Burnt Ram slot, could it be the PSU?

Sakis Geo · Dec 30, 2013

First of all, im gratefull to be able to post my query in such a highly adept enviroment, and im sure someone will help me sort this out. Let's begin with the Specs:

AMD Athlon II X2 250 (2 cores running @ 3.00GH)
GIGABYTE Radeon HD 5570
ASRock N68-S3 UCC (Mobo) with a nVidia MCP61 Chipset
4 GB DDR3 TeamGroup PC3 10600 SDRAM 1333 1.5V 9CL (brand new bought them 20 days ago)
WDC WD10EARS-00Y5B1 (1 TB)
ATX 400W SATA 12CM FAN
PC is 2-3 years old. Heat tests are all fine, HDD tests looks fine.

Yesterday i tried to boot my pc and one ram slot burnt. I saw physical marks of burning in one of the ram slots. So now im using my pc with only one ram slot (2GB). I made every combination possible of a 2x2 ram system and both sticks work (PC boots regurlay when using the 2nd slot while hangs in black when using the burnt one slot) in the 2nd slot of my pc, but none in my first(burnt).

1) Im wondering what's the walkaround in such a case? Do i need to go for a brand new mobo? Or something like a burnt ram slot could be fixed? Should i buy a 1x4 ram stick and go on?

2) And and more substantial, what caused the ram slot to burn out? Could it be my PSU?***

***So 1 year ago, my PC started to shut down itself without warning, boom, just went from working to no power at all. So this was getting quite annoying. I figured out since i was not using my optical DVD drive, to unplugg the rail power of the DVD rom from the PSU and see what happens. From that point on my PC never did that thing, (shutting down randomly) again. Is this a sign of a bad inadequate PSU? Could such a PSU cause overall malfunctions of my components?

Thank you for your time and insight and have a happy new year.

-Sakis

P.S Sorry if i posted in the wrong section.

todd1780 · Dec 30, 2013

Anything can be fixed given enough time and money, but when it comes to motherboard repairs, its rarely worth it. 999 out of 1000 times its going to cost you less money to replace a motherboard than to have it repaired.
As for your question about your PSU, its very possible that your power supply could be causing your problems. I haven't seen too many motherboards with burnt RAM slots, but the ones I have seen like that, its almost always due to the PSU not having very good over volt and surge protection. And if your PSU in in fact dying, it could be causing some very odd power distribution problems, as well as not sending clean power to your motherboard.
If I were in your situation, I would seriously consider a power supply and motherboard upgrade. As time goes on you may start having more and more problems due to a faulty power supply. Its best to take care of the situation now, before it gets any worse.

juanjostorreshernndez · Dec 30, 2013

I have seen a lot of burnt RAM slots( most of them due to memory Stick no well inserted on mobo slot), also due to generic bad quality PSUs.
shutting down randomly, and others issues its tipical on a bad PSU voltage regulation.
I suggest you to change as soon as posible your PSU, with a good branded certified PSU, something more like Seasonic,XFX, Corsair(TX,HX,AX series), Antec. Cause measuring the voltage outputs in order to see if they are inside of ATX specifications (5% for +12v,+5v,+3,3v up and down from their nominal values) and measuring the noise and ripple levels will be not worth if generic PSU.

Here you can get an idea of PSU qualities:
http://www.eggxpert.com/forums/thread/323050.aspx

Read this simple tutorial too :
http://www.tomshardware.com/faq/id-1827969/things-account-buying-psu.html

You must change your mobo as well, as its already fisically damaged.

Sakis Geo · Dec 30, 2013

@juanjostorreshernndez and todd1780:
Thank you very much for your insight, i think it's clear now that i need to make those upgrades for my own good asap. Can i pick for the solution both of you?

Also since i will need to make those upgrades, could you provide me a little intel for those components?

I was thinking for my PSU
this: http://www.corsair.com/en/power-supply-units/cx-series-psu/cx430-80-plus-bronze-certified-power-supply.html
Do you think it can handle the load of my specs? or do i need more watts?

For my mobo, should i get a new one same as my old? A little bit of info would be greately appreciated!

Again my specs more specifically are:

CPU
Processor Name: AMD Athlon II X2 250
Original Processor Frequency: 3000.0 MHz
CPU Stepping: DA-C3 (Dachshund)
CPU Platform: Socket AM3
Number of CPU Cores: 2

Mobo (Current)
Motherboard Model: ASRock N68-S3 UCC
Motherboard Chipset: nVidia MCP61
Motherboard Slots: 2xPCI, 2xPCI Express x1, 1xPCI Express x16
PCI Express Version Supported: v1.1
USB Version Supported: v2.0
BIOS Manufacturer: American Megatrends
Super-IO/LPC Chip: Winbond/Nuvoton W83627DHG-P(T)

GPU
Video Chipset: ATI/AMD Radeon HD 5570/6510
Video Memory: 1024 MBytes of DDR3 SDRAM
Video Card: GIGABYTE Radeon HD 5570
Video Bus: PCIe v1.1 x16 (2.5 Gb/s) @ x16 (2.5 Gb/s)
Processor Clock: 157.0 MHz
Memory Clock: 200.0 MHz (Effective 399.9 MHz)

Memory
Module Size: 2048 MBytes
Memory Type: DDR3 SDRAM
Module Type: Unbuffered DIMM (UDIMM)
Memory Speed: 666.7 MHz (PC3-10600)

HDD
Drive Controller: Serial ATA 3Gb/s
Drive Model: WDC WD10EARS-00Y5B1
Drive Revision: 80.00A80
Drive Capacity: 953,869 MBytes (1000 GB)

PSU (Current)
AC Input: 230V 50HZ 5A
DC Output max: [5V 30A] [-5V 0.5A] [12V 12A] [-12V 0.8A] [3,3V 28A] [5VSB 2A]

juanjostorreshernndez I saw your links and i did my research, im narrowing into these:
http://www.lepatek.eu/n-series/ (the 500w one)
http://www.corsair.com/en/power-supply-units/cx-series-psu/cx500-80-plus-bronze-certified-power-supply.html
http://ocz.com/consumer/psu/zs-series-550w-750w-power-supply
http://www.thermaltake.com/products-model.aspx?id=C_00001857

My price range are 50-65 euros as you see, if you have any other suggestions feel free to contribute.

todd1780 · Dec 30, 2013

I think the Corsair PSU would be your best bet. Its priced well and it has more than enough power for your PC.
I'm not sure what your budget is for a new motherboard. Your CPU is an AM3 processor, but it will work in most AM3+ motherboards. AMD has phased out the AM3 socket so an AM3 motherboard would be difficult to find and rather expensive.
One option would be http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128602
Another good option is http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157364
Both motherboards would work well for your system and would give you a future upgrade path to AMDs FX series CPUs.
Of course there are other options for motherboards, it just depends on how much you want to spend.
Good Luck!

Sakis Geo · Dec 31, 2013

todd1780 :

Thank you again Todd for your post, i searched the web both for local and worldwide providers and this site you gave me has the most compepitive prices, and with free shipping? wow! Assuming both are equally affordable, which one should i consider? Is there any significant difference? From the comments of the customers both had some cons, my needs are moderate gaming with no high-end games, home use, and more than everything system stability. Now i know you get what you pay, my price range would be 50-75 euros. If there isn't a better alternative i will stick with the Gigabyte one!

Sorry for being so skeptical, it's just that i can't afford any adventures! Hope im not getting annoying!

***For the Corsair PSU, would the 430 do the job or should i move to the 500 one? There is a quite good offer till 1/1/14 for the 600W, should i consider it or it's just a waste of money and current?

Sorry for being so skeptical, it's just that i can't afford any setbacks! Hope im not getting annoying!

juanjostorreshernndez · Dec 31, 2013

I dont recommend the CX PSU series from corsair as they whent for some bad caps and a sleeve bearing fan on this particular series( is bottom line from Corsair).
try to find something XFX Core Edition PRO550W (its made by seasonic) and still on your budget:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817207013
Or TX corsair series as better option compared to CX.
Related to mobos, both are good options, with similar features, however I think the Gigabyte will give you better endurance due to its quality components even on lowest end boards(last gen mosfets for instance).

todd1780 · Dec 31, 2013

Being skeptical is a good thing when your buying computer parts!
If I had to choose I would go with Gigabyte every time. I've had very good luck with their products.
As for the power supply, I would be careful about going any lower than 500w. A smaller power supply may get you buy for now, but it may hinder your ability to upgrade in the future. And keep in mind that a power supply operates at its peak efficiency at 40%-60% load so buying a little bit more than you need isn't a bad thing.

Sakis Geo · Dec 31, 2013

Thank you guys, i think i will go with the XFX550W PSU and the Gigabyte Mobo. Let's hope everything turns out well!
Just realised newegg is only providing USA, so i will have to search again locally(im from Greece)! Anyways thank you again!

todd1780 :

Locally i can have access to this
http://www.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=4395#ov
What's your take on it?

juanjostorreshernndez · Dec 31, 2013

Sakis Geo :

Thank you guys, i think i will go with the XFX550W PSU and the Gigabyte Mobo. Let's hope everything turns out well!
Just realised newegg is only providing USA, so i will have to search again locally(im from Greece)! Anyways thank you again!

todd1780 :

Locally i can have access to this
http://www.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=4395#ov
What's your take on it?

That is a good option too, as I told you before, Gigabyte great endurance due to its quality components even on lowest end boards(last gen mosfets for instance).

todd1780 · Dec 31, 2013

Yes. I wouldn't be afraid to buy that motherboard. Its one of the better budget boards from Gigabyte.

Sakis Geo · Dec 31, 2013

So that's a wrap people, im ordering these now! Appreciate the help! Is there anything that i can do for you? Something like repping? :-S

juanjostorreshernndez · Dec 31, 2013

Sakis Geo :

Happy helping in your solution.

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