Newbie Question

[G8AMB]

Hello

I am after some help.

I am just building a new PC system with a Biostar T Power I45 motherboard and the following memory pair.

4GB (2x2GB) Corsair TwinX DDR2 XMS2, PC2-8500 (1066), 240Pin, Non-ECC Unbuffered, CAS 5-5-5-15, EPP

The system boots but locks up during the MS Vista install.

If I run memtest the PC locks up. I have tried running the system with one memory stick present and memtest passes. The tests pass with either memory stick installed in any slot. But as soon as I install the second memtest fails.

I have changed the BIOS DDR2 voltage to 2.2v which is recommended on the memory - but the problem remains. I have the memory plugged into the correct slots for dual channel operation. Should I be changing anything else in the BIOS?

Is this likely to me a motherboard fault or a memory fault?

Anyone seen this before?

 

[major53]

G8AMB try loading vista with one stick.if it loads put other stick in and then go to bios to set case and voltage for that ram.hope this helps you out.

 

[G8AMB]

Thanks for the quick reply.

Are you sure that loading Vista will help? I am reluctant to install it because I have an OEM version and have heard that I might get license complications if I end up having to swap out the motherboard.

In terms of the settings what are the "CAS 5-5-5-15" values actually refer to?

Am I being naive expecting default BIOS settings to work with this type of memory?

ALso, I should have typed 2.1v instead of 2.2 in the original post

 

[major53]

g8amb what I am saying is if you try one 4 gig stick and try to load os be it vista oem or xp.just to see if it will load.then go into bios and set ram timming and voltage then put other stick of ram in and see if that works.hope this helps you out

 

[G8AMB]

g8amb what I am saying is if you try one 4 gig stick and try to load os be it vista oem or xp.just to see if it will load.then go into bios and set ram timming and voltage then put other stick of ram in and see if that works.hope this helps you out

Thanks for the response, I have got a bit further tonight.

Basically I have discovered if I knock the memory speed down to 667 I can get both memory sticks to work at once. Previously I had the BIOS set to auto.

Also the maximum stable rate with one chip alone is 886.

Do you think I have faulty memory?

 

[major53]

g8amb I don't believe your ram is bad,sense you have it stable @ 667 with both stick.go ahead and get your os loaded.then go in bios and set ram to what can be set to manually.by hitting alt f1 you can set memory to correct timing and voltage.

 

[G8AMB]

Managed to install and update Vista clocking at 667 last night.

I will try manually changing all the settings tonight, my memory is stated to be
5-5-5-15-2T at 2.1v and 1066Mhz
JDEC standard 5-5-5-18 at 800 MHz

Am I correct in thinking that the figures mean the following:-
Static tREAD = 2T
DRAM tCL = 5
DRAM tRP = 5
DRAM tRCD = 5
DRAM tRAS = 15 (@1060 MHz) or 18 (@800MHz)

At the moment I have DRAM timing from SPD, I am guessing I will need to turn this off to change the settings?

Are these all the settings I should change

I have also ordered some Crucial Ballistix PC2-8500 memory to try now. Seemed easier than RMA'ing the motherboard.

 

[major53]

g8amb t the moment I have DRAM timing from SPD, I am guessing I will need to turn this off to change the settings? yes

Are these all the settings I should change ? yes

just remember you may have to go into bios and set ram even on the new ram.hope all of this has helped you out.

 

[G8AMB]

Ok, a tried manually changing the memory timings - but couldn't get it to complete a power on self test.

I also tried the Crucial memory and again I could only get the system to pass a memtest if I changed the frequency to 667 down from the auto-detected frequency of 800.

So I put all four sticks in (8 GB) and overclocked the FSB. I was able to get a stable performance with the following (taken from cpu-z)
Bus Speed - 332.7MHz
DRAM Frequency: 415.8MHz
FSBRAM 4:5

I have a Quad core Q6600 which seemed to clock up to 2.9 ish at this setting.

Am I right in assuming from the above that my memory is running at 415.8MHz x 2 = 830MHz+. i.e. faster than I can run at default FSB speeds.

Is this normal - or should I be looking at changing the motherboard out?