Phantoms corrupting my memory overnight, every night!

[Rivethead]

This is driving me insane!

Here's my system:

CPU: AMD Athlon II x4 620 (overclocked to 3.445Ghz)
Mobo: MSI 785GM-E65 (AMI BIOS V2.3 dated 9/28)
Memory: 2x2GB F3-12800CL9D-4GBNQ
VC: Integrated Radeon 4200
PSU: Antec 350W
OS: Windows 7 Home Premium (64 bit)

The system is overcocked as follows:

FSB: 265
Multiplier 13x (locked)
NB: x8 (2120)
HT: x7 (1855)

Memory is manually set at 9-9-9-24 1T and 1.5volts It's underclocked at 3:8 FSBRAM so it's running at 1412.....nowhere near the 1600 it supposed to reach.

VC is also overclocked at 730hz with the sideport memory overclocked to 1700hz

Here's my issue:

I've been having random blue screen errors for weeks now. BlueScreenView always tells me it's a memory management error with a Windows 7 ntoskrnl.exe driver. A little research tells me that's related to memory.

However, if I take out the ram and then put it back in, the problems go away. I can run memtest for hours with no errors. I can run Windows Memory Diagnostic Tool on extended (which takes hours) with no errors. I can use the computer all day with no random blue screens and no problems. But I shut down my computer each night. And when I do....every morning I get the same bluescreen error after a while. I run memtest....sometimes I get errors, sometimes I don't. I run Windows Diagnostic Memory Tool....I always get the dreaded "harward problems detected".

So I have to shut down the computer, turn off the psu, take the RAM out, put it back in.....and wham problems are gone.

This is so frustrating!!! I thought I had the problem finally solved yesterday.....I had left the DRAM voltage on "Auto" and I think the mobo was setting it above 1.5V. So I manually set it to 1.5V (I don't like to mess with voltages, which is why my overclock won't go any higher, but in this case setting it to 1.5V seemed safe).

I know the overclock of the CPU is NOT the problem. I've run Intel Burn Test for numerous passes to test the temps and stability. In addition, when I had the CPU at stock 200 FSB I was getting the same problem every night/morning. As I've said, I've been troubleshooting this for weeks.

Any ideas?

Right now, I'm of the belief that:
1) The RAM is somehow bad. It needs to be heated up before working properly, or
2) The PSU is somehow corrupting the RAM upon initial boot each morning.

Obviously, I could leave my computer on 24/7 but my green-minded enviromentally friendly wife would give me grief over it. Plus it just isn't good for my electric bill!

Thanks in advance for any help you can provide. Sorry this is an epic narrative but I figured more detail was better than less.

[cbulman]

I sympathize with you - I've had similar problems after a cold boot (as have others). G.skill essentially told us to RMA the RAM, but I'll leave it to them to give you better advice than I can. In the meantime, you may want to try a workaround that worked for me, which I posted about here. It's not a great solution, but I found it simpler than pulling the sticks out and replacing them again. Good luck.

[Rivethead]

Thanks

Sigh. I hope not. The first set of sticks I got from NewEgg were completely bad...no boot at all. I RMA'd them immediately.

Thanks for your reply. I do take a little comfort in knowing that I'm not alone!

Ok GSkill....what do you suggest?

[GSKILL TECH]

I would suggest sending them in for new replacements.

Sorry for the inconvenience.

Thank you
GSKILL SUPPORT

[Rivethead]

Ok, I have sent in an RMA request.

However, I continue to troubleshoot this. One thing I have discovered is that I don't need to re-seat the memory each time the problems occur. I simply need to shut off the power supply, wait a few second, and then turn it back on.....problem disappears (until the next time I shut down, of course).

On the RMA request I asked for replacements from a different series (eco or ripjaw maybe?).....after 2 RMAs of this memory, I have lost confidence GSkill. Hopefully, they'll grant my wish, but I doubt it.

[GSKILL TECH]

We apologize for the inconvenience. Email the RMA department and request to have the item tested before shipping. This will prevent any problems.

Thank you
GSKILL SUPPORT

[Rivethead]

One more thing.....my BIOS has a ton of settings to play with. One is "DRAM Power Down" which I can set as either "Enabled" or "Disabled" (default).

If I select "Enabled" I get a sub-option to set either "Chip Select" or "Dual Channel"

What does this option do and do you think it will have any impact on my issue?

[GSKILL TECH]

I don't know exactly what it does, but judging by it's name, I would suggest disabling it.

Thank you
GSKILL SUPPORT