CUSL2 and Mushkin HP Rev2 Strangeness

[Spacecomber]

I was wondering if anyone else was having any trouble getting the Mushkin HP PC133 Rev2 memory to run at the 133mhz with the timing settings at 22257. I can only complete the boot at this bus speed if I turn back the SDRAM cycle time to 7, 9. I have now tried two sticks of this Mushkin memory with the same result. It completes the memory check, says that it has initialized the PNP devices, but hangs at the point that it should go on to detect the drives.

I would blame my set up with its overclocked PIII700 (at 933mhz), but I have a 128mb stick of Memory Man memory that uses the same Mosel Vitalic chips, and it runs fine at the 22257 setting. In fact, I have discovered that if it occupies the first DIMM slot, and the Mushkin module occupies either the second or third slot; then, the Mushkin will also run at a 22257. But the Mushkin memory can not be used by itself at the 22257 setting, nor can it occupy a slot ahead of the Memory Man module and be able to boot with the 22257 setting.

I'm at a loss to understand this, can anyone shed some light on it for me?

Thanks,

Space

 

[Dug]

I can't answer your problem, as I am in the same situation. What I'm really wondering is if it makes that much difference.

 

[Spacecomber]

Admitedly, there isn't that big a difference between the 22257 setting and the 22279 setting, maybe a 7 or 8 point difference using Sandra's memory bandwidth test, which isn't even 2%.

22257: 403/471
22279: 396/463

Space

 

[Aboroth]

I have the exact same problem with two different 128MB Rev.2 sticks. The weird thing is that I know that on other boards like the P3V4X it works with the 5,7 setting but it doesn't on this one. Perhaps it is an issue with the BIOS. I think we should email Mushkin and Asus about it.

 

[Hankysmoo]

I have found out that i can run at only Up to 133 fsb at 5t/7t setting. anything higher my comp wont boot up. So...I just decided to leave my comp at 933 default voltage at 222 5t/7t. When I do 1 ghz at 1.7v, i have to go to 7t/9t....oh well. Since I like default voltage, everything is perfect at 933 This is one stick of Mosel Vitalic Rev2 in dimm slot 1

 

[Spacecomber]

Hey Aboroth,

Thanks for the feedback. I'm actually hoping to talk to one of their techs soon. I just bought this memory, so I'm still in the process of working out what to do next with them. I've given them what information I can on what I've seen in my system. It's helpful to know that it isn't just idiosyncratic to my setup.

I tend to agree that it is a compatability issue of some sort between the CUSL2 the the Mushkin Memory, though I would have expected to see the same problem with the other Mosel Vitalic memory.

I also wonder if the problem is just with the CUSL2 or whether it would also be with other i815e based MBs. I suspect it is related to the way Asus has tried to tweak this design.

Space

 

[Spacecomber]

Hey Hanky,

Thanks for the info. So, there does seem to be some luck of the draw involved with this issue, heheh. I just wanted to make sure; are you using a 128mb module?

Space

 

[jojiboy]

I've have 2 128mb Mushkin HP Rev2 at the 5/7 setting and things are stable. The difference is that I'm not overclocking as you fellas are.

 

[Hankysmoo]

space: yup, 128mb sdram

 

[Spacecomber]

Hey Guys,

Thanks for the replies. I talked with one of the technicians at Mushkin last night, and he had been trying the memory in a CUSL2 board that they had there. He wasn't seeing any trouble at the 133mhz with the 22257 setting. I should have asked what processor he was using, but I didn't think of it at the time. My guess is that it isn't overclocked, though. Jojiboy has a point; an overclocked processor is always a suspect, unless it can be proven otherwise.

Anyway, we worked out that I would send my memory modules back to Mushkin so they can try them in their CUSL2 system. Depending on the result, we will take it from there.

Even though the memory hasn't done what I wanted it to do, it's been a pleasure working with these people. They are obviously interested in tracking down a problem, if there is one, and trying to correct it. And they seem to stand behind their goal wanting the customer to be satisfied.

Space

 

[Aboroth]

I never said I was overclocking...
OK, fine, I am overclocking a 650e to 866. However it is not my overclocked system as I have two coppermines that overclock to a 133 bus and both of them act the same way with this RAM on this motherboard. My 650 does 866 at default voltage and increasing the voltage to insane levels as well as increasing the I/O voltage does nothing for helping the RAM boot up at those timings.
I think it is a safe bet there is some compatibility problem.
Spacecomber, it is nice of you to send in your RAM like that. Hopefully the rest of us with this problem don't need to do that.

Oh and here is a thread about this I posted a while ago.
http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview.cfm?catid=29&threadid=214907

 

[jojiboy]

I agree with your statement about Mushkin. I've ordered my RAM from them for over two years and when I had any issues (very rare indeed with them), they always made it right and in a prompt manner.

I have a P3 800e coming in a day or so that I'm planning on overclocking using my current setup. I'll see if I can duplicate the problems you all are having with the Mushkin RAM. I'll update with the results sometime this weekend.

 

[TuffGuy]

i'm fairly sure that the problem lies with the cusl2 and not so much with the ram. i have tried 3 sticks - 1 mushkin hp rev2, 1 infineon, and 1 crucial. neither one will do 2-2-2-5,7 above 133mhz. but they will all do 2-2-2-7,9 up to 150mhz.

 

[Spacecomber]

Here's an update on this, in case anybody was still wondering. I sent the two modules from Mushkin back, so they could see if they would work at the 22257 setting on their CUSL2 test board. Unfortunately, the person who received the package at Mushkin decided to just give me a refund without sending the modules on to the technician, who I had been talking to about testing these modules to see what they would do for him. Apparently, these modules just ended up in a pile somewhere, so there was no way to identify them.

At that point, I decided to just go along with the refund. There's a chance that I somehow got two sub-par modules, which the technician seemed to think might be the case. But I couldn't confirm that by letting Mushkin test them on their system anymore, so I decided to just go with the flow and absorb the shipping cost. I ordered a Mosel Vitalic Module from Memory Man, which is where I got my original module from anyway, and I decided to see how it would do. I just received that a few days ago, and it works fine at the 22257 setting, so I'm a happy camper.

For what it's worth, these modules do seem to be using chips from different production runs. Maybe there is some difference in how they perform. My original Mosel Vitalic module from Memory Man had chips marked 0010PR on one side and 0019PR on the other. The two Mushkin modules had chips marked 0019PR on one side and 0029 on the other. The new Memory Man module has chips marked 0033PR on both sides. It's a pretty slim chance that the production run is what makes the difference, but I pass that along for what it is worth.

Space

 

[Madcowz]

can I ask where you picked up the memman stick?

 

[Spacecomber]

Here's the Memory Man URL: www.memory-man.com

Space

 

[rosarian007]

Hey, guys. I just got 2 sticks from Mushkin and I can't get 22257. After the motherboard detects the memory the system hangs. I am not overclocking. If you have any suggestions please post them. Thanks.

 

[Aboroth]

rosarian please email Mushkin support about this. I emailed them and the guy who responded didn't seem to believe it was the fault of the memory. Yeah, thats great, but it still doesn't do what I want it to. Not very helpful. Maybe if more people email them they will get the point and try to work with Asus for a BIOS fix.

I bet the RAM does something too fast for the motherboard to handle so it freezes. I am not sure what, but it is just a wild guess.

 

[rosarian007]

Aboroth I found a way to get my system to run at 22257 without overclocking, but I am getting poor memory performance scores with Sisoft Sandra. I set the FSB:SDR-PCI Freq Ratio to 133, 100, 33 then I set the Freq Mhz to 133, 100, 33. The system started up fine, but when I checked the memory performance with Sisoft Sandra the results were scary. (At 2,2,2,79 I usually get around 392/458). If you guys have any suggestions on how I can increase my memory performance please post your suggestions. Thanks

 

[Spacecomber]

Rosarian, I'm not sure that there is anyway to get those Mushkin modules to run at 22257 on the 133mhz bus with a CUSL2. If they won't do it, that seems to be the way it is. On the other hand, the performance difference between 22257 and 22279 is pretty insignificant, less than 2%. Since I had just bought my Mushkin module when I discovered it couldn't do the 22257 setting in my system, I decided to fuss about it. In the end, all I could do was return the Mushkin and try another brand.

I'm happier with the Memory Man, since it will do 22257, but I wouldn't say my system is all that much faster for it.

The only work around to getting the Mushkin to operate at 22257 seemed to be to team them up with another module that will run at that speed. The other memory has to be in the first slot on the MB. Don't ask me why this worked for me, but it seemed to allow the Mushkin module to get past the boot and accept that 22257 setting.

Sorry I can't be of more help.

Space

 

[rosarian007]

Supposedly "jojiboy" can run the Mushkin Rev2s @ 2,2,2,57 on a Asus CUSL2 without overclocking the CPU.

 

[jojiboy]

Actually, I'm currently running a P3 800 @ 960 1.7v at 2,2,2,5/7 with no problems whatsoever.

 

[Madcowz]

It doesn't really matter much for me since I'm running 150MHz FSB and I doubt there's any RAM that exists that can do 150@2-2-2-5/7, but I'd take 150MHz memory bus at 2-2-2-7/9 anyday over 117@ 2-2-2-5/7

I'm thinking of bumping up my cooling to get 166FSB so I can get 133 memory bus at 2-2-2-5/7 and hopefully see a large improvement

BTW if there is any miracle memory that does 150MHz+ @2-2-2-5/7, Iz gotz ta know about it!

 

[rosarian007]

Madcowz what are your Memory Benchmark Sisoft Sandra Scores @ 2,2,2,7/9 because I am getting a lower scores @150. @133 2,2,2,7/9 I am getting 392/458.
@150 I am getting 330/350. If you have any suggestions please post them. Oh, by the way I called Mushkin Inc. and they told me it was pretty much the luck of the draw if you get a Rev2 module that can do 2,2,2,5/7 at 133 and above. He told me to try one stick of the Rev2 and see if it can hit 2,2,2,5/7. He was very helpful and also suggested that if I wasn't happy with the module he would happily replace them for another module. It could just be the Asus CUSL2 I think. Supposedly the Rev2s run at 2,2,2,5/7 on the Asus P3V4X

 

[Darknight]

I went in on that last group order with djohn (Thanks, Bud!) and my pair of black PCB rev2's are running at 22257 on a CUSL2 with a 700 cb0 o/c to 973 @ 1.8 vcore. That leaves the ram running at ... 139.

Edit to add the SiSoft Sandra Memory Benchmark Score:
408/478

I guess it's the luck of the draw... Anybody else who has black PCB's get to 22257? The color shouldn't have anything to do with it, but you never know I guess...