Please help me set up my RAM

[JackSpadesSI]

Disclaimer: I wasn?t sure whether to post this under ?Motherboards? or ?Memory and Storage? so please move this post if necessary.

I?m having system instability issues which I believe can be attributed to my RAM. My system specs are in my signature, but to be more specific I?ll detail the RAM and MOBO:

RAM?
Corsair Dominator
TWIN2X4096-8500C5D
DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500)
4GB (2 x 2GB)
Timing listed as = 5-5-5-15-2T (not sure what 2T is)
Voltage = 2.1V
Dual Channel Kit

MOBO?
Gigabyte
GA-EP45-UD3P
Rev. 1.1
BIOS ver. F9
I just had this RMA?ed by Gigabyte and it didn?t help

In my BIOS the DRAM settings are all set to ?Auto?. It detects the speed as 1066 MHz and I know Windows detects the full 4GB (I?m using Vista 64-bit). The timings and voltage are on ?Auto? but if I manually adjust the voltage to its setting of 2.1V the text goes red which (to me) indicates a risk.

Does anyone have this RAM/MOBO combo? Would you please help me set up the RAM to function correctly (I need specific instructions because I?m not good at this)?

THANKS, in advance!

 

[VirtualLarry]

You do need to set the voltage to 2.1V, if that's what the RAM is rated at.
Timings, you could leave at Auto, or you could manually set them. 2T at the end is known as the "command rate", and on Intel-chipset motherboards is always defaulted to 2T anyways. Only NVidia chipsets can have 1T.
The speed, DDR2-1066, is 533Mhz. If that mobo supports 1066 out of the box, then it may set the FSBRAM ratio properly automatically, but if not, you will have to set it.

 

[JackSpadesSI]

Why should I have to set the voltage to 2.1V, though? Shouldn't "Auto" just figure that out on its own? The red text of the "2.1V" worried me that I was going to fry something. I'm not sure if that is a generic red-text warning for all ram, though, not taking into account that my RAM needs 2.1V.

The GA-EP45-UD3P motherboard does support 1066 MHz out of the box. That's why I bought this RAM.

My CPU is the Intel E8500 which, as I understand, is 333 MHz FSB. I am not overclocking. Also, the way I understand RAM it is 2x, so my CPU requires RAM at 667 MHz. Is that what you mean by setting the FSBRAM ratio? Do I have to input something to make it run only at 667 MHz vs. the full 1066 MHz???

 

[taltamir]

download and run cpuz and look at your ram. your ram contains a chip with default timings at various mhz speed. all of which assume default voltage of 1.8v
2.1 volts will increase heat consumption and shorten its life, however that is acceptable to many, and is the method used by almost all companies to advertise their ram speed... that is, they advertise a max speed achievable by your ram at an overvolted and overclocked rate... probably the highest it will reach.

Just leave everything at auto and it should work fine. make sure though by running memtest from http://www.memtest.org/ for an ENTIRE NIGHT... it should have ZERO ERRORS at the end of the testing!

so my CPU requires RAM at 667 MHz

No... that is only the case for really old chips, for modern chips the ram is a multiplier of the base FSB. you can also adjust it in many mobos... your CPU is getting 1333mhz by using a base of 333fsb x 4. It has a clockspeed which is a 333mhz fsb x 9.5 = 3.16 ghz, and your ram will be getting 800 mhz (the max default DDR2 standard) by doing 333fsb x 2.4.

You can further tweak it but shouldn't. Overclocking the ram is pointless for speed.

the only point of getting 1066 ram is that if you do EXTREME over clocking of your CPU. When you overclock, you increase the base fsb. if you increase it from 333 to 400 you have increased the CPU communication from 333x4 to 400 x 4 = 1600, the ram to 1000, and the CPU speed to 400 * 9.5 = 3.8ghz. However, you can adjust the ram multiplier down to a MINIMUM of x2. which gives you 400 x 2 = 800 mhz... If you wanted to further push it, you will HAVE to increase the ram speed, at which point the ram you bought becomes useful, if you increase the base fsb up to 533 mhz, you will still be within the approved operation range of your ram (533 x 2 = 1066). however there is practically no chance of either your motherboard or CPU handling that speed without some serious voltage increase, luck, build quality, and cooling increase... 533 x 9.5 = 5.06 ghz

To sum up the wall of complicated text...
1. Run your ram at default
2. The only reason to buy DDR2 @ 1066mhz ram instead of DDR2 @ 800mhz is if you intend to overclock your CPU (default, 3.16ghz) BEYOND 3.8ghz, but below 5.063 ghz
To go above 5.063 you will need even faster ram (those figures VARY depending on which CPU you overclock)

 

[JackSpadesSI]

Well, that's just it. My computer didn't run fine when everything was set to "Auto". The computer would randomly shut off, or try to reboot itself. Or, when I was turning it on from being off it wouldn't boot to Windows, but rather continuously reboot after the BIOS info scrolled by.

I initially blamed all of this on the MOBO so I RMA'ed it to Gigabyte. They looked at it and sent it back, but the same thing is happening. I can't think of anything else besides RAM. Also, I've taken it to my local PC repair place and they also came to the same conclusion about it being RAM. However, they have no advice on how to fix the RAM's settings in the BIOS.

I've ran Memtest (not overnight, but for ~5 hours) with zero errors.

The BIOS detects the RAM at 1066 MHz. You said it should be 800 MHz if I'm not overclocking (which, again, I'm not). Should I manually set it lower? Also, should I manually set the voltage to 2.1V even if I'm not overclocking?

I can't leave it the way it is because something has to be wrong. There is obviously some issue with some component (or combination of components) which is causing severe instability.

 

[taltamir]

Well, that's just it. My computer didn't run fine when everything was set to "Auto". The computer would randomly shut off, or try to reboot itself. Or, when I was turning it on from being off it wouldn't boot to Windows, but rather continuously reboot after the BIOS info scrolled by.

Some small amount of the extreme overclocking ram will NOT work properly in normal voltage of 1.8
if that is the case, you must increase the voltage to 2.1 for it to work...

The BIOS detects the RAM at 1066 MHz.

There are rare VERY specific cases where specific combinations of ram and mobo will do that (it requires collaboration)... quite interesting that it does it now...

I've ran Memtest (not overnight, but for ~5 hours) with zero errors.

This is interesting... how often do you get random crashes? try running memtest longer, it is entirely possible that your problem isn't the ram but something else.

 

[JackSpadesSI]

I understand that 2.1V RAM needs to be set at 2.1V. So if I had manually set it to 1.8V I could understand the source of the problem. What I was wondering is why I have to set it to 2.1V when I feel "Auto" should be sufficient. In my mind, "Auto" would detect the RAM's needed voltage and set it to that behind the scenes. Nonetheless, I'll try setting it to 2.1V manually tonight.

There are rare VERY specific cases where specific combinations of ram and mobo will do that (it requires collaboration)... quite interesting that it does it now...

Are you saying that my BIOS shouldn't be detecting my RAM at 1066 MHz? Should it show something lower like 667 MHz or 800 MHz?

The computer will crash in some fashion (turn off, enter a continuous reboot cycle) if left on for 48 hours. Also, when turning on from being off it will continuously boot maybe 98% of the time. It isn't an overheating issue - well ventilated, and all fans spin. I've got a good CPU cooler on. Also, the computer could be off for a week and the rebooting cycle will still happen.

Nothing is corrupted on the HDD, either, because I even used a whole new HDD with only Vista installed and it still happens - although not immediately... it seems to take 3 days for the system to worsen all the way.

Like I've said, the motherboard has been checked out OK. The power supply should be ample for what I'm running. The video card is fine (I'm basing that on the fact that it displays video just fine).

What could it be besides RAM???

 

[Allio]

Originally posted by: JackSpadesSI
Are you saying that my BIOS shouldn't be detecting my RAM at 1066 MHz? Should it show something lower like 667 MHz or 800 MHz?

The computer will crash in some fashion (turn off, enter a continuous reboot cycle) if left on for 48 hours. Also, when turning on from being off it will continuously boot maybe 98% of the time. It isn't an overheating issue - well ventilated, and all fans spin. I've got a good CPU cooler on. Also, the computer could be off for a week and the rebooting cycle will still happen.

Ok, here's the situation as I understand it. High-speed memory (such as your sticks) often require a higher than normal voltage to reach that rated speed. However, not all motherboards are capable of supplying that voltage. If they programmed the RAM to boot by default at 1066 MHz and 2.1V, certain motherboards wouldn't be able to boot at all. To counteract this, they often program more modest defaults (such as 800 MHz and 1.8V) so the sticks will boot on all boards. It boots, then you switch the settings to manual, crank up the voltage and the speed and you're away.

For some reason, by default you're getting the worst of both worlds - high speed and low voltage. Either drop the speed to 800 MHz, or increase the voltage to 2.1V. Either should solve your problem.

If it doesn't, you may want to try relaxing timings as well. Start by dropping from CAS 5 to CAS 6.

By the way, don't worry about the flashing red. 2.1V would indeed be damaging to generic sticks, which is why your motherboard issues a warning, but yours are using modules which are designed for, happy at and rated at the higher voltage.