I have a 5960X that freezes my computer when it reaches 100 percent utilization. It freezs during intense rendering. How can I fix this?

[HNune]

I am a 3d artist who animates in 3d packages. I'm on my 3rd 5960X, my first one worked very well. It had a bad habit of randomly corrupting its cache. The problem caused me to RMA. I got a new one back that had an eccentric IHS, It was peculiar, it had really bad temperatures. While rendering the computer would stop responding and sometimes come back. sometimes it wouldn't, and a manual restart was in order. Called intel, the trouble-shooter told me it was definitely an issue. got a new one.

The 3rd one had better temps, but it did the freezing thing too! (This is the one im posting trying to fix, so I can save intel from the grief of having to send me another one)

so I was like, hold up.. something else must be wrong here. I replaced my motherboard to a new one, and I bought a new case for better airflow, also installed a few extra fans (I'm at 7) Well, still the same issue.i

Here are the symptoms.

My Cinebench score sometimes hits as low as 1000. the problem being, it freezes sometimes while rendering, then when it comes back it continues rendering from when it froze. Sometimes the computer doesn't freeze during the rendering and the score reaches 1303 or high as 1400. I use Cinebench as the benchmark because it functions in much the same way as my other rendering packages. The first 5960X I had didn't do this to me, and in my 6 years of doing this kind of work, I've never encountered this error. Intel; having been so great to me, as to having sent me 2 replacements already... I seek to avoid another RMA if It is at all possible...

I am using the most up to date Bios from my manufacturers site and I will add my computer specs below for further insight.

Asus X-99 Pro/USB3.1

64 GB Corsair Dominator 3000Mhz DDR4 CL15 (running at 2133) NVidia GTX1080 FE (I've switched this thing out for other graphics cards and can safely say it isn't causing the problem) Corsair H115GTX water Cooler, 7 fans + fan header connected to power supply 80+Titanium EVGA 750Watt PSU

Some of the information I am interested in is, is there a BIOS that would work better and stop this from happening?

Is there a way to fix this other than having intel RMA again?

I had an intel rep troubleshoot the computer for me via a remote connection. The issue was occurring and the rep was able to see it happening in action, it was her referral that led me here.

Another question, What Microcode is best optimized for my particular processor, I remember in arch linux I had vastly different experiences with haswell depending on microcode being loaded before the GRUB. Thank you for your time, I hope we can get this working, I calculated a loss of 3 seconds sometimes, per frame in render times. at 60 frames per second of footage, a 12 second scene is taking me hours of extra time to complete.

Operating system: Windows 10 Pro 64 bit

[idata]

OLDSKOOL: Thank you very much for joining the Intel® Processors communities.

In regard to your question, yes, there might be a BIOS version that would work better, but since the BIOS in this case belongs to the board, in order to get the details you are looking for, like the information about the microcode the best thing to do will be to get in contact with ASUS directly:https://www.asus.com/us/support/ https://www.asus.com/us/support/ Here you have all the BIOS versions for your board, before trying some of them, please check with ASUS if that is a good option in this case and if they recommend specific versions to try:https://www.asus.com/Motherboards/X99PRO/HelpDesk_Download/ https://www.asus.com/Motherboards/X99PRO/HelpDesk_Download/ From our site, what we can confirm is that everything regarding the components you are using seemed to be just fine, all of them are fully compatible and you are using the proper memory RAM, DDR4 1333/1600/2133:http://ark.intel.com/products/82930/Intel-Core-i7-5960X-Processor-Extreme-Edition-20M-Cache-up-to-3_50-GHz http://ark.intel.com/products/82930/Intel-Core-i7-5960X-Processor-Extreme-Edition-20M-Cache-up-to-3_50-GHz Now, some steps to try for testing purposes will be to test the PC with the minimal configuration, first with one memory stick of RAM and then keep adding the rest of them just to check if it does the same. If you have a different hard drive or SSD, that is also another option to try, to avoid a possible problem with it.Other than that, the next thing to do will be to replace the unit one more time. Any further questions, please let me know. Regards,Alberto R

[HNune]

Thank you, Ill try all of this right away. Starting with calling Asus and installing whatever Bios they suggest to me for the 5960x. Thank you for the detailed response.

[idata]

OLDSKOOL: You are very welcome. Thank you very much for letting us know that information and results.

Excellent, hopefully the technicians from ASUS will be able to fix this problem. From our side, at this point basically you tried all the steps we recommend to try to fix this problem, the next thing to do if you have the option will be to test the PC with a different processor, maybe there is a PC repair store close to you where they can do that, otherwise another RMA will be needed, since it is very unlikely that all of the RAM sticks and drives are defective specially if you bought a new one. Any questions, please let me know. Regards,Alberto R

[HNune]

Update. I reached out to Asus yesterday. I was put on the phone with a technical advisor who took note of my case and promised me a call back within 48 hours.

Today I took care of testing my DDR4 sticks one at a time. The problem persisted independent of what RAM stick occupied the single channel slot. disconnecting drives and booting off of a single new drive didn't change things either.

I am waiting to see what the Asus technicians find, perhaps there's a way they can fix it.

That said, if you have any more suggestions, I am willing to trouble shoot this device in whatever way you need. If I can save my 1, 2 or 3 seconds per frame, I don't mind spending 4 hours to get there.

Thank you for your time and attention.

I almost forgot to add; the tech over at Asus advised me to remain on the latest Bios, Sighting only that "they've fixed some issues" and that I shouldn't roll back or I can "encounter Problems"

[idata]

OLDSKOOL: I just wanted to check if the information posted previously was useful for you and if you need further assistance on this matter?

Any questions, please let me know. Regards,Alberto R

[HNune]

Unfortunately the problem is still here. Worst yet, I left my computer rendering a scene 2 nights ago and I woke up to a locked up PC.I lost out on valuable time for a client and I am beyond frustrated about this matter. I spoke to the guys over at intel and now I guess I'm some sort of guinea pig. they have "the lab" testing my specific hardware (supposedly). I seem to be doing a lot in exchange for reliability. I paid a hefty premium for peace of mind, and It seems i've mistaken and gotten a POS.

I asked intel if they had a used processor they knew works that they can send me, at this point I don't want the hassle of testing things as they come in. I deem it fair to request a processor that can function properly under load.

An intel technician went through trouble shooting with me. He had me turn off speed step and hyper-threading. When hyper-threading was disengaged, the freezing went away, but my renders took much MUCH longer to finish.

The intel technician and I both sighted hyper threading as "malfunctioning."

I had hoped to have this problem squared away before 4th of July, I am aware that your corporation is working diligently on this matter, but I do have jobs to fulfill, many of which I cant afford to miss deadlines for...

I am at risk of being financially disturbed if this CPU continues to fail me :/

-Me

[idata]

OLDSKOOL: We are sorry to hear that problem persists and we apologize for any inconvenience.

At this point, based on the fact that you already got in contact with one of our technicians and the problem was not resolved, the next thing that we can do will be to do further research on this issue. The thing is that we might reach the same conclusion that you already described in regard to the hyper-threading feature. The other option will be to replace the processor again or to test the board with a different unit to confirm if there is a problem with the processor itself. In order for us to do further research on this scenario, please provide the SSU file:Please install the SSU tool (System Support Utility):https://downloadcenter.intel.com/download/25293/Intel-System-Support-Utility https://downloadcenter.intel.com/download/25293/Intel-System-Support-UtilityOnce you do that, the tool will allow you to save the information as a file, so, once you save it, please attach it to this thread, in order for us to see it. Any questions, please let me know. Regards,Alberto R

[HNune]

How many times will you guys request this SSU thing? I've already sent it to your reps twice. Everyone continues to pass the buck I'm here just trying to get my work done. This is unacceptable, how do I attach files here anyways, I have no clue. IM not the kind of person who spends my time in forums.

[idata]

OLDSKOOL: Let me apologize for any inconvenience.

In order to attach the file, please follow the next steps:Click on replyOn the upper right corner select "Use Advanced Editor"On the lower right corner click on "Attach"

As soon as we get the file, we will start our research in order to try to find a possible solution for this problem.

Any questions, please let me know. Regards,Alberto R

[idata]

OLDSKOOL: I looked for further details about this matter and as you mentioned, there is already a case and a research ongoing to try to find a possible resolution for this issue. Please keep checking the updates on that case, since if there is a solution it will be provided on that case.

Once again, we apologize for any inconvenience. Regards,Alberto R