RAM not working in Dual Channel Mode

[cg84]

i've got an intel d865gbf mobo and a p4 2.66ghz alongwith a gigabyte radeon 9600se 128 MB card. till recently i had RAM of 256MB DDR266. now i've added another 256MB DDR266 stick. the problem is that this config isnt working in dual channel mode even though the sticks are installed in channel A DIMM 0 and channel B DIMM 0, ie they are matched symmetrically.
now, i've done some googling and what i know is that for dual channel config the sticks shd have...
1. Same density
2. Same DRAM technology(128 M-bit, 256M-bit, 512M-bit)
3. Same DRAM bus width(x8 or x16)
4. Both either single or double sided(or single or dual bank)

the densities are same, of course. but how do i find out the DRAM tech, DRAM bus width and whether those sticks are single or double banked??couldnt find much with google...plz help.

also note that that on both the sticks 32Mx64 is printed, which, i guess implies that the chips are 32M*64bits(right??) and one of them has half the ICs as compared to the other.

thanx,
chaitanya

 

[jonnyGURU]

This will sound harsh, but: Never expect dual channel to work if you're not using a pair of RAM from the same company... or even the same production run!

I know it's a very general statement, but even if they were matched in every way possible, there could still be subtle enough differences that will neg the dual channel capability.

I'm not saying that you have to buy a package of "Dual Channel RAM", but when I had two sticks of 512MB Crucial, one OEM and one retail, with the same memory chips and same number of chips, and same memory timings, Dual Channel mode would not work on my board. I bought a pair of SuperTalent RAM from eWiz, not even sold as Dual Channel but matching in every way possible, and the machine works perfectly.

 

[cg84]

thanks for the reply jonny...the topic's gone down to the third page so soon, didnt think there would be any replies.

now, what u hv said is ok. i m even willing to buy a dual channel package to make it work. but wat i want to know is that how do i find out the specs of the modules already installed on my pc? is there some tool or utility that can do it? or do i hv to do something else? whatever it is, i would like to know..

thanx.

 

[CalvinHobbs]

use everest home

 

[cg84]

ok i hv tried everest home. it gives a lot of info about the module but i still couldnt find info regarding DRAM chip density and DRAM bus width. what did i miss?

 

[LTC8K6]

and one of them has half the ICs as compared to the other.

Didn't you just solve your problem with this statement?

 

[stevty2889]

To run sticks in dual channel, you really want them to be identical sticks. You don't need to get a dual channel kit, just get 2 of the same thing. So whatver your first stick is, you should have gotten a second one of the exact same stick. Are the sticks working together in single channel? Also what slots do you have them in, should be in 1 and 3 or 2 and 4 for dual channel mode.

 

[cg84]

Originally posted by: LTC8K6

and one of them has half the ICs as compared to the other.

Didn't you just solve your problem with this statement?

apparently, i did. but what does it imply? everest home showed this for both the sticks: single-sided, four banks. thats the most i could get. one of the sticks has four chips on it while the other has eight. so why four banks for both? also, i still dont know the DRAM density and bus width for my sticks ???

stevty, i understand ur point bout sticks being identical. and the sticks are working in single channel mode, yes. and they are in slots 1 and 3. so theres no problem there...

 

[jonnyGURU]

You're asking more questions about how RAM works then anyone here really wants to get into.

Might I suggest a good book? 😉

And a matched pair of RAM, of course. 😀

 

[LTC8K6]

Are there part numbers on the memory modules?

If you order another stick, chances are very good that it will match one of the ones you already have. If you have part numbers, then you should be able to match them easily.

It may just be better to go ahead and get 2 PC3200 sticks that you can use now and in the future.