The-MMMs wrotealthough i admit many are much more experienced that i am (that have already posted) but just my idea about the whole issue
I can't get my head around about how this is JUST a PSU issue. If the PSU was indeed/faulty and dying then you would have problems even booting the PC - to the point that it wouldn't even POST
It wouldn't make sense if its a problem from from the RAM or CPU - since you will have much more serious problems than just BSOD
Nice points...but to clarify the issue...the problem is not that the PSU is unable to provide enough current / voltage for bootup...actually bootup is the toughest part of PSU load since all the components draw their peak power to startup (For example, HDD enclosures provide much more than the usual 0.5-0.6A for 5V/12V for HDD, since it draws more when spinning up.). Startup has a short duration, and powering the system from practically no load, to max load, the PSU can cope with the load. If you check any PSU, you'll notice it has peak power output. This is the kind of output it can provide for a short time. For example, 1250W PSUs can provide 1500W peak power. This is no problem. The problem arises when load is sustained, or idle level is reached after load. The voltage fluctuations, dips, and spikes, are enough not only to restart your PC, or cause a BSOD, but to corrupt HDD, ruin memory. Even if it can cope now, there's no guarantee it will not age with all the load, and eventually you power your system on and obtain some chocolate sauce from the PSU and paperweights ;)
Now about memory. It shouldn't really cause more serious problems than BSOD. That's because memory errors are of many types. If you try to run Memtest86+, you'll see that it tests memory in multiple ways: access, transfer, etc... For example, if you have a defective memory module, it shouldn't necessarily show any problems until you utilize enough RAM to use that chip and reach the error point. At that point, it could cause BSOD, crash, etc... And also, unstable timings may allow you to boot into Windows, but once you're there, it would cause freeze, or BSOD. It could take your entire HDD filesystem down with it too. That's why I would NEVER recommend you boot into Windows with unstable memory. Windows writes a system file to memory, then reads it back corrupted, and writes it to disk, that's simply begging for disaster.
Hope this clarified a few issues.
@ILIA_93: Of course, Memtest86+ is Linux-based, but does not require Linux to run. Memtest86+ boots before any other OS boots on your system. That's its whole point. There should be no problem whatsoever running memtest86+, as long as you've configured your BIOS to boot from USB first, THEN DVD/HDD.
If you don't find these standoffs, or simply want to try them before you buy any, you're free to pass by my house and borrow mine, since I'm running my system open-bench now. PM me if you would like to do so.
