Fixing a Viewer's BROKEN Gaming PC? - Fix or Flop S4:E15

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Welcome to Fix or Flop! We're up to Season 4, Episode 15. This viewer's gaming PC runs hot and black-screens! Can it be fixed? By the way, if you live in the Orlando, FL area and have an issue with your PC, apply to have it (possibly) fixed for free today! gregsalazar.com/fix-or-flop
Check out other Fix or Flop episodes in this playlist: • Fix or Flop
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🛠️ My troubleshooting gear:
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FLIR C5 Thermal Camera: geni.us/3ALEI
Skybasic Digital Microscope: geni.us/6zurf
YIHUA Soldering Station: geni.us/DbjS
Helping Hand Soldering Board: geni.us/7DDrL
Xool 80 Precision Tool Set: geni.us/1IfxDSw
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SYINE Respirator Mask: geni.us/V4uA
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Medical Grade 99.9% Isopropyl Alcohol: geni.us/tBVQ
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Neewer LED Lighting Kit: geni.us/9VTXr0
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#FixOrFlop

[@mikemarkong]

we are all humbled by those moments. We forget to remove the cooler peel, we forget to reconnect the fan, we forget to put the IO shield, we forget to reconnect the SATA cables, we forget to switch on the PSU, we forget to connect the display cable to the monitor, etc! hahaha! really appreciate the humility and the truth in your videos! more power Greg!

[@scud553]

Those stupid mistakes are often the only way we learn. I remember when building my first pc I plugged some things in wrong and ended up frying the mobo (I saw smoke, not a good sign). Thankfully, microcenter took the return, and I never made that mistake again. We all learn.

[@Seventeen76]

I was troubleshooting a computer here a couple weeks ago, and I was cursing power supplies, tried out three different ones, then I looked and, I had pulled a Greg and didn't have the power strip plugged in. 😅

[@bryans8656]

Yep, that's a pretty good summary of my learning curve.

[@ninjaturtlesoup2769]

He did it on purpose to foster some sympathy and to pad the time obviously

[@ArtisChronicles]

The last time I had a SATA cable issue, it wasn't because I didn't connect... It was because something caused it to get loose and not be fully seated. So a game installer would work, but upon verifying files there'd be file corruption. Better yet, the game would sort of run. It was so bizarre for a while. No idea what got me to check the cable, but I eventually did and everything was resolved. The system even stopped randomly locking up when files were being accessed on the drive.

[@user-lg2om9db4b]

you're the only pc guy who is not boring to watch. Thank for the content. It's both educational and enjoyable.

[@GregSalazar]

Very much appreciated!

[@H4WK6969]

Facts

[@MotorcitycrownsPod]

Seriously, and that hair!

[@SoftwarewithAlex]

True words

[@pmann8921]

@gregsalazar when are you going to do a new house update?

[@MarcoGPUtuber]

Greg's coolness cools down overheating PCs. ;)

[@GregSalazar]

HA I wish!

[@DanielH212MC]

I still think this is weird. I've dealt with the wraith stealth cooler plenty of times and both the 5600 (which comes with a wraith stealth) and the 5600X. The temps really shouldn't be that high, under either the wraith stealth or the dark rock pro 4, especially with an open side panel. In my experience, in a decent airflow case with a basic 4-heatpipe single tower, Prime95 small FFTs didnt even get the CPU past 85 degrees, and that's with Furmark running on a 6650 XT in the same system (though to be fair airflow was probably good enough that GPU/CPU didnt affect each other). Cinebench R23 multi core + Furmark didnt even get the CPU past 73. And even under a wraith stealth cooler, Prime95 only got the 5600 (without PBO) to 83 degrees, though it only boosted to barely above 4 GHz all core, and with PBO it did hit 93 degrees but boosted to between 4.3 and 4.4 GHz and was completely stable, and Prime95 small FFTs is far more intensive than Aida64. Gaming temps were in the 70s even with PBO, meaning zero risk of shutoff or even throttling. There's no reason this CPU should be sitting at 75 degrees with one of the top performing dual towers on the market, in a case with fans + open side panel. That just shouldn't be possible, even if PBO is enabled. Im guessing that there is something wrong with the CPU. The IHS is probably not making proper contact somehow. I don't blame you for not checking of course, since opening up a CPU isn't perfectly safe and probably shouldn't be done for a viewer build, you found a satisfactory solution and that's good enough, but I don't think cooler inadequacy was the problem here.

[@rhobson]

As an owner of a 5600x myself, i second that. It's a 65W chip, basically any cooler should be able to handle it specially with an open side panel. He definitely should have repasted and reseated the cooler and tested again.

[@gaborkovacs4006]

Yes, seeing the 5600X with the Dark Rock Pro 4 above 60C should be alarming. I had similar problems after enabling DOCP, but a BIOS reset solved everything, even after using DOCP again.

[@michwing8801]

Agree, currently running a 5600x with a Noctua nh-d15 chromax and its not even trying to cool the CPU. Under full load with a Ryzen Master light OC its barely breaking a sweat... Something more is going on here.

[@AssassinKID]

At @3:20, when Greg is showing the CPU clock and package power, it shows 90W and not dropping clock during max load and high temps. I suspect PBO or MSI auto OC in BIOS is on.

[@reeepingk]

That was my thoughts as well. There's no reason why this... relatively underpowered chip, should be hitting 75s or 80s with a very very good air cooler sitting on top if it. I have a 100W TDP chip under a similar cooler and it doesn't even get that hot, even OCed. I also suspect something is wrong with the CPU, like what you mentioned. Either the IHS is warped/bent (which I've... never seen) or the IHS isn't making good enough contact with the silicon. It'll... live, sure... but it's certainly not right. I mean I know amd chips run hot but.... not... THAT hot.

[@Demented1971]

I love this series! Glad that I'm now all caught up! Keep them coming! Great job, Greg!❤

[@SwampFox178]

Definitely the highlight of a long day. ANOTHER banger! Thanks Greg

[@GregSalazar]

Thank YOU, Andy!

[@crazymotokidz8526]

I love watching the fix or Flop series. So interesting and with so many different scenarios you can learn so much.

[@Irongalaxies]

This is the best tech series on the platform. Always look forward to a new video. Thanks for these Greg!

[@jeremyhawthorne9703]

As always a great watch and love the rawness of the mistake! Keep the great videos coming!

[@walrider]

That's nice that you also take on simple problems like that from time to time. It just shows how much a thing as simple as repasting and cleaning can have an impact.

[@Whimsical_Ravioli]

The cleaning of the graphics card makes me realize how much I love/miss the PCDC series.

[@jimmahT]

Good job Greg! Love watching you go to town cleaning components, therapeutic ❤

[@97BuckeyeGuy]

I like all these builds and fixes. I really enjoy seeing what machines other people are using.

[@dandycrouch4119]

will always stay.......... with you dude , so informative and just a joy to watch

[@GregSalazar]

I appreciate that!

[@jimmahT]

Good job Greg! Love watching your go to town cleaning components. I find it therapeutic ❤

[@GregSalazar]

Glad you enjoy it!

[@findmi2708]

this is why i sub to you, i always find every possible causes or troubles that plenty of solutions

[@kevinschurman7021]

I have seen this so often, and yes I have missed the cooler cable a time or two, LOL, Keep up the great work !

[@viperrcr]

Great video, amazing results from a cleaning and repaste. Incredible the difference a new CPU cooler can make!

[@jasonshepherd5750]

iv been subbed to your channel for awhile and i dont post often but i really enjoy watching your content. its cool watching you trouble shoot and alot of time its helping others. keep up the good work man.

[@polizi212]

You should be commended for your transparency and integrity, you show us all the stuff even your mistakes. I continue to learn more each video!!!

[@GregSalazar]

I appreciate that!

[@jetthe2nd105]

Love that you show the oops!!! Also nice update with the new cooler to an older system.

[@ede8193]

Nice one Greg! and it goes to show how much that dust can be a killer of pc parts!

[@kenthtaruc4162]

Great video Greg! I learned a lot here in the fix or flop series

[@KrastyoKrastev]

Watches it on Greyjay already. As a said there - good job Greg. Always a pleasure to watch you :)

[@WebbTech1]

Hi Greg. I was thinking also about the client's case, in terms of the front being closed off of airflow with the exception of those 2 thin mesh sides is all the fans can pull air from. Not a "big deal" for a system like this, but just wanted to mention in terms of overall thermals (not that you should have swapped the case). Love this series, thanks!

[@tdooz8400]

I can't believe how clogged that card was! Great job as always. I've learned so much from your channel. Thanks

[@angadsingh1487]

Love your work keep it up man for all of us. A big fat thanks to you.

[@blademasterzero5295]

EVGA is missed, but these videos are anticipated. Love this series! I use a Dark Rock Pro 4 on my 5600X to this day, can’t beat how quiet it is!

[@blademasterzero5295]

@@lurch789Funny enough I’ve owned 4 AMD GPUs and only 2 NVIDIA ones over the years. I see and understand your point however, and I think EVGA engineers did make the right call Edit: actually it’s 5 AMD GPUs, forgot one

[@gugajedi]

Greg... I can't explain to you how I wait anxiously for those videos!!! This is the best series, but I also miss the cleanup series... It could be also a mix of cleaning and fixing computers...

[@gmualum08]

Awesome episode Greg! I immediately thought that AMD wraith cooler was the issue, likely a bad mount because those can be annoying to install properly. The tower coolers are the way to go for sure!

[@arjayabad1337]

I also tend to forget to reconnect CPU fan when cleaning my office PC 🤣 Love this series so much, man!

[@WC2F-Miguel]

Again thanks for your videos learning a lot on how to troubleshoot etc

[@cheezytacos]

I’ve been a longtime viewer of your content Greg. I’ve recently been on a binge of watching these while I wash dishes at home. Keep up the great work sir.

[@GregSalazar]

Awesome! Thank you!

[@jayjayspcbuilds]

I watched all your videos from a to z... they are awesome keep up the great work 😎👍

[@darrenclift6704]

i really look froward to watching these fix it or flop vids. thank you.

[@kingyRaid]

Great video!! Im glad i found your channel tou are great at making these tasks into fun videos. Btw i my cpu used to run around the 90 degree mark, with an silly rgb fan I had. Then I put the wraith cooler back on and undervolted the cpu to 1.25volts, now it runs on like 45-65. On a crazy hot aussie day it can get into the 70's, still a crazy difference

[@evlshoots]

i'm basically like an ipad kid so sitting down to eat i saw this pop up and had to watch it, always an enjoyable watch, and helps me figure out how to troubleshoot if I need to!

[@gennavandella]

Hey I have some important tips no one really knows about. I've been watching your videos like these. And really enjoyed them. I'm new to this but learning fast. To build my pc, I only have a motherboard so far. Here's my tip, on all motherboard's screw holes lies the ground connection. Some case come with pain over where the screw holes are . That means the motherboard doesn't have much ground connection to discharge excess electricity. So it's best to just sand paper those areas gently. So that it makes better ground contact. Excess electricity going through your components would certainly fry them. Static alone can mess with components so imagine extra electricity. All three pin devices/appliances, need a ground contact. You can rely on your GPU to do all the work. The case itself is used for discharging the extra ground current.

[@whoframedthatguy]

by far my favourite pc youtuber out there! keep the videos up!

[@iTzMeGoose]

Always a great learning experience for someone who just got in to pc building this year

[@ILiketurtles68]

I love how satisfying a simple re-paste and some light cleaning can be for temps.

[@BlackKnight813]

Enjoyed the video as always. Keep them coming

[@RenatoG1848]

I don't know what runs hotter, that GPU or these fire videos. Keep up the amazing videos sir.

[@nocturneuh]

Great vid and series, thank you Greg.

[@Alipticalaxislaughs]

I miss your breaking benjamin record!! 😂 love the content as usual thanks man❤

[@JuanSaucedoJOSEJUANSAUCEDO1802]

Great content love watching your videos been doing it so for a while now getting ready to build a new pc finally

[@goopah]

Oh wow. So glad to have found this place. Where were you in 2002 when my self-built rig kept spontaneously shutting down for no good reason? Never did figure it out, and just lived with it for about 2 years. :-)

[@dansouzaX]

Cool stuff, as always. Thanks for sharing your knowledge!

[@coltonstevens4790]

Gotta love when greg uploads, keep it up!

[@daviedlopulalan9882]

Nice vid Greg; i love these troubleshooting sessions. Really saved me from unnecessary purchases by repair or reconditioned my old rigs. I almost sold my aging PowerSpec 1510 laptop (i7 7700HQ, GTX1070 8GB, 32GB ram) due to overheating, even after refreshed the thermalpaste (with KPX and then Thermalright). While playing Transport Fever 2 (Megalomaniac map + a bunch of mods) the CPU temps reached 95-99 Celcius and 85-ish C for gpu. Not thermalthrottled, yet, but a bit worrying considering i just repasted the cpu and gpu. FYI, the laptop itself have 3 large heatpipes and 3 heat extractor fans with decent airflow. There are extra foldable legs to increase the height from table surface. After a few simple undervolting tweak with Afterburner (gpu) and Throttlestop (cpu) overall temps were a bit lowered to 90'C and 80'C. Lastly, i found one key feature that stupidly not tested before. PowerSpec has a Control Center app and there is fan profile settings with 3 option: Auto, Custom and Maximum. By default it was set to Auto or Custom, but the result was not satisfying. In the verge of decision to sell this laptop i tried the last magic button that never been explored before. I tried Maximum, yes it was loud but, man, really makes some difference. Finally, the temperature is much more lowered to my comfortable zone; 82C (cpu) and 70C (gpu) on maximum load. I wanted to try liquid metal but the risk just too great. Good ending, and i hope could use this unit for 2-3 years more.

[@Andrew85950]

Always great to watch. Great work as usual Greg

[@emmetthorath4542]

graet video. Love be quiet hardware. Runs so quiet and efficient.

[@yuhslick8212]

Great video as always Greg! I can confirm that changing from the stock Stealth cooler to the Dark Rock 4 was definitely a good choice. I had the stock cooler for the 5600X for a month and once I switched to the DR4 cooler everything runs so much better. Such a shame that the stock cooler that comes with the 5600X is the Wraith Stealth and not at least the Wraith Spire (the one with the copper round heatpipe at the bottom).

[@MarinosMysteries]

Great video. It's amazing how you get them fixed.

[@Jules_Diplopia]

Nice simple fix. Well done Greg.

[@wheelhouse69]

Tower coolers are miles better than stock coolers. However, the near 0 noise produced by a water cooled system is nigh unbeatable. The serenity and ability to focus I gain from not being annoyed by fans ramping up is invaluable. Worth every penny in my opinion.

[@Athraxas]

Thanks for showing how to clean up this type of graphics card! I have a GTX1070 just like that, but from ASUS. It gets a little toasty sometimes, so I'm definitely looking into dusting it off and repasting it soon! :)

[@shakedbs]

simple and classic PC issue nice to see those type once in a while great video

[@lloydbannings6612]

Another broken gaming pc vid. Gonna go get some popcorn xD Thanks for these educational videos

[@Catherozero07]

Great job Greg! You're the man for computer fixes!

[@oKMz]

Rock solid as always, keep on rocking Greg!

[@barreraaj]

Awesome 👌, love your videos, you always keep the viewers in mind

[@smashed-thumb9886]

Thanks for showing that just simple/basic maintenance can go a long way.

[@Mandren]

How am I 4 days late on my favorite series? Subscribed, bell icon and all, and I have to go hunting for new videos from Greg. Never on my front page. It's like KZbin doesn't understand that these videos should be the FIRST THING LISTED if I haven't seen them. D=

[@VaporZone]

Thanks for the vid, always love a bit of Fixing entertainment.

[@GregSalazar]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@abyssalflame6562]

Thanks for always posting awesome content!

[@GregSalazar]

Thanks for watching! :-D

[@0903034710]

Thank you for keep releasing this awesome serie, learning alot from you!

[@imglidinhere]

(Commented before the video started) If it was a R5 3600, the stock stealth cooler is a bit underwhelming for the job and that one will run pretty warm... but a 5600X was noted as being impressively efficient and a shockingly cool processor. I'm wondering if it wasn't screwed down correctly, or had enough thermal paste... Edit: Wow, I have never experienced temps like that with a stock cooler. Aight, Dunno if the Dark Rock 4 was necessary, but I suppose that's a fix. :P (I run a Dark Rock 2 myself.)

[@GregSalazar]

Most Ryzen 5 chips are extremely efficient. Was quite surprised by this one. Likely just bad luck on the lottery.

[@jonmayer]

The paste that was left on the CPU was incredibly thin compared to the cooler. It looks like there was poor contact.

[@DanielH212MC]

IHS not making proper contact below I'm guessing. That Dark Rock Pro 4 in a case without a side panel is doing about as good as a $20 single tower did for me in a case with decent airflow but side panel closed, and I was using PBO (I think this one also is though since 4.4 GHz all core). Doesn't make sense.

[@IggyHitokage]

@@GregSalazar I wonder if maybe the IHS isn't making proper contact with the die, the only way to figure that out though would be to delid it. Not really worth the risk though.

[@shaneeslick]

Yeah at 7:25 & 7:27 when Greg showed the CPU & Cooler to me it looked like there wasn't proper contact, especially in the centre of the Thermal Paste on the cooler as it looked like it hadn't even touched the IHS

[@travisvaughn101]

I love the look of the dark rock 4, I'm personally using the shadow rock 3 in my white out build. Gotta love that be quiet sponsor

[@royalgamer269]

Daily dose of fix or flop❤

[@rabi0ne]

Love the fact that you show even your mistakes ! (But God knows if you us all of them...)

[@jamesfries821]

Nice work again Greg. The cooler just barely fit in the case. Glad that worked out.

[@DarkroeTech]

Cleaning the GPU of dust and applying new thermal paste IS one of the most therapeutic things about cleaning up a desktop PC. I also have a blower-style GTX 10 series GPU and I dropped its temps 10 degrees after my cleaning. Haven't cleaned it in a few years, so it may be time to clear out the dust again.

[@Ladioz]

Dark Rock 4 is one of the best coolers on the market. It's keeping my 5800X3D at 65 degrees while gaming!

[@xP1NB411x]

Love this series!!!😁😁😁 I had the 5600x with the stock cooler but instead of using the stock thermal paste I cleaned it off and put the corsair one and worked good until I upgraded to the 5800x lol, great content Greg! Keep it up!!😊

[@accordracin96]

I went the opposite way. 5800x -> 5600x

[@xP1NB411x]

@@accordracin96 only reason I went to 5800x was because I built my girl a gaming rig with the 5600x and got the 5800x for $150. The seller wasn't into pc gaming anymore and was getting rid of his things. Took a chance and cpu works great lol

[@NateGambinoGaming]

Thank you for sharing your knowledge!

[@IrfoTech]

I always wait for your 'Fix or Flop' videos :)

[@StelmachsWorld]

Greg out here doing the lords work lol… saving so many people (who aren’t confident enough to go inside their pc) the headache.

[@ohmdoergaming7495]

i love this series so much keep up the good work Greg❤

[@GregSalazar]

Thanks for watching!

[@nejckastelic4532]

Greg every other fix or flop video or any other video always forgets to switch the power strip on im just waiting for this to become a meme haha love your videos Greg always makes my day better and puts a smile on my face not just informative but entertaining 😅😃

[@Thomahawk7209]

Just repasted my 1650 super and rtx 3050 that I had on hand. First time opening GPUs like that and it was largely from learning with you. Thank you sir and keep up the awesome content.

[@johnpaulbacon8320]

Good fix. Keep up the great work :)

[@joshygomez4016]

I still remember when I built my new pc after upgrading from ddr3 to ddr4. I was pretty sure of what i was doing till I upgraded my cpu from 3000 series to 5000 series. i sought and went to geek to a few geek squads as Greg S. calls them, computer repair shops and none of them were able to fix the problem and just told me the cpu i bought was dead. But instead of giving up I went to a place where i can get professional help for free and you guessed it "KZbin". And this was the story of how i became a subscriber and and an avid follower of Greg Salazar. FYI I just needed to update my bios as it was an amazing diagnosis by Greg. Thanks Bossman!!

[@sebastianwedemann3718]

Thanks for the video! 🎉 I had a GTX1070 with a broken cooler years ago. And the exchange coolers from Arctic were a huge help to keep a good card alive and way more cool and silent. Maybe this could be an option for this guy 😊

[@vince4202]

hi Greg just wanted to let you know that your recurring advice on clearing the CMOS when-in-doubt has just done magic for me lol. My HDMI-out would not work no matter what whether it was plugged into a GPU port or motherboard port with integrated graphics, so long as my GPU was actually plugged into the pcie slot. If I removed the card, then integrated graphics would work. Card was tested in a another rig and confirmed working. I started to spiral into questions like if the pcie slot was damaged, or somehow the PSU connector had something to do with it.. But then I remembered one of your videos and decided to clear the CMOS, and it WORKED haha.

[@UltraVert]

Another happy customer, good job!

[@Skydiver69UK]

Thanks Greg for showing me the error in my ways sticking with the stock cooler for my 5600G. Guess I know what I’m putting on my Christmas list (because none of my family are gonna get me a graphics card lol)

[@crumbman]

I think thehighlight of this episode is the change on the GPU. It's such a huge difference for only a few bucks worth of thermal paste and it's nice to see someone still using such a great GPU... really was a worth investment back then.

[@TheSpotify95]

Given the amount of dust in the airway, I wasn't exactly surprised when I saw the GPU temps go down! I'm not surprised that GPU temps are still a little high, given it is a blower style card, but still... nice and cool! The stock CPU coolers don't seem good enough for running these Ryzen CPUs under high load; I know the stock cooler on my R5 3600 isn't really good enough, because the CPU gets hot on that, too!

[@ItsMeStrider]

Incredibly simple fix this time, goes to show just what a bit of extra attention on the build can do when pairing the parts and cleaning/repasting every once in a while.

[@aorpanos72]

Maybe my favorite series. Nice job Greg

[@Impactz]

Friday right at the start of lunch, real MVP!

[@meatsamples]

Be quiet has been my go to air cooler for the last couple builds I had. glad they are better known now.

[@socaldayve6684]

I'm convinced that little power-strip gnomes sneak in behind Greg whenever he's setting up a shot. 😁

[@adamholloway4424]

another great video greg keep up with your great work

[@txvm]

I'll remember how you go about checking and fixing different issues. I'm sure it'll help if I need to do any repairs.

[@draconicdustin]

Great video as usual, but is that a graded toon blue-eyes in the background I see? 👀

[@Error403Forbidden]

Nice cleanup, I should probably re-paste my gpu sometime .

[@Speggan]

Great video ... keep up the great work :)

[@EDV8ZR1]

I'm a huge fan of honest Greg over here. You have to watch the video to get the reference.

[@jessejohnson9369]

as always love the content love the videos greg would love to see another PC build soon as well always love them videos allot