Alright, I have a case that seems pretty cut and dry, but my computer expertise probably pales in comparison to the people that actually make these products, so I thought I would try before I have to bother with an RMA.
For starters, here are the relevant parts that I am using.
AMD Phenom II X2 555 Black Edition Callisto 3.2Ghz, C3 Revision
EVGA GeForce GTX 460SE
Raidmax Hybrid 730W ATX 12V V2.2
MSI NF750-G55 AM3 NVIDIA nForce 750a SLI HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard (with the latest 1.60 BIOS)
and the RAM listed in the title.
Everything posted at first boot, I was able to install Win 7 without any issues, then I started getting occasional hard locks and BSOD's. In my trial and error process, I started with the RAM, I removed one stick, it worked fine, I tried that stick in each DIMM, and it worked fine. I tried the second stick the same way, it will boot (though not necessarily stable) to Windows and actually pass Memtest (at about 4 test cycles), but only at 1066, instead of the stock 1333. Any further attempts to use both in any DIMM configuration result in a stoppage/lock at 5% in Memtest, random CMOS errors that reset my BIOS, and instability when it does post.
As I have said, with my limited computer expertise, it seems like I have a clear case of a bad stick, but I read the sticky about AMD CPU/Memory limitations, and I was curious if that still applies, or at least applies to my current setup, and if there are any tips, anything I'm doing wrong (I haven't messed with voltages or timings or anything like that) when it comes to underclocking that could get both sticks to play nice with each other. This is clearly a budget system, so maximizing performance isn't too high on my list, I'd just like to get both sticks working, even if it is at a lower speed.
I'm on my laptop at my overnight job, so I can't do any hardware stuff until I get home, but I just wanted to put it out there to see if I can get any instant feedback.
Thanks in advance!
For starters, here are the relevant parts that I am using.
AMD Phenom II X2 555 Black Edition Callisto 3.2Ghz, C3 Revision
EVGA GeForce GTX 460SE
Raidmax Hybrid 730W ATX 12V V2.2
MSI NF750-G55 AM3 NVIDIA nForce 750a SLI HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard (with the latest 1.60 BIOS)
and the RAM listed in the title.
Everything posted at first boot, I was able to install Win 7 without any issues, then I started getting occasional hard locks and BSOD's. In my trial and error process, I started with the RAM, I removed one stick, it worked fine, I tried that stick in each DIMM, and it worked fine. I tried the second stick the same way, it will boot (though not necessarily stable) to Windows and actually pass Memtest (at about 4 test cycles), but only at 1066, instead of the stock 1333. Any further attempts to use both in any DIMM configuration result in a stoppage/lock at 5% in Memtest, random CMOS errors that reset my BIOS, and instability when it does post.
As I have said, with my limited computer expertise, it seems like I have a clear case of a bad stick, but I read the sticky about AMD CPU/Memory limitations, and I was curious if that still applies, or at least applies to my current setup, and if there are any tips, anything I'm doing wrong (I haven't messed with voltages or timings or anything like that) when it comes to underclocking that could get both sticks to play nice with each other. This is clearly a budget system, so maximizing performance isn't too high on my list, I'd just like to get both sticks working, even if it is at a lower speed.
I'm on my laptop at my overnight job, so I can't do any hardware stuff until I get home, but I just wanted to put it out there to see if I can get any instant feedback.
Thanks in advance!
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