Memory upgrade reduces capacity

[colmag]

I've had a 256MB stick of crucial PC2100 in my 8K7A. I went to my local shop and bought a 256MB stick of unbranded PC2100 memory, and when I put it in, the total memory registers as 32MB!!!

When I take the new stick out, it goes back up to 256MB.

Any ideas?

 

[Oracle]

Your motherboard is playing tricks on you, man!
Personally, I never trusted Epox boards. Don't know why, just a feeling!
It probably can't handle different modules. If you can, return that no-name module and order an identical Crucial module. If that doesn't solve the problem, you'll know the issue is with the motherboard. It could probably recognize a single 512Mb module though.
BTW, what's your OS. Win98 is known to have problems with 512Mb of RAM.


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Then go ahead and buy that C3 CPU!</font color=red>

 

[10GHZ]

ye.. that's what happens when u get no brand modules, and i think Epox boards are particularly sensitive to those kind of things.

 

[lhgpoobaa]

sounds like the new stick is faulty.
i had something similar...
2 sticks of 256mb PC150 ram. the first one went bad, only letting me see 64mb of itself, and 0mb of the second stick!
switch them around and i see 320.

run MEMTEST86 on each stick individually.
if you get errors, change the ram slot.
if you still get errors, send it back!

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[Crashman]

Sounds like a grounded circuit in the module, the memory signal gets as far as 32MB and then gets grounded, disabling the other module. Likely junk RAM.

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[colmag]

I've upped the Vmem, which makes no difference. I've taken out the the new one and put the crucial in the second slot and it registers as 256MB. So now i've just to try the new one on its own.

 

[colmag]

OK, last one till I get the new memory swapped!

The crucial registers as 256MB in either socket (so not a mobo prob)

The duffer registers as 32MB in either socket

The crucial + duffer together register 32MB in both combinations (which one is in which socket).

So i guess it has to be the memory.

 

[colmag]

I took the memory back, and the guy went "back of house", came out 5 minutes later and said the memory was OK, but offered me a stick from another manufacturer. Said there was probably an incompatibility with the mobo, and if i had a problem with this one, take the machine in and he try different sticks till he found one that worked...

I've put the new stick in, and now have.... 512MB!

Something else I noticed, is that with the crucial and the old stick in, the post screen said there was memory in banks 0, 1 & 2. With the crucial and the new stick , theres memory in banks 0, 1, 2 & 3, which seems to make far more sense.

Lesson learnt, don't be impulsive! (i bought the unbranded 'cos i could get it quickly, not because it was cheaper)