kraigballa

Q: My top of the line iMac keeps freezing when playing games

I just purchased a brand new iMac, with a ton of ugrades to it. For some reason when I play a game like Counter Strike GO, about every fourth round my computer completely freezes and the only option is to press the power button on the back of the iMac to reboot it. I even tried to download a fan control app so when I play I can turn the fan speed up. However this doesn't seem to fix the issue. Any ideas? Below are my computer specs:

 

Hardware

  • 3.5GHz Quad-core Intel Core i7, Turbo Boost up to 3.9GHz
  • 32GB 1600MHz DDR3 SDRAM - 4X8GB
  • 1TB Serial ATA Drive @ 7200 rpm
  • NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780M 4GB GDDR5

Software 

     OS X 10.9.2 (13C64)

iMac, OS X Mavericks (10.9.2)

Posted on Apr 9, 2014 7:03 PM

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Q: My top of the line iMac keeps freezing when playing games

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  • by Mike Sombrio,

    Mike Sombrio Mike Sombrio Apr 10, 2014 6:28 PM in response to kraigballa
    Level 6 (17,283 points)
    Apple Watch
    Apr 10, 2014 6:28 PM in response to kraigballa

    I agree, the top of the line iMac should handle the most demanding game. Are you running anti virus or cleaning software?

  • by kraigballa,

    kraigballa kraigballa Apr 10, 2014 6:35 PM in response to MichelPM
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Apr 10, 2014 6:35 PM in response to MichelPM

    I am not broadband therefore my internet speed does not vary.

     

    I guess I can keep my clock open and when it freezes I can look at the exact seconds and then try and find the issue in the logs. Is that possible?

  • by MichelPM,

    MichelPM MichelPM Apr 10, 2014 7:17 PM in response to kraigballa
    Level 6 (14,172 points)
    iPad
    Apr 10, 2014 7:17 PM in response to kraigballa

    Is your Internet connection DSL?

    Who is your ISP?

    I haven't used DSL in a long time. I remember much slower data speeds.

    Is DSL faster, now?

    I am confused, now. What other Internet connection services are there?

     

     

    kraigballa wrote:

     

    I am not broadband therefore my internet speed does not vary.

     

    I guess I can keep my clock open and when it freezes I can look at the exact seconds and then try and find the issue in the logs. Is that possible?

    Yes,

    Another thing to do is to open Activoty Monitor ( located in your Applications> Utilities folder) and see what processes are killing your iMac while you are actively playing the game.

     

    Also, since Mike Sombrio brought it up, are you running any AntiVirus software?

    Antivirus software can slow down and, negatively, impact the normal operation of OS X.

     

    Do you have apps like MacKeeper or any other maintenance apps like CleanMyMac 1 or 2, TuneUpMyMac or anything like these apps, installed on your Mac? These types of apps, while they appear to be helpful, can do too good a job of data "cleanup" causing the potential to do serious data corruption or data deletion and render a perfectly running OS completely dead and useless leaving you with a frozen, non-functional Mac.

  • by kraigballa,

    kraigballa kraigballa Apr 10, 2014 7:25 PM in response to MichelPM
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Apr 10, 2014 7:25 PM in response to MichelPM

    -Alright DSL is through CenturyLink

    -No antivirus protection

    -CleanMyMac came with the computer, but I don't use it.

  • by MichelPM,

    MichelPM MichelPM Apr 10, 2014 7:27 PM in response to MichelPM
    Level 6 (14,172 points)
    iPad
    Apr 10, 2014 7:27 PM in response to MichelPM

    .

  • by MichelPM,

    MichelPM MichelPM Apr 10, 2014 7:31 PM in response to kraigballa
    Level 6 (14,172 points)
    iPad
    Apr 10, 2014 7:31 PM in response to kraigballa

    kraigballa wrote:

     

    -Alright DSL is through CenturyLink

    -No antivirus protection

    -CleanMyMac came with the computer, but I don't use it.

    Wow!

    I guess DSL is playing catchup with broadband!

    That is good to know.

    As far as CleanMyMac goes, never, EVER use it!!! EVER!!!

    Completely uninstall CleanMyMac by using this link.

     

    http://macpaw.com/support/cleanmymac-classic/knowledgebase/how-to-uninstall-clea nmymac-classic

  • by kraigballa,

    kraigballa kraigballa Apr 10, 2014 8:33 PM in response to MichelPM
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Apr 10, 2014 8:33 PM in response to MichelPM

    Ok it did it yet again. I think it may be a kernel issue, but not sure what I'm even looking for and what to do in order to fix the problem. The issue occurred at about 9:23:22..computer completely froze and the only thing I could do was press the reset button on the back of the iMac.

     

    Screen Shot 2014-04-10 at 9.31.00 PM.png

  • by MichelPM,

    MichelPM MichelPM Apr 10, 2014 11:27 PM in response to kraigballa
    Level 6 (14,172 points)
    iPad
    Apr 10, 2014 11:27 PM in response to kraigballa

    I am not sure what this is either, but if it is an issue with OS X Kernel, it means there is some incompatible or failing hardware issue.

    When you game online, are you using any special gaming keyboard, mouse, trackpad, joystick, headset or other type of game controller that might be Mac/OS X Mavericks incompatible?

  • by kraigballa,

    kraigballa kraigballa Apr 11, 2014 6:08 AM in response to MichelPM
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Apr 11, 2014 6:08 AM in response to MichelPM

    I use a wired (USB) Xbox 360 controller...there is a program that I had to download in order for my computer to recognize all the buttons on the controller. Below is a screenshot of the settings panel for this app. Not sure how to test to make sure this isn't the problem.

     

    Screen Shot 2014-04-11 at 7.06.33 AM.png

  • by MichelPM,

    MichelPM MichelPM Apr 11, 2014 8:26 AM in response to kraigballa
    Level 6 (14,172 points)
    iPad
    Apr 11, 2014 8:26 AM in response to kraigballa

    You have to find the developer website for that program and see when the last time that program was updated and whether there is an up to date Mavericks version of this program.

    This could very well be THE issue. Your are using a piece of hardware that was never meant to be used with a Mac that is using some sort of software driver/app Kluge to get it to work on a Mac.

    Check for Updates to this!

  • by kraigballa,

    kraigballa kraigballa Apr 11, 2014 2:44 PM in response to MichelPM
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Apr 11, 2014 2:44 PM in response to MichelPM

    Hmm..I removed the fan control, iStat, and the x-box 360 driver, but the message still shows. Not sure what else it could be.

  • by kraigballa,

    kraigballa kraigballa Apr 11, 2014 3:10 PM in response to kraigballa
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Apr 11, 2014 3:10 PM in response to kraigballa

    Reset the SMC and now the kernel error is gone. Hopefully that was the issue. I will continue to test and let you know soon.

  • by MichelPM,

    MichelPM MichelPM Apr 11, 2014 3:24 PM in response to kraigballa
    Level 6 (14,172 points)
    iPad
    Apr 11, 2014 3:24 PM in response to kraigballa

    Great!

    Keep us up to date!

  • by kraigballa,

    kraigballa kraigballa Apr 14, 2014 6:42 PM in response to MichelPM
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Apr 14, 2014 6:42 PM in response to MichelPM

    Dang it happenned yet again. I think it might be something to do with Steam/CS GO and not my computer though. Not sure, below is the console log. You will notice the last log before the BOOT_ TIME.

     

    Screen Shot 2014-04-14 at 7.37.33 PM.png

  • by MichelPM,

    MichelPM MichelPM Apr 14, 2014 6:55 PM in response to kraigballa
    Level 6 (14,172 points)
    iPad
    Apr 14, 2014 6:55 PM in response to kraigballa

    Have you checked for Mavericks updates for both Steam and CS GO?

    Have you considered maybe properly uninstalling both Steam and CS GO and try reinstalling these?

    This is about all I can do help you.

    We tried a lot of stuff, but hasn't helped.

    Maybe others here will have a better chance to help you get to the bottom of your issues.

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