Re: CPU Core Voltage Too Low -> Crash?

From: Don Cohen (doncohen_at_'lens-cap'.alltel.net)
Date: 02/22/04 

Date: Sat, 21 Feb 2004 19:11:11 -0500

> Nothing like going crazy trying to track something like this down....

Boy, is that the truth. It has consumed an incredible amount of time and
mental energy.

> From reading your posts and replies and what you've already done to
> trouble shoot the problem, I believe it is very definitely a hardware
> issue.

I appreciate the confirmation. That seems like the only logical conclusion,
but we all know how strange the truth can be at times...

> I would suggest you not spend any more money on diagnostic programs or
> the like. Of course a free one is always great to have. I'm not
> sure I really trust AIDA32 to accurately monitor CPU voltages. The
> best free application that I know of to do that is called "Motherboard
> Monitor". You might wish to download and give it a try. Also, go to
> the CPU makers web site and get the specs for your CPU. Both Intel
> and AMD have spec sheets available which give the voltage and
> temperature ranges for the CPUs they manufacture.

OK, I've downloaded and installed Motherboard Monitor. Definitely more
complex than AIDA32 to setup. But I think I have it now.

It shows Core Temp for CPU varying between 1.46V and 1.49V. I checked
Intel's site, found my chip (SL66S) and it shows the spec for Core Voltage
as 1.500V. So according to MbMonitor my core voltage is still on the low
side, but how significant this 0.1 to 0.4 volts is, I don't know.

Regarding additional diagnostic programs - I'd rather not buy more as well,
but at this point, I still don't have an answer as to what hardware is
faulty, and what to replace...

> You may indeed have a bad motherboard or at least an intermittent
> failing component on the board. It may even be memory related. I
> don't recall you saying you swapped out the memory modules? Also, go
> into your CMOS setup program and make sure all the settings for memory
> are within specs. (CAS, RAS, etc)

I haven't done anything yet with the actual (4) memory modules. Memtest86
ran for over 13 hours/7passes, with no errors detected.

So bottom line - where do I go from here????

Thanks much for the help.

Don