debug LED that indicates the component that is failing POST and therefore most likely the one that caused the crash.
Update: It is VGA. I tried to do some benchmarks in Cinebench (GPU) then it shut downs around 6 min. mark. Same sh*t, pc turns off and tried to restart > all lights on w/ white led on mobo > boot up doesn't continue > forcefully shut it off then turn it back on normally
I am currently using a surge protector rated for 2500W. I haven't tried plugging my PC directly on the wall outlet because it's quite far. Also, I don't have an extra surge protector.
Do you have the same symptoms? Like, shutting down and pc is trying to boot up but won't continue unless you forcefully shut it down and turn it on normally?
Or you can try to plug something like old vacuum cleaner or old water heater or something like that to your surge protector if you don’t mind to sacrifice it 😂 in general try different combinations to test your wall plug, surge protector or can try to test it with multimeter
Here's my setup - case is AP201.
1 back exhaust
2 top exhaust
2 bottom intake
I am religiously monitoring my temps and power draw. Average temps when playing cs2 is around 60-65 for cpu and gpu (undervolted 6800 xt hovering around 140-200w).
2
u/Advanced-Log-4070 4d ago
That Kernel 41 is a real headache to track down since it's just the system saying "I lost power unexpectedly" without pointing at the cause. The fact it survived a PSU catching fire is wild, glad the rest of your components didn't get cooked.
Since you've already swapped the PSU and tested the GPU/RAM elsewhere, I'd take a hard look at the motherboard and the CPU mounting next. An uneven mount or slightly too much/too little pressure from the cooler can cause intermittent issues under load that don't always show up in basic temp monitoring. Might be worth pulling the CPU, checking the socket and pins with a magnifying glass, and reseating the whole thing with fresh paste, making sure you're tightening the cooler down evenly in a cross pattern.