Name: Rob Mackay
Hi, I have a Pentium 4 3.6 Ghz processor (on an Asus P5N32 motherboard I think), 2 gigs of RAM, and 2 nVidia 6600’s in an SLI configuration. The problem that I am having is that if I am running Ventrilo, World of Warcraft, and some other applications at the same time that after about an hour the computer will crash.
Sometimes it’ll just freeze up, and other times the computer will completely shut itself down and not let me turn it back on for several minutes. I’ve noticed that the cabinet where the computer sits will get very hot, it’s like an oven next to my machine. In other articles you’ve talked about overheating, do you think that is what’s happening here?
More than likely. The older Pentium 4’s, especially when they first got above the 3 Ghz mark are notorious for running hot. If your computer is running in a desk cabinet then the first order of business is to remove it from there. The cabinet area (especially if you’re leaving the door shut on it) acts like a nice little toaster oven because as the heat gets blown out of the computer and has nowhere to go.
You will also want to open up your case and make sure that not only are the fans/heatsinks in there are clean but also that the fans are actually running. If the heatsinks are dirty, then get some canned air and blow them out. Be sure to check the fans on both of your video cards. Most video card fans are bushing-based and their life expectancy is pretty low. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if at least one of the fans on your video cards has bound up.
Also, right after your computer crashes, get into the BIOS and check the CPU temperature right away. (Usually you’d hit DEL, F1 or F2 as soon as you turn the computer on) Within the BIOS there is almost always a “Hardware Monitor” option that’ll tell you how hot the motherboard is, as well as the processor temperature. If it’s still running hot even after being removed from the cabinet then you will want to consider having a better heatsink installed. I really like the Zalman heatsinks as they do a great job and are generally quiet. Check out the Zalman CNPS9500 
as I’ve installed this on a P4 system recently and it dropped the average CPU temp by over 40 degrees.
Assuming that one of your video cards fans has bound, then remove that card and see how the system does without it. An overly hot video card will make your computer crash just as much as a CPU that’s too toasty. If you don’t like the performance without the SLIed video card, then you can pick up an nVidia 8800 GT
 for fairly cheap.
And last, but not least, be sure to shut down any unnecessary programs while you’re playing WoW. Be sure to scan your drive for any viruses or spyware too, as that’ll destabilize your system quite effectively.
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