Is there such a thing as "cheap" RAM?

The reason I ask is because I recently added a second 1 gig stick(2 gigs total). The mobo supports up to 4 gig. My problem is that since then the pc randomly freezes, no blue screen, just nothing, and I have to reboot. There is nothing in event viewer. I first suspected a virus but have found nothing.
Your opinions as always are welcome and very much appreciated.

Bill

 

Yeah... anyone's value brand or budget brand would qualify. All RAM is not created equal. Splurging pays off.

 

Have you got four slots, that are two different colors? If so you might try putting the second stick in the odd number of the other color.

Otherwise it might be a bad memory stick. I had similar problems at one point, and that's what the problem was.

 

Hi tripseven,

There are definitely distinction in DRAM. If you go to DRAMeXchange.com you will notice that DRAM pricing is separated into two categories: ett (cheaper) and MHz designated (premium).

Typically the premium parts are used as "branded memory" that go into parts specifically designed for a particular machine, but you will pay top dollar for these parts. Sometimes this requires fine tuning of the chip, sometimes some MBs just require a little higher grade of memory to work better.

Now, a majority of the DRAM you see will be ett DRAM--or untested. So this means that the assemblers (the companies who sell DRAM Modules--so they purchase all these DRAM Chips and place them on wafers to create a memory module--Kingston, PNY, etc) are what truly make the difference in the DRAM you are buying. It is up to the assemblers to test all of the untested memory that they purchase, fine tune it, and make sure that it is good to go. The good companies, that you often pay a premium for, do an outstanding job of checking and testing all of these untested chips. This allows them to deliver you a product for less money but that is equally as good as tested memory.

So, if you stick to good brands of DRAM Modules manufacturers, then you should be fine.

Now, if you want to overclock or do other things that is a different story.

Also, I saw someone mention slotting--that is a good thing to try--sometimes if chipsets don't match exactly some MBs might reject it--this happens freqently with cheaper/shady memory.

Hope this helps!

 

Flakey memory can cause all sorts of weirdness, as can mismatched RAM as mentioned by TimW above. I have seen two perfectly good memory sticks cause all sorts of problems when run together; when run separate, everything was fine. There's also the chance that is simply a bad stick. Put it in by itself and run an extended diagnostic on it. Check the Major Geeks downloads in the Memory section. I like this one http://www.majorgeeks.com/Microsoft_Windows_Memory_Diagnostic_d3955.html You can create a bootable CD or floppy, and when you boot to it, press "T" for the extended tests. Run at least 3 passes. This can take some time, and some of the tests will look like the PC has locked up (esp. test number 7) but it hasn't... be patient. If the stick tests bad, return it and ask for a replacement or a different brand that is a better match for the RAM you had installed before.
Memory diagnostic and related downloads http://www.majorgeeks.com/downloads26.html