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Hi
I have an MSI P965 Platinum motherboard, which had 2x1GB 533 DDR2 SDRAM installed
I now have another 2x1GB DDR SDRAM, and I think its the same speed, but with all four chips installed, the system doesn't boot
I can however boot the PC with either of the pairs of 2GB installed, so it recognises all the chips, but won't boot with all four installed, only when they are in their original pairs
Any ideas why this might be?
thanks very much for any help
DG
Quote:
Originally Posted by DG--
DG I am slightly confused , are you saying you are mixing DDR and DDR2 memory?
No sorry, thats a typo
All memory is DDR2......
Are the memory sticks paired properly (i.e. slot 0-2, slot 1-3). That's usually required is you're running dual channel. Also, have you set the memory timings to Auto so that the BIOS uses the SPD rating (if available) from the DIMMs to adjust the timings automatically.
The only other thing I can think of would be incorrect voltage.
Yes, they're installed in 0-2 and 1-3
I had set the speed to 533 from auto, so set it back to auto
I also changed the voltage from 1.9 down to 1.85, but still no dice
I assume I'm supposed to go down in voltage rather than up? Motherboard suggests 1.85 or 1.9 as "safe" settings and anything higher as "high performance"
Also put one stick in at a time, in each of the ram slots to rule out a problem with the motherboard ram slots.
Also, if I set it to run on only the new chips, and then switch back to the original ones, it won't boot straight away, I have to power it up with no chips to allow it to reset I guess, then put the old ones in and power up, and its then ok, so it seems as though the new ones are changing a setting that the old ones don't like
I guess :confused:
Are you sure they are the same speed? Think you should find out for certain before proceeding any further.
Also when you are going from 2 sticks to 4 the voltage should be increased not decreased. But only if the system is unstable using the default voltage.
First find out what the speeds of the sticks are then, if they are the same, up the voltage by 0.1 and see if it boots.
Ok well done chap, that was the problemQuote:
Originally Posted by Beowulf1100
I can get it booted with 3 sticks no problem, and it doesn't matter which stick I use as the third, but I can't use one of the slots
On closer inspection (much closer!), I can see 4 or 5 pins bent over into the bottom of the slot
I wonder if I have something small enough to straighten them up, a small sewing needle perhaps...... :crazy:
Also, I guess its upgrade from x86 to x64 if I get the 4th slot working
Thanks Beowulf1100, Taz and Saxamafone for helping BTW......
Make sure your careful when doing any repairs. Touch the metal inside of your case to discharge any static before you touch any components. Do the same with the tool you are using if it is metal.