Originally posted by: WhipperSnapper
Games crash with 4 x 512 but not 2 x 512 RAM (revisited)
In Septemter I put up some posts describing my problem with 4 x 512 Corsair Value RAM. I have an update. Yesterday I removed the 2 sticks I'd added and went back to 2 x 512. Tada! Unreal Tournament 2004 and FEAR Combat run just fine after "downgrading".
However, earlier the RAM had gone for at least three hours and 4.5 passes on Memtest86 without any problems.
So, it definitely looks like it's some sort of issue with the RAM? Could it have been a bad installation on my part? Could it be bad RAM in spite of the Memtest? A problem with my processor's memory controller? Or a problem with the motherboard's RAM slots?
I guess the next test is to swap out the original 2 x 512 sticks and replace them with the new ones and see what happens. If it all runs fine, then take the original two sticks and add them to slots 3 and 4. I have my memory timings set to Auto, so I would presume that the 1T-2T issue issn't a problem.
September's post follows:
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My problem:
Certain games seem to run for a couple minutes (3-5) and then crash, freezing the system. UT 2004 and FEAR Combat crash, but UT 1999 does not. I have 4 x 512 Corsair Value RAM in an Epox EP-9npa+ Ultra motherboard. Before I upgraded to 2 GB, I had 2 x 512 and everything ran fine. I ran MemTest86 on it (with 4 x 512) for three hours (4.5 passes) and it didn't reveal any errors.
Video card is a Connect3d x800 GTO unlocked to 16 pipes running at stock speed (no need to overclock it yet). I don't suspect it's the culprit since UT 2004 seemed to run fine on it before I added the other two sticks of RAM. CPU is an Opteron 148 (stock 2.2 Ghz) overclocked 25% to 2.75 Ghz.
The RAM was purchased at two different times in two 2 x 512 pairs. I'm pretty certain that I would have installed the first two into the proper slots for dual channel. Is it possible that the two different RAM orders, although the exact same model, aren't completely compatable? If you had 4 sticks instead of 2, would you want to put the matching sticks in different RAM banks than the banks you would put two sticks in for dual channel if you only had two sticks?
Is there anything that I can do to solve this problem without buying new RAM (2 x 1 GB), or will I have to resign myself to simply removing the two new sticks and going with 2 x 512?
Has anyone else dealt with this, and how did you fix it? Might I need to tweak BIOS settings for the RAM?
[Note--I'm putting this under Motherboards since it's an issue that might be specific to nForce 4 Socket 939 motherboards and processors.]
Originally posted by: sgtdic
i have the 4 x 512 and dont have any problems with my ram (corsair vs). i use the factory timings and you have to use 2T. BF2 and fear combat run totally fine. FYI, i also have my 3000 o/c'd to 2.4 and still no issues.
Originally posted by: WhipperSnapper
Could someone please link me to the latest, proper motherboard driver for this motherboard? I'm thinking about deleting and cleaning out all of my drivers and starting over with fresh driver installs.
Should I use a (outdated?) driver from Epox's site or should I download the latest nForce4 driver from nVidia?
Originally posted by: WhipperSnapper
OK, on to the next subject. Now I want to upgrade my single core Opteron 148 to a dual core 4200. I'm using an EPOX BIOS that was released on January 12, 2006. I'd prefer NOT to have to flash the BIOS again because I'm happy with it the way it is now (unless that's what's causing my 4 x 512 RAM problem) and it's always risky. (However, getting those additional RAM speed settings, 150 and 183, is tempting.)
Will my mobo recognize and run the Athlon X2 4200 or will I need to do a BIOS flash? What is the most recent BIOS for this mobo and is it worth the risk to flash to it?
Originally posted by: trOver
how did this thread get to be so long? I had this mobo ~3 years ago
Originally posted by: WhipperSnapper
What do you do for a sound chip driver? Just use the Realtek driver from the Epox website (if it will download for you)? Does it conflict with the nVidia nForce4 driver at all?
It's almost impossible to download anything from Epox's website at all now. What a joke! Is Epox more or less going out of business?
My first post in such a long time. I sold my EP-9NPA+Ultra to my nephew over a year ago. It has a 3000+ Venice and tomorrow UPS will be delivering a 4200+ X2 Toledo to my door. I'm going to be doing the installation but I'm wondering which bios I need to install first.
As to the issue of BIOS:Originally posted by: MadScientist
You can still download the last bios update from Epox's Global English website under Support. The Magic Bios software that came with the MB also still seems to work. I just tried it and it connected to the server and told me I had the latest bios. I used it to flash my bios in Windows, never had a problem with it flashing in Windows.