ph16-72 Predator Helios Neo 16 keeps crashing! goes into the "blue screen of death" and restarts

HI everyone. I have recently bought the ph16-72 (helios neo 16) laptop with i9-14900hx and rtx 4070 gpu. one thing that keeps happening constantly is the laptop crashes and goes into the "blue screen of death" and restarts. i noticed that this only happens in performance mode or turbo mode no matter i run a game or simply install something like visual studio. Can someone please help me and tell me what I'm supposed to do to fix this? is this a hardware issue or software? i have updated both windows and predator sense, it does NOT help. I rolled back the updates and still had the same problem. Please help me.

here a screenshot from bluscreenview:

[Edited the thread to add model name to the title]

[Edited the thread to add issue detail]

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Puraw

https://community.acer.com/en/discussion/707590/acer-predator-helios-neo-16-keeps-crashing

This error points to the graphics drivers being responsible for the BSOD. If you have recently updated the drivers possibly these newer ones are not working well on your system. Boot to Safe mode (Shift+Restart) and check if the system crashes with the Windows Base Video driver, if no issues in Safe Mode I recommend uninstalling the display drivers in Safe Mode with DDU and just reboot, Windows11 will install the latest Acer drivers: https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/articles/000091878/graphics.html

ALirezaFruit

https://community.acer.com/en/discussion/comment/1282100#Comment_1282100

Will try it out, thank you very much.

Do you also happen to know why this happens only in performance/turbo mode?

Also, which graphics drivers should I uninstall? Integrated or Nvidia?

Puraw

https://community.acer.com/en/discussion/comment/1282115#Comment_1282115

I would uninstall both, that will clean-up your driver repository. Temperature will be higher in Turbo boost and Performance Mode, maybe overheating?

ALirezaFruit

https://community.acer.com/en/discussion/comment/1282117#Comment_1282117

CPU reaches to 100 degrees Celsius, GPU was up to 80-90 degrees I guess. Are these temperatures considered overheating for this model?

ALirezaFruit

https://community.acer.com/en/discussion/comment/1282100#Comment_1282100

I dont think there is one individual app or driver that is the problem as I just got the BSOD two times and the errors were different than the first one. I guess there is a root problem. Do you have any ideas?

Axxo

One of the most common errors your computer may experience is the Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) error. This error occurs when the operating system encounters a critical error that it cannot recover from. When this happens, the Windows crashes and displays a blue screen with an error message.

While Windows 11 has been designed to be more stable and reliable than previous versions, there is always a risk of encountering a BSOD error. Various reasons such as software conflicts, hardware issues, or corrupted system files can all cause your computer to bluescreen. Windows 11 includes new features to minimize the risk of BSOD errors, such as improved error handling and more robust memory management. If you encounter a blue screen, you can try the troubleshooting steps below to resolve the issue.

Restart your computer: Sometimes the BSOD is just a temporary glitch, and restarting your computer can resolve the issue.
Check for updates: Make sure that your Windows 11 is up-to-date with the latest updates and patches. Microsoft often releases updates that address security issues and bugs that can cause BSOD.
Run a virus scan: Use Windows Defender or your antivirus software to scan your system for any malware that may be causing the BSOD.
Uninstall recently installed software or hardware: If you recently installed new software or hardware before the BSOD started to appear, try uninstalling it and see if the problem persists.
Restore your operating system: If you are getting persistent BSODs and are unable to identify the root cause of the problem, you can try restoring your operating to factory settings. Make sure you choose the option to Keep My Files so you do not lose your information during this process.

kim27x

Hello, my Acer Predator Helios Neo 16 i5 13500HX RTX 4050, which I bought in July 2023, has been crashing and getting BSODs for the past two weeks. Could this be related to the Intel 13th/14th gen issue? The crashes started only 2 to 3 weeks ago.

My games don't crash when I play in Quiet mode or when the charger is unplugged, but as soon as I plug in the charger or switch to Balanced/Performance mode, the game crashes and sometimes causes a BSOD.

bosco1234

Same for me. But it's more serious for me. Am on Helios Neo 16, PHN16-72-95ZB
GeForce RTX™️4060 8GB(115W) GDDR6
Intel® Core i9-14900HX

BSOD doesn't occur on battery power or 100W supply (low power), CPU temp shows it doesn't heat above 75 degrees celcius (will lag doing work) , but once on 330W power, BSOD happens on Balanced, increasing frequency on Performance and more on Turbo.

Now I am only using Balanced, manually switching the Fan to max (in predator app), to lower the chances of overheating (therefore BSOD). Acer tech support (Singapore) wasn't helpful, keep blaming it on my 3rd party Samsung NVME, and my work application Adobe Lightroom, sending me articles by others writing about their BSOD while using it.

It's my 2nd acer laptop after like 15 years. Knew that it should be an Intel issue, but they way they handle my issue is worrying. Picking on any chances to say it's most probably user fault, and it's not going to be covered under their 3 years on site warranty if they get it back to service centre to check the reason behind BSOD.

Axxo

Freezing, BSOD, booting and power issues of a laptop from either operating system or hardware issue problems could come from many sources with in a laptop. The basic and first thing is to try and do a reset of your Nitro laptop completely (that is if you are computer savvy and know how to disassemble a laptop?) if you don't and your laptop is under warranty, then take it to your Acer Support. as you need to firstly do a hard reset. As all those symptoms that you have written and described above, are because your Nitro laptop windows or its graphics and other drivers and even a bios update is needed or it could be from other issues or a hardware fault but mostly corrupted drivers etc. that needs to be analyzed by Acer and/or an experienced technician.

Try doing a hard reset:Remove the back case cover (undo the 11 screws) and from the top vents pry the back case open to wards you, as it should open.
Take the RAM out and disconnect the main battery and take it out of the laptop case.
Disconnect the RTC/BIOS battery (which is the little black round battery)
Clean the RAM pins and motherboard plug also, leave both of these batteries disconnected for 5 min to reset the laptop, as pressing the power button for 15 sec doesn't do a hard reset.
Reconnect the RAM first, then the RTC/BIOS battery and then the main battery, boot your laptop up (be patient as this could take up to 2min for your laptop to boot).

All the above steps should boot your laptop up without freezing but and if your OS is corrupted and has driver problems then you need to do a "Reset your PC-Keep my files" and then make sure that you update Windows to its latest updates (would help if you told us, which OS you are running?) update all the Intel integrated graphics, chipset and other drivers (best is to install the Intel® Driver & Support Assistant and scan your laptop) and also make sure that the NVidia graphics drivers are all up to date, as all this appropriately done should stop the software from freezing, otherwise there is a hardware problem that needs either Acer or an experienced technician to look at your Nitro laptop and analyze and fix it. Good luck and hope this solves your problems.

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If this answers your question and solved your query please "Click on Yes" or "Click on Like" if you find my answer useful.

eGomes

@bosco1234,

Check that the UEFI firmware of your Predator PHN16-72 is updated to the latest available version (1.14):

https://www.acer.com/us-en/support/product-support/PHN16-72

ALirezaFruit

@bosco1234

Hi friend. I'm so sorry to hear that. I used to get BSOD errrors sooo frequently on all modes and power inputs for almost 4 months. but after that I gave my laptop to a custom laptop repairing company in my country and they only reinstalled windows but it fixed my problem completely. It could be two reasons for why my laptop got fixed, either they installed the drivers completely and right (idk why but this series of laptops are so tricky when it comes to installing windows and drivers) or the new firmware/bios update. I realized that at the time they had my laptop, a new firmware update for this series was released.

after all, my laptop has worked perfectly since. it is a great laptop specially considering the price. the PredatorSense is buggy at time but I figured all laptop companies have buggy softwares like this and none of them is perfect.

Hellraiser75

Hi I have the exact same problem with mine: updated to the latest BIOS, installed the latest Intel drivers and nothing changed. I work with 3d engines, and I can't use my new laptop. It's awful. Did anyone find a solution or workaround?

eGomes

Hi @Hellraiser75,

You probably have faulty hardware!

Contact Acer Support in your country and ask for your device to be repaired (RMA).

SAM91

Hello guys, same issue here, PHN16-72, Predator Helios Neo 16 with i9 14900HX.

I tried everything you could think of:

Uninstalling installing all drivers.

Installing drivers from Acer Website.

Full windows reset (Cloud download)

Crashes happening a lot on Performance and Turbo mode, less frequent on Balanced mode, and no crashes when going to windows 11 settings > Power Mode and setting it to Power Efficient.

It looks to me like the temperatures are causing the crashes, because when in any other mode than Windows Power Efficient, the CPU temps are around the 90s reaching 97 sometimes.

In Windows Power Efficient mode, temps are around 70s with no crashes.

Keep predator sense on Balanced, and try Power Efficient mode in windows 11 settings and let me know if you still face any crashes.

LaFrikaz

https://community.acer.com/en/discussion/707590/ph16-72-predator-helios-neo-16-keeps-crashing-goes-into-the-blue-screen-of-death-and-restarts

I had exactly the same problem, and i found the solution like 2 weeks ago. Go to services.msc after pressing Win + R, then disable all acer's services. I have 0 problems then. In addition to bluescreens, i had crashing software problem, now i have no issues. Hope it will help somebody

Fr1zzyFuzzy

https://community.acer.com/en/discussion/comment/1349418#Comment_1349418

Man, you're a life saviour, I thank you so much for your advice, It's been 6 months I've had this problem and I could not find a solution untill I've done what you said and everything worked like a miracle, but to add sth to your comment, I must say Acer components start auto installing and activating services again as soon as ur windows update starts to work, so I would suggest you to work with wushowhide.diagcab ( ask gpt for more info ) and stop those drivers and components from auto updating/installing after disabling them.

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