Installed new RAM backwards, fried motherboard

googimoo · Feb 6, 2015

Greetings!

So, yesterday I got some fresh new RAM that I went ahead and installed in the morning. As I was pushing the RAM in the slots waiting for it to *click* into place, I remember thinking.. "They sure made it hard to push these in!" 'cause it gave me little indents on my fingers from the force.. <_< little did I know that I had completely f***** up!

Then when I tried to boot.. disaster! Started smelling something burnt + MB was stuck on mem check, so I shut it down. And only then did I see what a complete i**** I had been. All four slots had been inserted backwards! I blame it on being tired and that it was dark. Gaaaaaaaah... <insert world's biggest facepalm/>
Took them all out and tried to boot with the old RAM sticks, but no luck. Now it was stuck on CPU LED stage, no beep even and no image on monitor.

I took the whole motherboard out and saw that a connection near the RAM slots had shorted on the backside and melted through the coating and all... (will post pic of it and reply to thread on saturday after work)

Now my questions:
1. Since it won't go past the CPU LED stage, does that mean I fried the CPU as well or is the short circuit just messing with that stage and the rest of the MB?

2. Have the new RAM sticks fried from the events?

3. Most importantly, if (when) I get a new MB + CPU, is it safe to insert the possibly broken RAM without risking injury on the new hardware? Will it just detect faulty RAM? I would hate to destroy the new stuff with the backwards inserted RAM..

4. How likely is it for other hardware like GPU/CPU to be affected by a short circuit in the RAM region of the MB?

Some of the questions might be asking the same things, but I'm a bit gutted right now so it'll have to do.. ;_;
---
MB: Asus P8P67 Pro
CPU: i5 2500k
PSU: BeQuiet Dark Power Pro 750W
GPU: GTX460
RAM: Corsair XMS3 CL9 1600MHz 1.65v
---
Thanks in advance for any help!

ThatVietGuy · Feb 6, 2015

I would guess the CPU is fine.

However, I would not reuse the RAM. Replace the mobo and the RAM.

i7Baby · Feb 6, 2015

1. Your CPU should be OK

2. I wouldn't trust your ram after this.

3. See 2.

4. The rest of the PC should be OK. I'd replace the motherboard and ram though.

clutchc · Feb 6, 2015

How could you possibly insert the RAM sticks the wrong way? The slot offset slots on the sticks (and the notches on the slots) won't allow it.

googimoo · Feb 7, 2015

clutchc :

Believe me, it's very much possible. Just requires you to be tired, in a poorly lit environment and then apply enough force for them to lock into place (also helps being a dimwit). You have no idea how much of an idiot I feel like, and I did it to all four! @_@

Thank you very much for the other replies! Here are two pictures of the aftermath so you can see the damage that was caused. R.I.P, P8P67
Close up
Overview (bottom left)

I'll take the four RAM sticks to a PC store and see if they can check them out in a test rig. Maybe they work..

Also, I've settled on getting an Asus Z97-A board and i7 4790k as replacement. Please comfort me by saying it's a significant enough upgrade to the i5 2500k for it to be justifiable ;_; maybe I'll feel better about dropping $500+ on it then..

clutchc · Feb 7, 2015

googimoo :

But can you post a pic of the resulting appearance of the RAM sticks and DIMM slots and their notches? I just tried forcing a stick of DDR3 into an old board backwards and couldn't do it.

i7Baby · Feb 7, 2015

I'd have thought pushing that hard would've also broke the motherboard.

Bossyfins · Feb 7, 2015

i7Baby :

Yea, if you got it pushed in really hard, it could break it. But the real question is the 4790k worth it.

Yup. Has a stock clock of 4.0 ghz. I dont see why you would be sad with it.

i7Baby · Feb 7, 2015

See http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-cpu-review-overclock,3106-5.html. There's not that much difference between the 2500 and the i7 - for gaming at least.

clutchc · Feb 7, 2015

googimoo :

I had an i5-2500K before the i5-4690K in my sig below. Here are the Firestrike scores when both were at stock speed using the same R9-290X: http://www.3dmark.com/compare/fs/1969742/fs/3779286

You have to ignore the reported core clock speeds of the processors. For some reason 3DMark always reports that incorrectly. They were indeed at stock speeds.

AMDThunder · Feb 7, 2015

clutchc :

Its not possible. Either the mobo or ram would have to break in some way.

googimoo · Feb 7, 2015

clutchc :

I took some pictures of the slots and of two of the four new RAM sticks. The one that's in the MB is the old one correctly inserted, don't feel like re-enacting the backwards insertion.. Basically I pushed down on the half where it locks into place until it clicked. And since all the sticks were level relative to one another, I figured, perfectly inserted!
I noticed while taking a pic of the new sticks that they have a mark pretty much on the same spot under the notch. Are those fry marks or scratch marks from the forceful insertion? Album here

i7Baby :

I've been meaning to get an i7 mainly for 3D rendering purposes, but since my old 2500k was working, figured it wasn't worth it. i7 vs i5 should make quite the difference in 3D rendering though, right? 8 vs 4 threads, hyperthreading etc.

clutchc :

That's a nice boost! Guess I'm slowly warming up to the idea of upgrading processor + MB

But not too thrilled at the price tag of my royal f*** up.

clutchc · Feb 8, 2015

I don't see any damage to the sticks or the slots. I don't see how they could have been fully inserted backwards without showing some damage. But I guess it's a moot point now.

googimoo · Feb 8, 2015

clutchc :

So these marks are probably just scratch marks? I also can't see any physical damage to the board other than the short circuited connection that burnt up. And I have no idea how properly burnt RAM looks like so I'm suspicious of anything atm.

Anyways, I'm off to buy the new parts, but I still don't know whether or not to try out the memory sticks in the new board (properly inserted).. If they are dead, could it do any damage to the new stuff or would it just show an error code when booting? Cause that's the last thing I'd need, the new stuff burning up as well -_- And I have no other rig to test the RAM in.
Also gotta thank you for all your assistance so far!

clutchc · Feb 8, 2015

googimoo :

The point about the scratches: The marks are from some kind of damage, yes. But in order for the RAM to have been FULLY inserted in the slots, either the slots' key ways would have had to be broken off, or the RAM sticks would have received new notches where they were forced over the key ways. It's more likely you only had one end of the sticks firmly inserted. Still enough to do damage if they were backwards.

The point about the old RAM: I too would be leery of trying the RAM in a good board. If you can't find a shop to test the memory for you, I'd set them aside for now.

WabeWalker · Mar 10, 2016

To the guy above who said it's 'impossible' to install ram upside down... no it is not.

I did the exact same thing two weeks ago.

I came home after a long, difficult day, and couldn't get to sleep... so I got up and installed the ram I'd bought a few days earlier. I put the sticks in upside down... and yes they went in after I pushed down hard. Like the OP said, it was dark, and I was really tired. Just not thinking properly. As soon as I turned the computer on, it switched off, and I smelled smoke.

Anyhow, tonight, I was able to install a new motherboard, and OS, and it actually worked.

Now I'm in the same position the OP was in. I have 16Gbs of DDR3 ram, but I'm not sure if the sticks are still healthy.

superninja12 · Mar 10, 2016

wabe since yoru ram is still new just RMA it and say its broken.
the store wont hassle much on this

and like everyone said get a new mobo too next to the replace ram.
but since ur still busy with it might be an option now to sell the cpu and upgrade to skylake??

WabeWalker · Mar 10, 2016

superninja12 :

I've already replaced the motherboard. I also had to buy a new copy of Windows 10, since I was running an OEM version of Windows 8 on my previous motherboard.

RMA'ing the ram isn't an option, unfortunately.

superninja12 · Mar 10, 2016

wabe dont try it using that burnt ram.

lord5619 · Dec 4, 2016

Oh man, it good to see, that i am not the only one idiot in the world

i just did the same thing, installed DDR3 stick backwards, smelled smoke and MB is gone. Or i presume its just MB, and not CPU and RAM sticks. And like the first post, i have i 2500k and Corsair Vengeance LP too

I will beat my head against wall...i made so many computers by my hand, and i have done this? Oh my...

So the solution is buy new MB and even RAM? quite expensive fault :/

WabeWalker · Dec 4, 2016

lord5619 :

I 'installed' my RAM in February of 2016, putting it in upside down, and frying the motherboard.

The CPU survived. Apparently, CPUs are pretty tough. I did not take a chance on the ram (nobody would test it for me) and sent it back to Corsair for replacement, saying it took out my mobo (I did not say I pushed the ram in backwards).

On Ebay I was able to find an exact version of my Alienware motherboard, which surprised me ($400 - but I was happy to buy it).

I took about ten photos of my old motherboard, with all the cables attached, and then detached them and swapped in the new motherboard. I had to learn how to clean off the old thermal paste from my CPU, and then apply new thermal paste when installing the CPU into the new motherboard. All of this took many hours. I researched it all ahead of time by watching videos on YouTube.

When I turned my PC on for the first time with the new motherboard my hands were shaking. I was convinced it wasn't going to work - but it did work... even my Alienware lighting system came back up. The only glitch - I needed to buy a new operating system. I installed this from a ram stick. It took me an entire day to get the OS up and running, as I encountered problem after problem. Without the Internet to guide me through each step, I never would have gotten the OS working.

All in all, I leaned many things. The feeling of satisfaction from solving this problem on my own was exhilarating. I now believe I can build my own PC.

Installed new RAM backwards, fried motherboard

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