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Windows 10 Unstable with i7 6850k - IMC Failed Test

idata
Employee
1,708 Views

Hi All,

I've recently build a new PC the specs are as follows:

  • CPU - i7 6850k
  • Motherboard - ASUS Strix X99 (Latest Bios 0810)
  • RAM - Corsair Dominator DDR4 3333MHz
  • Graphics - EVGA 1080 GTX FTW
  • Hard Drive - 512GB Samsung 950 Pro M.2 SSD
  • PSU - Corsair AX1200i (1200W)

The issues I've been experiencing has been a very unstable PC. I've clean installed Windows 10 and originally had NVIDIA and Asus drivers up to date. My computer was constantly BSOD with one of the following errors occuring:

  • Page Fault In Nonpaged Area
  • Pool Corruption In File Area
  • Driver Overran Stack Buffer
  • IRQL Not Less or Equal

So I thouught I might've had a RAM issue. I've since done a memtest86 on each DIMM and have found no issues after 4 passes. So I proceeded to reinstall WIndows 10 cleanly but this time without the driver updates and just Windows 10 inital updates. As a result I was experiencing a lot of random restarts (no BSOD). I've since done multiple clean installs isolating/swapping out components that I can which still resulted in the random stutters and restarts.

From a hardware perspective I've:

  • Swapped out Graphics Card > Issue Persists
  • Installed Windows 10 to another SSD Drive > Issue Persists
  • Swapped out PSU (Antec 1000W from older Rig) > Issue Persists
  • Downclocked RAM to 2133MHz from 3333MHz XMP Profile > Issue Persists

The only thing I can't swap around is the CPU and Motherboard because I don't have a spare 2011-v3 motherboard.

I gave IPDT (latest version available on Intel website) a shot, it failed on the IMC test. However I'm not sure if that is conclusive, given older posts from 2 months back were mentioning that the tool doesn't work properly for new i7 Broadwell-E processors.

So I guess my question is, is this a CPU issue or is it a different issue? Is the IMC fail test grounds to ask Intel for a warranty for the CPU? Or is the IPDT tool still deemed inaccurate for Broadwell-E processors.

Any advice on determining cause and possible actions is much appreciated. Thanks i advance for reading my long winded post.

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GKd
Beginner
611 Views

I have almost same specs (6850k, x99 strix, corsair dominator, corsair ax860i, samsung 850 evo, old gtx 670) and have been experiencing the exact same issues.

It ran fine for a month then I started getting random BSODs. I've tried almost everything OP has and nothing has fixed it so far. Anyone have any ideas what the problem could be ?

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idata
Employee
611 Views

It seems to me MCH of the processor. I would like to know if you all tested DDR4 2400/2133 memory. I do not mean downclocking XMP.

 

 

Please bear in mind the memory controller is part of the processor at this stage, and the usage of incompatible memory may cause this type of issues.

 

 

Allan.
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GKd
Beginner
611 Views

I did try with XMP off. Did you mean with different RAM all together? The weird thing is that it ran fine for a month. If it was the MCH shouldn't it have been problematic since the beginning?

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idata
Employee
611 Views

Hi Allan,

Thanks for your response.

Unfortunately since the Broadwell-E / 2011-v3 platform is new to me, I don't have spare DDR4 RAM that I could switch it with. I'm coming from the Bloomfield / 1366 platform which is DDR3.

So in this case I've only tried the current RAM I have with it's XMP profile off. I understand where you're coming from in regards to trying DDR4 RAM specifically rated for at 2133MHz. However it is probably poor wording on my behalf. My understanding of the RAM I have is essentially it is 2133MHz RAM but it's rated to overclock to 3333MHz (so I'm not downclocking per se). Since with the XMP profile disabled by default it runs at 2133MHz in which I'm still experiencing crashes.

But given I don't have alternative DDR4 RAM to test with I was wondering what options do I have left?

Regards,

Alex

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idata
Employee
611 Views

This is either get different spare memory or send the processor back to Intel for replacement under warranty. I am afraid those are the options for you.

 

If you are going to send the processor back Intel, please try the following link for contact information:

 

http://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/contact-support.html http://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/contact-support.html

 

 

Allan.
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