Hello. I am posting this in Motherboards and Memory because I suspect that is where my problem lies. However, as you will soon see, this is a VERY strange problem and if you feel that it belongs elsewhere, please let me know.
My newly built system boots and runs just fine (e.g. I can play games like Dragon Age for hours) with 1 2GB RAM module installed, but when I install the second 2GB module, my system locks up completely approximately 30s to 2m after I get to the Windows login screen, whether or not I log in. The time it takes for this to happen is variable within a short window of time, but it ALWAYS happens. There is no blue screen or error message in the event log other than the Kernel Power error from the required hard reset, the whole system just locks up completely. Even Windows setup locks up this way after approximately a minute. However, I am able to boot into Safe Mode and run that way for an indefinite amount of time without any lock-ups.
My system:
Antec EarthWatts 650W
Gigabyte P55M-UD2 Rev 1.0
4GB Corsair DDR3-1333 RAM
Intel Core i5 750
Radeon 4850
64-bit Windows 7 Ultimate
Everything is being run at stock speeds and timings. I have not done any tweaking.
Troubleshooting Steps Taken So Far:
Verified that the memory modules and their speeds and timings show-up correctly in the BIOS status screens.
Ran several passes of MemTest86+ with 4GB RAM installed. All tests passed.
Tried multiple sets of 2 x 2GB RAM modules. All show same behavior: stable with 2GB, lock-up with 4GB.
Tried memory in both dual-channel (slots 1 and 3 on my mobo) and single channel (slots 1 and 2) configurations.
Upgraded my BIOS with QFlash (NOT @BIOS) to both the F5 and F7c versions. Same behavior.
Tried disabling most of the on-board mobo features in the BIOS (like Audio, Firewire, USB, etc) to narrow down the problem, but it had no effect.
Tested all of my connections on the motherboard.
One thing that I have NOT been able to do is get my hands on a 4GB RAM module, so I don't know if this is a problem with the AMOUNT of memory or the number of modules. I suspect that it's the latter, but I can't be sure of that.
At first, I thought this was a driver issue since I am stable in Safe Mode but not in setup or normal mode, and that may be the case. However, it cannot be related to a driver I installed since Windows setup from a DVD-ROM encounters the same issue. Also, I have NEVER heard of drivers behaving differently based on how much RAM or how many RAM modules are installed. The fact that it locks up consistently after Windows boots without giving any sort of error messages in the Event Logs or without a BSOD makes me skeptical of some sort of driver issue.
What could possibly be causing instability with 4GB of RAM that would then allow stable operation with 2GB? I am totally stumped. Anyone have any suggestions?
My newly built system boots and runs just fine (e.g. I can play games like Dragon Age for hours) with 1 2GB RAM module installed, but when I install the second 2GB module, my system locks up completely approximately 30s to 2m after I get to the Windows login screen, whether or not I log in. The time it takes for this to happen is variable within a short window of time, but it ALWAYS happens. There is no blue screen or error message in the event log other than the Kernel Power error from the required hard reset, the whole system just locks up completely. Even Windows setup locks up this way after approximately a minute. However, I am able to boot into Safe Mode and run that way for an indefinite amount of time without any lock-ups.
My system:
Antec EarthWatts 650W
Gigabyte P55M-UD2 Rev 1.0
4GB Corsair DDR3-1333 RAM
Intel Core i5 750
Radeon 4850
64-bit Windows 7 Ultimate
Everything is being run at stock speeds and timings. I have not done any tweaking.
Troubleshooting Steps Taken So Far:
Verified that the memory modules and their speeds and timings show-up correctly in the BIOS status screens.
Ran several passes of MemTest86+ with 4GB RAM installed. All tests passed.
Tried multiple sets of 2 x 2GB RAM modules. All show same behavior: stable with 2GB, lock-up with 4GB.
Tried memory in both dual-channel (slots 1 and 3 on my mobo) and single channel (slots 1 and 2) configurations.
Upgraded my BIOS with QFlash (NOT @BIOS) to both the F5 and F7c versions. Same behavior.
Tried disabling most of the on-board mobo features in the BIOS (like Audio, Firewire, USB, etc) to narrow down the problem, but it had no effect.
Tested all of my connections on the motherboard.
One thing that I have NOT been able to do is get my hands on a 4GB RAM module, so I don't know if this is a problem with the AMOUNT of memory or the number of modules. I suspect that it's the latter, but I can't be sure of that.
At first, I thought this was a driver issue since I am stable in Safe Mode but not in setup or normal mode, and that may be the case. However, it cannot be related to a driver I installed since Windows setup from a DVD-ROM encounters the same issue. Also, I have NEVER heard of drivers behaving differently based on how much RAM or how many RAM modules are installed. The fact that it locks up consistently after Windows boots without giving any sort of error messages in the Event Logs or without a BSOD makes me skeptical of some sort of driver issue.
What could possibly be causing instability with 4GB of RAM that would then allow stable operation with 2GB? I am totally stumped. Anyone have any suggestions?