Legit Reviews

hi,i got a pc2700 ddr, unbranded, non-ecc, unregistered, cas3.0 1024bm ram, but the system wont recoganise it!

my spec:

cpu amd athlonxp1800+
mainboard asus a7v333

i tried running the pc with the old 256 pc2100 ram and the new one both plugged, the system can only recoganise the 256 one. then if use cpuz to check spec, i can see that there is a ram on dimm slot #x, but cannot read the info of that ram.

if running along with pc2700 1024, the pc wont boot up at all.

whats the possible reasons pls? a7v333 definately supports pc2700. defect? or is it because voltage? btw this mainboard does not allow me to change cas latency(only 2.0 or 2.5, but this new old has cas 3, possible reason?) or voltage for ram, what can i do?

help urgently needed!thanks verymuch!!!

another thing may be useful is that the 1024one gets very hot after pc running for a few minutes, more than the 256one

Right click "my computer" and click "properties". How much RAM does it show in there?
Did you try the 1Gb stick by its self in all of the different slots?

hi. have tried those, stilll does not work. system properties says itis 256mb

do i need to adjust cpu speed to as to match the new ram? but i think the ram should automatically match the current fsb and cpu, not the reverse

You shouldn't have to adjust any speeds.
hmmmm, are you sure the stick of RAM you got is good? Is there another computer you could try it in just to see if it works?

Also, you could try clearing the CMOS to reset the BIOS.
Just remove the RAM, take out the little round, silver battery, move the CMOS jumper clear for 30 secons, then move the jumper back, then replace the battery, then replace your RAM. Consult your motherboard manual for information regarding the location of the CMOS jumper and how to use it.

Check to make sure that your board:
1. Supports 1GB dimms

2. That a 1GB dimm does not have to be in a particular dimm slot to run

Some of the older boards were wierd about this stuff. So a quick look at the manual should help.

Make sure the BIOS is updated to the most recent version and try posting at CL3 timings or on all AUTO in the BIOS. The memory module's SPD might be set wrong and you may need to manually set CL3 timings for it to operate. Since you can't do this with the module installed you may have to use the 256mb module to update the BIOS and set the settings.

If this fails Iwould say that it is time to send it back as the module is dead...

GENERIC MEMORY!!!!!!!!!

thanks so much guys. i will try these now and hopefully taclke the problem...

thanks

Apoptosis wrote:Make sure the BIOS is updated to the most recent version and try posting at CL3 timings or on all AUTO in the BIOS. The memory module's SPD might be set wrong and you may need to manually set CL3 timings for it to operate. Since you can't do this with the module installed you may have to use the 256mb module to update the BIOS and set the settings.

If this fails Iwould say that it is time to send it back as the module is dead...

GENERIC MEMORY!!!!!!!!!

sounds all too familiar eh Apop?? Funny thing is, that was my very first problem coming into this room, and why I'm still here today, lol. It was the first thing I posted about a long time ago (4 months) and found out it was generic, lol

thanks so much guys!

just tried those but still doesnt help. just wanna make sure, a cl3 memory wont work when cl is set to a lower value will it? coz even the latest bios does not support a cl3 choice, so i suppose that could be a reason that the ram not working?

anyway i will try it on my m8's pc as well see if it is a geniue error of the ram itself.

thanks for help

That board should have a setting for a CAS Latency of 3. If it doesn't set it to auto.

Some of that generic memory wont run at CL2 or Cl2.5 since a 1GB module is a bit tricky to run at tight timings with all the memory IC's that are used on it.

Tough break!

thanks apoptosis

that board doesnt even have an auto cl option, only 2 or 2.5 which makes me unable to test the 1gb memory correctly....

If that is the case I don't think that module will work on your board due to the density of it. You either need high end gamer memory (CL2.5 @ 1GB) or go to a 512mb module that is able to run at CL2 or CL2.5.

thanks apoptosis! you reminded me that this memory is indeed a LOW DENSITY, but what does that mean? have returned it, but still wanna know.... what is the DENSITY? what memories normally have low D and wat have high D? where are they used?

many thanks!

I think when he refers to memory "density", it is basically just the number/amount of memory IC (Integrated Circuit) chips there are on the memory's PCB (Printed Circuit Board). The more chips, the larger capacity the memory can hold, the higher the density (because there are more chips crammed onto the PCB). You can only fit so many DDR chips on a stick of DDR RAM, so in order to get higher memory capacity, you need higher density memory IC's. For example, I think a 512mb memory stick has the same number of memory IC's as a 1Gb stick. So how can the one stick have twice the capacity with the same physical number of memory chips? The 1Gb stick has more memory per chip; each chip on the PCB is higher "density".

At least that is my take on it, Apop might want to clear that up though...

thanks! learned alot from you all

ziqiproject wrote:thanks apoptosis! you reminded me that this memory is indeed a LOW DENSITY, but what does that mean? have returned it, but still wanna know.... what is the DENSITY? what memories normally have low D and wat have high D? where are they used?

many thanks!

Density is defined as: n 1: the amount per unit size [syn: denseness]

So I was just stating that 1GB and 2GB modules are more dense than 256mb or 512mb modules. A 1GB DDR2 module in a 64M x 8 configuration would need to have 16 memory IC's to reach the 1GB mark. That is 8 IC's on EACH side of the module. Since the number of IC's are doubled the chances of the one being "weak" (unable to overclock well) increases. In your case 1GB modules were not really in mass production when your board was made. So, the board and BIOS was never meant to handle high capacity/density. Not to mention the whole two banks are being used and all that more techie stuff.

Glad you learned a bunch!

hell man, you taught ME something, lol! So I guess one's to assume that you want low density RAM to prevent a chance of a lagging chip? But, then you have to take into consideration the newer, great overclockers like the LP line that could take high-density RAM and OC it well. You tell me, lol

Think of it this way... you have a 1GB module thhat has 16 IC's on it. The module is rated at 400MHz, granted all the IC's should be able to run this and more. You overclock the module to the max, lets say 600MHz for this example. Chances are the only thing holding you back is one IC that doesn't like higher speeds. I've removed TSOP IC's and replaced them to tweak modules. I've even seen memory companies take another brands module remove all the IC's, put it on their PCB, and have it run the same or worse than before. An example of this is when the whole Brianpower PCB news broke over a year ago. Corsair overclocked their modules and documented the specs on the JEDEC PCB. They then brought in brand X with the same brand IC's and the Brainpower PCB's and documented those. When both modules were done with testing they switched IC's (Samsung TCCD's) and the results were the same, thus showing the overclocking limitation was in the PCB.... I'm rambling now...

so the PCB couldn't withstand the voltage it was being fed then? so it does make a difference between PCB's