memtest86+ v4.10

[DirtyElf]

when running memtest are a few errors ok? or am i going for 0 errors no matter what? does 5 errors mean that one of the sticks of ram is bad? or does it have to be like 100's of errors?

i should narrow it down by slot/stick right? (use known good slot with each stick, then use known good stick in each slot)

 

[TVeblen]

You want no errors. Any errors indicate a problem.

A good test is to install one stick at a time into RAM Slot 1 (or A1) and run Memtest on it. Do each stick one at a time. If only one stick shows errors then you have your culprit. If All sticks show errors then you want to do the test in another slot.

Let us know.

 

[DirtyElf]

yeah thats what i figured... i just rma'ed this set... sucks that i got ANOTHER bad set

 

[TVeblen]

The RAM you're trying to use, is it listed in the motherboard manufacturer's Qualified Vendors List of compatible modules?

 

[DirtyElf]

the specific model is not, which worries me. the brand (a-data) does however have other similar models listed

and it looks like the QVL hasnt been updated since the board first came out

 

[TVeblen]

Yeah, some motherboards are real touchy about the RAM. And 2 sets being bad sends up the big red flag as far as compatibility goes. You might want to see if they will switch out the RMA with a set that is on the QVL.

 

[DirtyElf]

i had 4gb of the same model run through 17 passes overnight

i had originally purchased 8gb of this model and couldnt get windows installed, upon running memtest i found out i had a bad stick of ram. i installed windows with one of the good sticks, and installed the other stick and was running fine. the other 2 sticks came back from the RMA and then i put all 4 in and memtest showed errors. now im running the sticks individually to see if maybe i got another bad one

 

[TVeblen]

Time will tell.

 

[DirtyElf]

i hate staring at this blue screen. lol.

 

[DirtyElf]

one stick ran through 5 passes in slot a1, the other one just completed 1 pass... gonna let it go for five to be sure.

sounds like i have a bad slot

 

[DirtyElf]

I can't boot to memtest from USB with a stick in a secondary slot. Like it must be either a1 or b1. Is that normal? If I know I have all good sticks of ram I can just run memtest with a1 and a2 then if that fails I know a2 is bad? Same with b slots...?

 

[DirtyElf]

good sticks in slots a1 and a2 pass, then good sticks in slot b1 and b2 pass

then when i put all four of them in, errors

im getting frustrated with this.

edit: going to run known good pair in each combination of slots. then run other pair in same configurations. i think i may just have more bad ram... wtf

 

[brianzion]

hows it going have you solved it

 

[TVeblen]

What this sounds like is that when all 4 slots are populated the power to all drops, but when the system is only powering 2 sticks it's stable. Insufficient power to the RAM will cause the errors. This can be caused by a faulty power supply or a faulty motherboard, but sometimes it is just a glitch in the power to the modules.

You can use CPU-Z to look at your voltages and compare them to the motherboard's spec.
A test to try is to go into the BIOS and up the voltage to the RAM slightly. If the RAM Bus is running at 1.65v now you tweak it up to 1.70v and test.

I should have asked this before, but are you running the system with all the BIOS defaults for Main system components, CPU, and RAM? Have you made any previous changes using the AI Tweaker?

 

[DirtyElf]

all bios are at default (except AHCI controller) and updated to current rev

i ran the two good sticks i had last night in a1/a2 they passed 11 passes no errors. i have them in b1/b2 now and when i get home im assuming they will pass without errors.

then ill run the other pair in a1/a2 and b1/b2 to see what happens... if the other pair fails where the good pair did not that would indicate bad sticks right?

 

[DirtyElf]

just got home... same sticks that passed 11 passes in a1/a2 passed 12 in b1/b2... no errors.

going to start with the other two sticks in the same two configurations to see if it is indeed bad ram sticks again

 

[TVeblen]

Not liking the voltage idea, huh?

If both pairs of modules passed in slots A1-2 and in B1-2 then I think you can assume the modules are good and you will need to look at other possible causes.

 

[DirtyElf]

yep......... errors with the other two sticks

man this is kind of stupid.


edit: saw the reply... i ran the two known good sticks in both pairs of slots.. to ensure that the slots themselves were good. when i got home today i put the new sticks that came from the RMA in, and they showed errors on the first pass - with only two sticks installed... that kind of debunks the voltage issue

 

[TVeblen]

Yep. I agree.
That's the hard part about diagnosing systems across the ether. It's sometimes hard to get the picture of what you have done/are doing straight in my head!

It sounds like you got a handle on it now. It's still pretty bad that you got an RMA replacement that was also bad. I'd be rippin' !!

 

[DirtyElf]

yeah and now its been past 30 days.. i have to go through A-Data now.. cant RMA anymore