Motherboard/Memory Hassle

[jmichaelstone]

New build is having issues. The motherboard is a Gigabyte GA-EX38-DS4. Here's the problem:

I installed a total of 8GB of memory (4 x 2GB). First time I powered the machine, it would just say "Scanning BIOS image in hard drive" then it would shut down and restart over and over again.

Thinking that maybe there was a problem with some of the memory, I removed two of the sticks. This allowed me to get in and everything worked. So, naturally, I assumed I had some bad RAM. This morning, however, I shut off the POST image, which allowed me to see what was going on a little more in the background, and it said something to the effect that the memory was running in SINGLE channel mode. Huh?

Well, I wanted to try using all 8GB again, so I stuck them all back in, and turned it on. THIS time I get this message:
"Warning: Backup BIOS Checksum Error."

Okay, so I add the extra two memory modules, and I get errors again. Surely it's bad memory, right? Not yet. The reason it was running in single-channel mode, was because I had it installed wrong. I had it in the two adjacent slots, instead of in the two yellow slots. Easy enough to fix...

So I move the known "good" memory into the correct positions.... so it could run in dual-channel, but it starts giving me the "Scanning BIOS image in hard drive" loop again.

So, to recap: I can only run this computer with the memory in single-channel configuration? WTF is that??

Frustrated,
Jason

 

[mazuk]

For starters if your using a 32bit o/s the system will only recognise a max of 3.5gb....

 

[jmichaelstone]

I'm using Vista 64-bit.

But the OS is a moot point right now, because it's not even getting past the POST.