DDR2 RAM upgraded, now the machine won't boot

kg_evilboy

I'm sorry that I'm quite a noob at stuff like that, but still I'd like to have some help

I have an ASUS P5N32-SLI Deluxe mobo and I want to install another stick of 1024 MB DDR2 CL4 RAM into bank 2 to have dual-channel. I already have one 1024 MB DDR2 CL4 RAM stick from the same manufacturer, MDT, in bank 0.

I tried installing it into bank 2 and bank 3 by pressing one side down to have one clip snap the memory stick, then another side down to have the other clip snap the memory stick. It didn't work though, the machine wouldn't boot. After removing the new memory stick, everything's fine again.

The stick was tested in another machine by a friend of mine and he told me it was fine...
Maybe you can help me out!

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Cressida

Test the stick in question on its own in bank 0, kg (remove the original). Try pressing both ends simultaneously to make the clips snap (almost) at the same time when you fit them.

For dual channel you'll really need two identical sticks (make & model). Some sticks have memory chips on both sides (double sided) and others on just one side. Single sided is preferable mostly.

P.S. don't touch the memory chips or the contacts with your fingers, handle the sticks by the sides only.

ripit

Cressida is absolutlly right. Check your mother board manual and see how to run them single channel. If it works that may be your only option. You won't get the benifit of dual channel but at least you will have the increased memory. Fyi your memory timings etc. will have to be set for the slower stick. With ddr memory if the rank of the modules is diffrent you would have to run 2t timings but I'm not sure how it works with ddr2 memory. Many motherboards will auto select timings tha are sutable but some don't. You may have to manually set the timings to get them to work together.

_chef_

After installation, check the settings in the BIOS, if it would allow you to get to that.

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kg_evilboy

Thanks. I installed it single-channel and it runs, but not really fast.
The sticks are same manufacturer, same speed, same size, same timing.
I might call the shop where I bought the mobo from because actually it should run fine this way...

__________________
I'm a 太陽誘電の記録メディア fanboy. Stick to it and you most likely won't have any trouble (with degradation or compatibility and write errors).
Preferred media codes: CD-R 97m24s01f; CD-RW 97m34s24f; DVD+R YUDEN000 T03; DVD-R TYG03; DVD+RW MKM A03; DVD-RW MKM 01RW6X; DVD+R DL MKM 003; DVD-R DL I avoid that format

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My collection:
Plextor PX-716UF 1.09 (TLA #0202), Optiarc AD-7200A 1.06, Samsung SE-S224Q TS02, Plextor PX-712UF 1.04 (TLA #0104), Plextor PX-708UF2 1.02 (TLA #0102), Optiarc AD-7200A 1.06, Plextor PX-716UF 1.07 (TLA #0307), Lite-On LH-18A1H HL05, Philips JackRabbit JR32RWDVK P1.3, Philips JackRabbit JR24CDRW 1.01, LG GH22NP20 2.00, Matshita UJ-898 HC10, Lite-On LH-20A1H LL0D, Plextor PX-716UF 1.11 (TLA #0204), LG GSA-H22N 1.00, Plextor PX-716A 1.09 (TLA #0309)
+ Plextor PX-716A 1.09 (TLA #0309), BenQ DW1655 BCDB, Samsung TS-L632B TM31, Lite-On LTR-16101B TS0W
Lite-On SHM-165P6SU MS0P (mechanical failure), Plextor PX-708UF2 1.?? (TLA #0102) (DVD optical part died), LG GSA-H10N @ H12N UJ12 (broken tray), BenQ DW1650 BCIC (sold), Lite-On SHW-16H5S @ 1635S YS0Z (lost in a fire), LG GCE-8527B 1.04 (optical part died), Samsung TS-L632H SC04 (sold), Canon Pixma iP4300 (printer head broken)

crossg

Like _chef_ says hit F2 in Bios (reset defaults) with new Ram installed and see if that will work. My ASUS bios is really picky when I play with the ram settings and wont boot sometimes. Also turn off the performance accelerator (PAT) or whatever they call it now adays. My machine will not boot in Turbo mode. Let us know.

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Cressida

It's an "nForce 4 Intel" board, crossg. Told him he was looking for trouble .

No, seriously kg_evilboy, you can check via their website (or have the shop confirm) that the memory is on Asus' Qualify Vendor List (QVL), in which case it should work in Dual Channel as you say. You can also try updating the mobo BIOS (if it isn't already) and reset defaults as crossg suggests.

Don't expect any major speed increase from Dual Channel in daily use however (and 1Gb is still plenty for XP in normal usage conditions).

crossg

Hehe. Whoops should have looked closer.

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Cressida

I tried to get the "QVT Download" from Asus for this board and as it appears it's not available for download at the moment (whereas those for other P5Nxxx boards are ).

All you have to go on for now then is the manual, which shows one 1024MB DDR2-533 stick by MDT, but it's not supported (not too many are, looking at the lists - it will take some extra care to find the "right combination" for this one ).

ripit

Not nessasarilly. I have two kingston modules that that are same brand, speed, size and timings (but diffrent memory chips), that would not run together in either of my athlon xp systems. Same thing you were getting, either works fine alone, but the computer wont run with both, no matter what settings I used. They did work in my new athlon 64 system though (single channel 2t timing) so the motherboard can effect it too. Even if they are the same identical model of ram with identical chips, while it will usally work, there is enough variation between batches of ram that sometimes it wont run dual channel, especially if the motherboard doesn't really like the ram to start with.
While it won't hurt to keep trying things to get it to run dual channel, if you got both sticks to run single channel, then I think I would just live with it. You will still have the same speed as before (you only had one stick so you were running single channel), but twice the memory. If you want to run dual channel, you might wind up having to get new memory. that is why they sell matched pairs of memory, to avoid problems like this. Dual channel doesn't give that great of an increase anyway. If I'm not mistaken it only boosts your memory performance by about 10 percent or less (and that is memory performance, not overall system performance). You could easilly overclock just a little and get that much performance in a heart beat. The only reason that I am considering replacing those two kingston sticks of mine is that I do not think that they will overclock high enough (gotta wait till I get water cooling installed to find out). If they do I'm just going to stick with them even though they are running single channel (the cost of new memory isn't justified by that small performance increase).