Memory showing as 4 GB (2 GB useable)

[ben_jamin2887]

Hi, I am running F3-12800CL7D-4GBRM in a ASUS P7P55D-E PRO motherboard with a i5 750 processor and sapphire HD5770 vapor-x gfx card.

As the title says it is displaying that i have 4gb of ram but only 2 gb useable. I am using the asus xmp profile which has the correct latency ratings for the ram and in the bios it only reads as 2 GB ram.

I am using win 7 64bit OS

The bios number is 1502

(i already had trouble getting to the point of it accepting the ram by clearing CMOS a few times)

Advice on what to do next is needed, thanks.

[Tradesman]

First, might want to reseat both sticks to see if any change (probably already done that), go into the BIOS and set your base timings manually, the DRAM voltage and the Command Rate to 2 (T or N, depending on the option offered). If still stuck at two try running MemTest on each stick individually to ensure both are good

Might also want to look at the POST by MikeH on the P55 mobos

http://www.gskill.us/forum/showthread.php?t=7010

[ben_jamin2887]

I have tried to reseating the ram before posting. Also tried switching the ram but this plays out like russian roulette. if i take out the ram in B1 it then wont post, if i switch the sticks in A1 it wont post, I then switch back again in A1 and it posts reading the correct ram amount. Then put the 2nd stick originally for B1 back in B1 and it posts with this outcome.

I fear it is an issue with the MoBo as i had to RMA the previous one after 5 months when it decided there was a fault in my cpu (was actually the MoBo). This one has taken me a few hours to get to accept the memory at all when the previous board accepted the memory with no real problem.

Response time and quality of response from ASUS hasnt been great in my experience as i was able get my computer tested at a shop, then to RMA my board to the distributor and get them already sending my new one before my first email was responded to with details to clear CMOS which if he had read my email was already stated.

Polar opposite here as threads get responded to same day at the latest.

[Tradesman]

May well be the mobo, they've had a number of BIOS updates on all their P55 mobos and I agree about their tech support..very problematic, may be great 1 day then the dumps for long periods, used to use them almost exclusively, now they are only maybe 10-15% of my builds and even then normally only on specific request.

Could you post your bios settings, might be able to see something that jumps out

[ben_jamin2887]

I will not understand why or how but after rotating the ram many many times over the last few days it has finally got it posting with 4GB useable.

Did it need the contacts shaving from inserting the ram many times?

I'm just glad I don't have to RMA again.

I'm sure in the 40-50 times inserting the ram the same way it wouldnt be just this time it was in correctly. I am again not touching the hardware til it breaks down.

Just incase G.Skill are looking for a good distributor in the UK, I recommend ebuyer (they did the RMA for the ASUS board). I did find it hard to get the Ripjaw ram instock in the UK. It was also the place i got most of my build at.

Just out of curiosity what MoBo would you suggest for the i5 750 build? I'm not an overclocker but i like getting overclocking pieces as in general they seem to take the beating for longer. Its a single GPU build aswell.

[Tradesman]

Single GPU, definitely the GA-PA55A-UD3, has USB 3 and SATA III, DRAM up to 2200 and OCs great which works well w/ the 750 which is a fantastic OCer (you may not be an OCer, but this setup might change that, OCing is easy