Memory Matters, Continued
This time, I included several common types of SDRAM memory. Every board was tested with my Crucial PC133 CL2 SDRAM, but I also tried the following modules on each candidate :
Corsair PC133 SDRAM, CL2 (Double Sided, Micron Chips, 64 MBit, 7 ns)
Kingston PC133 SDRAM, CL3 (KTC-EN133/128, Single Sided, Infineon Chips, 128 MBit, 7.5 ns)
Memory Solution PC133 SDRAM, CL3 (Double Sided, 64 MBit, 7.5 ns)
Mushkin PC133 SDRAM, CL2 (Double Sided 64 Mbit, 7 ns)
Mushkin PC150 HSDRAM, CL2 (Double Sided, 64 Mbit, Enhanced Memory Solutions Chips, 6.6 ns)
PQI/Taiwan PC133 SDRAM, CL3 (Double Sided, 64 Mbit, 7.5 ns)
Viking PC133 SDRAM, CL3 (Single Sided, Toshiba Chips, 128 Mbit, 7.5 ns)
Wichmann Workx PC133 SDRAM, CL3 (Double Sided, Infineon Chips, 64 Mbit)
The Corsair and Mushkin memory modules always worked properly. I got some problems with both Kingston and Viking, likely due to their single sided design and 128 Mbit chips.
It was interesting to see that only the Asus, ABit and AOpen motherboards work with the HSDRAM module. Please note that most of the memory I used is quality SDRAM which usually is more expensive than standard no-name SDRAM sold by most discounters.
Unfortunately, Intel added another restriction to the Solano chipset which affects the installation of DIM modules. You are only allowed to have four rows of SDRAM, e.g. two double sided DIMMs (two rows each) or four single sides modules. You can also use one double sided and two single sided of course. If you installed several modules and experience hang ups, check their structure and try running the system with only one DIMM.
