[gerryf]

??

You've only got one stick of ram in there.

Who built this? Kind of odd that someone would use 1 stick in a nforce2 chipset...don't get the advantage of dual channel ram that way.

Got another PC so you can test the ram?

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A friend of mine built this computer. Unfortunately i have no way of testing the RAM.

Edited by ossiebeans, 09 July 2005 - 08:09 PM.

[ossiebeans]

A friend of mine built this computer. Unfortunately i have no way of testing the RAM.

Edited by ossiebeans, 09 July 2005 - 08:09 PM.

[gerryf]

you can run memtest86+

http://www.memtest.org/

burn it to a cd and boot, it will run a test.

This is not an absolute test though. I have had many sticks pass this test and others, only to find replacing the stick of ram fixes all problems. Surely, someone you know has a computer you can use their ram from for an hour or two (like your friend who opted not to use two stick of RAM in a dual channel system)

[The Skeptic]

1: Is the motherboard in the computer recommended by AMD for this CPU? If not, everything is possible. I have heard of many cases in which AMD CPUs gave such problems.

2: Check if latencies for the memory are not too tight for your memory module. Get into Bios and set it to default values. If this doesn't help then set it to best performance values. If that doesn't help then you have to find the memory specs and set the bios accordingly.

3: Assuming the CPU is compatible with the board, many other things can cause the crash starting with a faulty power supply and ending with mother board or CPU. The only practical way to isolate the problem is to replace hardware pieces, one at a time, restart the computer and see after which replacement the computer works well. the most common causes for such problems are a bad memory module and a faulty power supply. Next I would check the video card.

I know this sounds like an awfull lot of work which needs replacement parts but that's the only systematic approach.

Good luck

[ossiebeans]

Yeh AMD recommends this motherboard for my athlon. I'm having a hard time getting any of my friends to help me out with this, the guy who built it now refuses to have anything to do with it .

I ran memtest, but i think it crashed midway through as i left it and came back only to find it has started again. Last i saw it was reporting something like 300 000 errors and counting. I'm going to run it again soon but that doesn't look good does it?

Thanks for all your comments and suggestions, there's nothing so lonely as having computer difficulties and having no one to ask for advice.

[Rockster2U]

I wouldn't be worried about the Core voltage value either - 1.7 isn't going to hurt that CPU at all and your temperature (50C range) is most acceptable, even though it is a bit high. I'm with gerryf on this one - I think you have a memory problem and I guess your memtest is telling you the same thing. Sounds like you got porked a bit with a single stick of some cheap memory. You should also check your cpu fan because its not showing up in Everest - should be a 3 pin connector to the CPU fan header which will give you an rpm readout that Everest should pick up. The only fan speed showing is power supply. Maybe there's a reason that your builder has gone incognito on you.

[gerryf]

I ran memtest, but i think it crashed midway through as i left it and came back only to find it has started again.  Last i saw it was reporting something like 300 000 errors and counting.  I'm going to run it again soon but that doesn't look good does it?

GEEAHHGGHH!!!!!! 300,000 errors...jiminy cricket!

Well, there you go...you need new ram.

Memtest86 WILL start over again..it is designed to do that...When I buy new ram, I typically run it for several hours

[ossiebeans]

Heh ok I might go grab some. The guy at a store i called recommended the Hynix 400DDR 512. Does anyone know if this is reliable or compatible? Should i go for something more expensive, this is only $69 Australian.

Edited by ossiebeans, 10 July 2005 - 10:59 PM.

[The Skeptic]

The fact that memtest fails doesn't necessarilly mean a bad ram. If, for example, power supply is not stable, it will affect memory performance and test results.

Crucial (a micron division) has a search engine that helps you to find the right module for your computer. Look at it. they guarantee compatability.

I hate to say this but I really think that at this point of time you would be better off taking the computer to a good technician. Your problem can be easily diagnosed if you have replacements on hand. You could end up buying a memory module only to find out that the problem is somewhere else. The cheapest, fastest most logical approach at this point is to take the computer to a decent lab.

[ossiebeans]

Well I got the new RAM and it seems that the problem is gone!
Thanks very much to everyone who replied to this, i am so pleased that there are people willing to help out novices like myself.

[Rockster2U]

Go back to jerryf's earlier post - perhaps you overlooked the reference he made to your NVidia chipset and the dual channel memory. With one stick you are locked out of any opportunity to take advantage of your board's full potential. Running two identical sticks (one in each bank) will give you much better performance. If that new stick put a smile on your face, head back to the store and buy its twin brother.

Note: Most manufacturers strongly recommend buying a matched pair of sticks which has been tested and is sold as a pair, however, quite often two identical single sticks will give you flawless performance too. Not guaranteed mind you, but usually you can get away with this. Your alternative (if they have it) is to return the new stick and buy a matched pair with the same specs as your new chip.

Good Luck.

[ossiebeans]

Wow, I got another stick of RAM and you guys are right - the perfomance boost is unbelievable. I couldn't be more happy about the situation and wanted to thank everyone one last time. You guys rock.

[gerryf]

The HUGE performance boost is probably due to the extra headroom the ram provides---you won't be hitting your harddrive hardly as much, if ever...and with games, you hit the harddrive a lot. So a gig of ram can be very, very sweet.

The dual channel memory is supposed to be a big boost, but I tend to find only about a 10-15 percent boost with dual channel...and more modern chipsets can give you a memory boost without dual channel.

But with that chipset, the dual channel is a nice boost.