Need Ram Help

Disaster1Disaster1
edited December 2003 in Hardware
I have:

FIC AM39L MOBO that came with my emachines (I Know, but I needed a cheap comp!) it can with 512MB PC2700 DDR Ram, I want to upgrade to a Gig, I bought a stick of Kingston 512MB PC2700 DDR ram, and when I tried it it showed up in my system properties, but then when I tried to do a virus scan and search on the net at the same time my comp crashed and rebooted, and proceeded to reboot 2 or 3 more times right in a row, it would get to the windows screen, start loading, and then reboot. Any idea why this is happening? I took it out for now until I find out what is going on...

Comments

  • muddocktormuddocktor
    edited December 2003
    Go download memtest86 and let it make a boot floppy then shut down and install that new stick of ram. Then boot up with the floppy and let memtest86 check and see if you are getting memory errors. It sounds like that ram isn't compatible with your machine and this will tell you for sure.
  • Disaster1Disaster1
    edited December 2003
    So what if it is not? Just try a different brand? I thought Kingston was a good brand...I can't find any info on my MOBO either, other than Jumper settings. No BIOS updates or anything. Are all ram sticks the same Frequency?? I mean for instance it says it is 333 mhz pc2700 DDR ram...could the PC 2700 that came included with my system be a different Frequency??
  • mmonninmmonnin Centreville, VA
    edited December 2003
    PC2700 should be the same as all other PC2700. I dont think they can change that. If its not compatitible they would have had to do something with the motherboard.

    It seems like a stick is bad so try what mudd said and got to memtest86.com and download it. There is an ISO that you can burn to a CD.
  • Disaster1Disaster1
    edited December 2003
    I am testing my ram now, so how does this work...if there are ANY errors it is not compatible right?
  • Geeky1Geeky1 University of the Pacific (Stockton, CA, USA)
    edited December 2003
    It's not an issue of not being compatible. To the best of my knowledge, ANY DDR will work in ANY motherboard that supports DDR ram (except some server boards that require ecc/reg and stuff) as long as the RAM is capable of at least the same speed as the FSB.

    Regardless, the RAM you bought will work in your board, unless the RAM is bad. If it returns any errors, the RAM is not incompatible, it's defective.
  • dodododo Landisville, PA
    edited December 2003
    Do you have an open RAM slot? You could try moving around your DIMMs to see if you can find a stable configuration.

    ~dodo
  • Straight_ManStraight_Man Geeky, in my own way Naples, FL Icrontian
    edited December 2003
    dodo is very smart. take a slower CAS memory module, and a faster CAS and other parms memory module. Put faster one in first slot, older one in same bank, on an older box, BIOS may try to run slower RAM at higher speed and you get memory errors. Put slow one first, you get stable but slower access for all modules.

    Something simnilar can happen, AND if you have a relaoded 98 SE you will have SE very unhappy with exactly one GIG of RAM. One trick, INCREASE frame buffer size, then the RAM available to SE is less than exactly on a half-gig boundary.

    Look and see if you set the memory setting up manually, put one with slower CAS in first bank or slot, then other in next bank\slot.

    You may not like how it comes up, but http://www.fic.com.tw/ had a master set of all sorts of older docs. Look for a language button up near top, probably top right of screen. Go to the ftp server, and on the ftp server itself they should still have older stuff available. if it is not indexed in support or the prodcut info page or a link from there, whic may be buttons, then if it has not been withdrawn totally it is still on the ftp server, and IE can explore FTP servers. Opera would be better, but IE will do to get docs at least.

    Also, if you have a CD with drivers for that mobo, look for a manual as an acrobat reader file on CD. Server might have more recent ones, but the CD one might have the info you need.

    Last, if you have a 4 slot RAM setup, see if all are same socket type by looking. and if you see they are all identical, put DIMMs in every other slot, like first and third, or 2nd and 4th. For a three slot board, all looking like same socket, sometimes you can get away with 2 larger DIMMs in first and thrid socket\slot and nothing in middle. Some boards were wired and BIOSed for a max of 256 per socket, and had two socket banks when you stuck in more than 256 per bank pair. IF you have only two sockets, see if manual on CD has acceptable DIMM list, look at sizes tested. Board might be limited to 128 MB per side DIMMs maximum.

    John.
  • Disaster1Disaster1
    edited December 2003
    My MOBO is fairly new. I can't even find any info on it on the FIC sight. My last stick of ram was bad. HOWEVER my new stick of tested good ram WILL work by itself, but not when I put it together with my older ram...it works when,like you said, the slower ram is in the first slot, and the faster in the second. BUT I think I am having the 1GB problem you described. How do I change my frame buffer though? 3D apps keep crashing the way it is now...TIA
  • ThraxThrax 🐌 Austin, TX Icrontian
    edited December 2003
    All memory modules are not created equal.

    You play a gambit, with a low chance of winning, when you mix and match brands. Intra-brand speedgrade matching is fine.. Inter-brand module matching is a no-no.
  • Geeky1Geeky1 University of the Pacific (Stockton, CA, USA)
    edited December 2003
    John, the last chipset I saw that didn't like high density RAM was the i810 or 815... Everything newer than that should be fine, and any socket athlon chipset is going to be newer than that.

    Anyhow, Disaster, you said that your old stick tested bad, right? (Just making sure). If so, was your system unstable before you got the new stick?

    If the RAM works with the old stick, the new stick, but not both together, and one stick tested bad, then the answer is fairly obvious- the stick that tested bad is, well, bad...
  • Disaster1Disaster1
    edited December 2003
    No Geeky, I exchanged the bad stick for a completely different brand. They both work together fine UNTIL i try to run anything that contains a 3D Image of any sort. Both sticks test out fine now. In fact I am running them both as week speak to search the net. I am thinking there is some conflict with my Radeon, though I have no clue how to fix it...I increased my AGP Apeture size from 128 to 256 and that didn't help at all...
  • ThraxThrax 🐌 Austin, TX Icrontian
    edited December 2003
    Memory is organized into data matrices.

    When loading the OS, it's the first thing sent to ram.. So let's make a diagram:

    is your whole memory module.
    [=========----------------------------------] is your OS loaded to RAM in working order.
    [=========----------------xx----------------] The Xs are where errors could be. Notice that you haven't hit the errors yet?
    [=========oooooooooooooooooo-------------] Oops! You're playing a game and filled up your ram, but you hit the faulty spots on the RAM!

    You crash out and quit.

    The errors could be produced from having two different brands of memory, which is <font color=red face=impact size=4><b>BAD</b></font>.

    Mixing and matching memory brands is the WORST thing you can do when you want your computer to work.
  • Geeky1Geeky1 University of the Pacific (Stockton, CA, USA)
    edited December 2003
    That's one I hadn't heard before, thrax... I'll have to keep that in mind. I've never had a problem with mixing brands before... oh well.

    Anyhow, I didn't see any mention of the results of the memtest you did. Did both sticks pass? And did you do a normal test, or a full test?
  • ThraxThrax 🐌 Austin, TX Icrontian
    edited December 2003
    A ton of my old customers from when I did PC repair brought computers in to me saying it was crashing now and wasn't crashing last month.

    I always asked them if they added anything to their computer, and a LOT of them said "Yeah, new memory."

    Took the memory stick out, computer worked beaaaautifully. Of those computers where I could match brands out of my own stock, I did so and their computers worked great!
  • Geeky1Geeky1 University of the Pacific (Stockton, CA, USA)
    edited December 2003
    Hmm. Strange... Guess I've just been lucky.
  • Disaster1Disaster1
    edited December 2003
    Thanks again Thrax you were right, it was the different brands...Now does anyone have any advice for my grey hair from fighting with my comp? hehe
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