Memtest86 Freezes on new PC - RAM/MOBO/PSU?

[jvr]

Hey guys,

Just a few things before I get started, I built this PC 7 days ago with no purpose of hardcore gaming/video editing/overcloking etc, I just needed a fast office PC, and it has been working fine until 2 days ago where it started randomly freezing. At first I thought it was OS-related but then it started freezing during Windows startup (on the windows logo) so I knew it must be hardware related.

Here are the specs:

i5 6600K
Asus Z170-P
Cooler Master Hyper EVO 212
Kingston HyperX FURY 8GB DDR4-2666 (2x4GB)
Samsung Evo 850 250GB
PSU Corsair VS650
Corsair Carbide Series 200R

The BIOS was updated on the first day, also used the XMP profile right away and didnt have any problem during the first few days.

The only thing that fixed things temporarily was disabling C-States. But instead of freezing during almost every boot, now it freezes once every hour or something like that.

I had no idea how to run Memtest at the begininng so I think I ran the older version first (4.3.6?) and gave me no errors after 5 passes so I stopped it.

Then I ran the latest version in UEFI mode, but it froze during Test #3. I rebooted the PC and messed around in Memtest's config and attempted to start "RAM Benchmark" which again it froze at 64% "Step 10 of 14: Step size 512 Bytes" .

I'm still allowed to return the components back but I'm not sure which one to blame?! Is it RAM?Motherboard?PSU?CPU?

Please if anyone could help me out I'd really appreciated it. This is my first build and didn't expect to face such a problem from the beginning.

I also got some BIOS screenshots in case someone could let me know if my BIOS settings are messed up. www.dropbox.com/sh/eyydxqsdlmj0x59/AACtlYwiCrc5gpmH4sg3BfJ4a?dl=0 (First 2 pictures is usually where it freezes)

Thank you!

[David (PassMark)]

There is no magic solution, just educated guesses and trial and error.

With home builds we often hear of the heatsink falling off. So check temps.
Then try booting with just 1 memory stick, then the other one. Then try a different memory slot.
But for it to freeze in the benchmark test is unusual. It might well be the MB or the CPU. I don't suppose you have a spare CPU to test with?

[jvr]

I constantly check the temps when the PC is powered on (using CoreTemp, SpeedFan and AIDA64) . When the system is idle the CPU temps are 26-30°C and around 38-42°C when playing games.
I tried both RAM sticks individually, still the same behavior.

The first few days that I built the system I wanted to test the Intel 530 HD graphics and so I installed and played a few games(GTA V, Dota , League of legends) without any issues and amazing perfomance (for a PC without dedicated GPU). If there was a problem with the CPU, wouldn't it appear when playing games? Unfortunately I dont have a spare CPU :/

Thanks for your reply

[David (PassMark)]

Yes, gaming puts some load on the CPU. It seems likely from your description that it was ok initially, then something broke. Basically a burn in failure.

[jvr]

So you believe its more likely the CPU failing? I read some other posts related to this problem and most of them had a motherboard or power supply issue.

BTW I just removed the motherboard from the case and only connected, 24pin, 8pin, CPU and CPU cooler and I didn't hear any beeps. Isn't it most likely that the motherboard is bad? Especially with no RAM installed?

Thanks

[David (PassMark)]

MB or CPU is the most likely. My guess would be MB, but only because I see them fail more often than CPUs.

[jvr]

Alright thanks for your advice