Question issues on 2 yr old system ( PCMech Forums Processors, RAM, Motherboards, and Overclocking )
Updated: 2009-06-04 05:20:12 (21) |
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issues on 2 yr old system
hey, ive had this setup for around 2 years, im running an asus M2N-SLI delux mobo, the older AMD 120w 6000+. and 4 sticks of corsair 4-4-4-12 1GB DDR2 800 at 2.1v . i think the ram is corsair XMS2. video card is an X1950XT 512mb.
until the past week the system has been rock solid. about a week ago it bluescreened for no reason, then the system didnt want to boot. after messing around it booted and had no problems. once during the nite it apparently bluescreened when windows 7 tried to update.
come friday, it bluescreened and then wouldnt even post right, kept looping, so i reseated everyting. no change. i pulled half the ram out, system became stable, i put 3 dimms in, no problem , it just stays in single channel. i swapped dimms out, ran memtest a bunch of times, all 4 1 at a time test fine, 2 or 3 at a time are fine. if i try all 4 it bluescreens. weather in game, running memtest or just sitting there.
i want to say somethings wrong with the motherboard, but im not sure at this point. and sadly have little fundage these days i was thinking of finding an AM3\2+\2 motherboard and swapping that in until i have money for a processor and faster ram. any opinions on what would cause this kind of a problem? this problem has nothing to do with windows 7. itll bluescreen in win setup as well. Absolutely nothing was changed until it bluescreened during TF2 which definatly interupted the flow of my day.
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| Answers: issues on 2 yr old system ( PCMech Forums Processors, RAM, Motherboards, and Overclocking ) |
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issues on 2 yr old system
Isn't windows 7 still a beta? If it is, its probably just a bug, all beta's have em.
Have you ran a anti virus?
F.E.A.R.
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issues on 2 yr old system
Filling all 4 slots has been known to cause that problem.
You have a few options. The easiest being to get a 2x2gb pack to replace the 4x1gb stick.
The second option is o lower the speed of it down to at least 667. Try that, and see what happens.
shadowpr
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issues on 2 yr old system
any bugs present in windows 7 do not effect the computer being able to run windows setup "older versions such as vista and xp", ram tests, or the computers ability to POST.
i do understand its harder to run 4 dimms instead of 2, however i do not understand why the computer would for 2 years and then suddenly not be able too. i tried backing the timings off and lower the speed and it still wouldnt run stable
what really worries me is, everytime ive had something like this happen, it wasnt long before other problems showed up.
mrtube
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issues on 2 yr old system
I had the same problem when i had 4x1gb. It worked fine for months, then all of a sudden, didn't want to.
shadowpr
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issues on 2 yr old system
oh really? maybe it wont be so bad then. i was mainly afraid that something was going, and i was going to end up without a system soon. i guess maybe tolerances get worse overtime and the slight change is enough to cause problems like this.
thanks shadow
mrtube
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issues on 2 yr old system
Windows 7 isnt in beta stage, it's in RC stage. And to be honest, this doesnt have may bugs compared to vista's RC. It's strange you are having this issue.
tomtoon
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issues on 2 yr old system
the problem i am having is in NO WAY related to windows 7. maybe i confused some when i said it wouldnt "POST" by post i mean power on self test.
actaully, ive yet to have ANY problems with windows 7. even when i was running the beta there was little to complain about
sadly its looking like i have to decide to buy 4GB of "old, slow ram". or just live with 2gb until i upgrade the cpu\motherboard
it seems like with windows 7 the ram isnt quite as important as it was with vista64. so i might just deal with it until ive got the money to upgrade everything. and at the same time, if i was going to dump some money, the cpu\motherboard and ram were the least of my worries. the X1950XT 512Mb is really becoming a dog anymore.
mrtube
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issues on 2 yr old system
You're right there mate. Windows 7 is nowhere near as bad for RAM hogging. So 2GB for now will be plenty in 7..
tomtoon
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issues on 2 yr old system
try upping the ram voltage a little...see what that does...and test it with Memtest on test #5 and test #8....
run test #5 for at least 20 passes or longer...if it's going to error it usually will inside the 1st 20 passes
MaxRat
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issues on 2 yr old system
Quote:
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Originally Posted by MaxRat
try upping the ram voltage a little...see what that does...and test it with Memtest on test #5 and test #8....
run test #5 for at least 20 passes or longer...if it's going to error it usually will inside the 1st 20 passes
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I thought about telling him to up the voltage, but it's already at 2.1. You think he should go higher?
shadowpr
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issues on 2 yr old system
sometimes yes they will recommend going to 2.2v
even if the BIOS has small incremental adjustments you can see if a slight bump in voltage helps...
Also it may need more HTT voltage or memory controller voltage...may still be labeled as NB voltage...
MaxRat
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issues on 2 yr old system
actually theres something i failed to mention, which i just realized is probably important.
prior to installing windows 7 RC i installed vista64 again, the install i had was 2 years old and starting to show its age, as many know, to install vista you cannot have more then 3GB of ram installed or it will bluescreen. i pulled 1 dimm out to install it, then put the dimm back in.
im assuming theres a chance a solder joint or trace may have been damaged\loosend due to this.
dont get me wrong, ive built many a pc, worked on many, but as everyone knows you still end up putting some pressure when pushing dimms in, or even a pci card sometimes. and id assume in a 2 year old machine theres a chance to upset something.
im wondering if i should pull the board out and touch up the joints on the dimm sockets, as well as reseat the cpu. any opinions?
at this point i almost just want to save up some money and buy new ram\mobo and a phenom II
mrtube
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issues on 2 yr old system
It sounds like a ram issue to me. And either more voltage, or new ram would fix.
Since I wouldn't feel comfortable with trying to fix any joints or sockets, I would just replace the ram and see if that works.
Of course, you could just save up and do an entire new build.
shadowpr
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issues on 2 yr old system
possibly a dumb question but,
whats the fastest ram i could use in this system? id feel better buying more modern ram that i could use when i buy a new mobo\cpu
like, could i buy some DDR3 and just run it at DDR2 800 speed?
mrtube
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issues on 2 yr old system
the only reason for the bluescreen is NOT the amount of ram installed but the setting of the ram...
Vista is VERY picky about ram timings...even a stable system deemed stable by stability test can produce ram errors in the Vista performance manager...
you really need to get that sorted before installing and OS...
if it doesnt pass installing it is only going to lead into and install that is less then perfect....
you can always call the ram manufacture and explain your issue and they will give you settings for your board to run for sticks....like I said it's going to be a combo of the ram timings and board settings...
even getting a new board and using the same 4 sticks will probably result in the same issues....
MaxRat
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issues on 2 yr old system
No,
the reason for the original bluescreen was the AMOUNT of ram installed.
vista, atleast the discs i have, CANNOT install or run on a system with more then 3GB installed without a patch. both 32bit and 64bit. this can be found at : http://support.microsoft.com/kb/929777
this bluescreen is TOTALLY differnt. the one i started getting later on has a bunch of hex numbers at the bottom and says it shutdown to protect the system.
its kind of moot at this point. corsair is going to tell me to run with the timings i used too. thats where they came from. thats why i used them for 2 years. 800Mhz 4-4-4-12 2T at 2.1V
maybe im ignorant, but im not understanding why i would have to change timings\voltages on a system that was rock solid for 2 years. and now wont post correctly with the same ram. it reboots during memtest IF it even gets that far.. it wont run it even with 5-5-5-18 which i think is default.
to me that says something is horribly wrong.
mrtube
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issues on 2 yr old system
the reason you get that error again is NOT the amount of ram installed but and unstable platform with more than 3 gig installed....
I helped on the Betas and I know for a fact that ram amount was NOT an issue with ANY vista build...but ram stability was...and most boards dont like 4 sticks installed...
I am sure beyond doubt that if your platform was rock stable with 4 sticks you wouldnt get that error....thats why MS posted to pull one stick out as that was an easier answer than to say you need to adjust your timings to get it to play nice....
for the average Joe this makes more sense than to play with timings as most people have the attitude why did i pay for ram that I have to set...? you shouldnt have to do anything but plug it in and go...
and even to this day you arent going to have ram that does this 100% of the time...
I have installed Vista in all versions with 4x2gig sticks for 8gig and I only ever got that error when the board didnt like 4 sticks.....
Tweak the timings and add voltage and Vista stops complaining....you get where i am going with this....?
MaxRat
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issues on 2 yr old system
i could see that being beleivable. more beleivable then a 64bit OS not being able to run with more then 3GB installed actaully.
good news, i kept swapping the dimms around until i got it to run memtest. one dimm fails BIG TIME. it seems, it kept getting worse until it wouldnt boot atall. when i got it into a socket with another dimm, it posted, loaded memtest and the screen filled with red failures.
so, i guess you guys were right, all i need to buy is 2 2x2 dimms and life will be fine.
btw, which is faster in the end, 4-4-4-12 2t or 5-5-5-18 1t?
as far as the comment on ram not running as spec'd, ive been seeing that alot. my friend recently bought 1600 and 1800MHz ram, NEITHER ran at its spec'ed frequency or timings. i think he finally got the 1800 to run at 13 and change.
is there any specific brand\model ram you guys would recommend for my setup?
mrtube
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issues on 2 yr old system
I think you are placing WAY too much importance on the ram speed. I almost always use Corsair DDR2-800, *BUT* in its C5 version that runs at 1.9 volts.
glc
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issues on 2 yr old system
In the M2N boards it's either the Corsair ram and glc mentioned or I like to run Patriot LLK series ram in those...
that board is VERY picky with ram so I would check the the Asus site for the qualified ram vendors for that board....
the best ram to get would be 1.8v ram or 1.9v ram as those boards work best with that...the LLK ram I used in the M2Ns was 2.1v and I needed 2.2v to get it stable...
If G-Skill is on the list look for the NQ versions and those will run in anything....
Some of the Corsair rams will too...
MaxRat
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issues on 2 yr old system
i sent the pair of dimms back to corsair as an RMA. it seems like they are going to replace them.
mrtube
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