Need BIOS/RAM knowledge.

I have been frustratingly working on this problem for several weeks now. I think if I just knew a little more about computers it would be easy. Anyway, I have a 512 MB card in DIMM 0 and a 1 GB card for DIMM 1, or vice-versa. The problem is they both work fine alone, but do not work at all together. I am sure that both DIMM's are fine. I've narrowed it down (or think I have with my limited knowledge of pc's) to 2 possible reasons. 1) They cannot work together because they are from different manufacturers, which just seems dumb to me, or 2) My BIOS isn't set up right.

Details
WIN XP
AMD Sempron 2600+
ECS 755-A2
PC3200 DDR SDRAM 1GB (currently)
only one Channel with DIMM 0 and DIMM 1. (ECS 755 A2 is set up to run in single channel mode)

Here's an interesting link:
http://forums.pcper.com/showthread.php?t=413068

Oh, and one last thing, when I do put them in and start up the PC it will go to the very first screen (black with white letter backround) where at the bottom it says "press DEL to enter BIOS." But, it stops/freezes on that screen and if I press Delete nothing happens. To me, the fact that the computer will load to that screen at all indicates that they COULD work together....if I knew what the H%LL I was doing!

Can someone plz tell me what to do in BIOS or how to get these 2 chips running together? Thanks for any help.

 

Looking briefly at the specs to your board, I note that this mobo only has 2 ram slots.

In respect of your issue, you are mixing ram in respect of size and manufacturer that we are aware of. You could also be mixing ram in that each of your ram sticks could have different speed rating.

Mis-matching ram in the way which you have done is always a recipe for disaster. Sometimes the combination does work but it is always a gamble.

This is not a bios issue it is most likely a conflict between your ram sticks and the mobo.

Most mobo manufacturers provide a list of compatible ram for their boards so that even if you purchased 2 identical ram sticks which were not on the mobo manufacturer's list this new ram could fail to work.

In building pcs I do take account of what the manufacturers state but I untimately rely on actual user threads confirming which ram works as this later info is dependable.

Motherboard and ram combinations can be very fickle a little like people getting on together.

Good Luck

 

Give us some spec about your mobo.And what type of ram is 512mb?

 

No, if you look up the 755-A2 Motherboard you see that it does have a 2 GB capacity. I don't quite get the "single channel" vs "dual channel" but I THINK that my MoBo can only run in Single Channel since I only have 1 to begin with...so that's not an issue. And, I should have made clear last night(very tired)that the ram's speeds are the same 400MHz each. I would put more stock in the web sites advice on which rams to buy except a) I don't really have much to spend right now, and b) the first two cards I bought weren't any of these and they both worked just fine, well alone that is.....and these are the two, infact. Just can't seem to get them to work together. Specs on MoBo coming up.
As far as the 512mb, Other than the fact that it is pc3200 DDR SDRAM 400MHz 512MB, I couldn't tell you anything w/out installing in into my pc and running Everest.


Motherboard:
CPU Type AMD Sempron, 1600 MHz (8 x 200) 2600+
Motherboard Name ECS 755-A2 (5 PCI, 1 AGP, 1 CNR, 2 DDR DIMM, Audio, LAN)
Motherboard Chipset SiS 755, AMD Hammer
System Memory 1024 MB (PC3200 DDR SDRAM)
BIOS Type Award (03/02/05)
Communication Port Communications Port (COM1)
Communication Port ECP Printer Port (LPT1)

Display:
Video Adapter NVIDIA GeForce 7600 GS (512 MB)

Multimedia:
Audio Adapter SiS 7012 Audio Device

Storage:
IDE Controller SiS PCI IDE Controller
IDE Controller Standard Dual Channel PCI IDE Controller
Disk Drive SAMSUNG SP0411N (40 GB, 7200 RPM, Ultra-ATA/133)
Optical Drive DVD-16X DVD-ROM BDV316C (16x/48x DVD-ROM)
Optical Drive MAD DOG MD-52XCDR
SMART Hard Disks Status OK

Partitions:
C: (NTFS) 38193 MB (8079 MB free)

Input:
Keyboard Standard 101/102-Key or Microsoft Natural PS/2 Keyboard
Mouse Microsoft USB Wheel Mouse Optical
Game Controller Microsoft PC-joystick driver

Network:
Network Adapter SiS 900-Based PCI Fast Ethernet Adapter
Network Adapter WAN (PPP/SLIP) Interface (209.172.21.81)
Modem Motorola SM56 Speakerphone Modem

Peripherals:
USB1 Controller SiS 7001 PCI-USB Open Host Controller
USB1 Controller SiS 7001 PCI-USB Open Host Controller
USB1 Controller SiS 7001 PCI-USB Open Host Controller
USB2 Controller SiS 7002 USB 2.0 Enhanced Host Controller
USB Device Logitech Dual Action USB
USB Device Microsoft USB Wheel Mouse Optical


--------[ DMI ]---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[ BIOS ]

BIOS Properties:
Vendor Phoenix Technologies, LTD
Version 6.00 PG
Release Date 03/02/2005
Size 256 KB
Boot Devices Floppy Disk, Hard Disk, CD-ROM, ATAPI ZIP, LS-120
Capabilities Flash BIOS, Shadow BIOS, Selectable Boot, EDD
Supported Standards DMI, APM, ACPI, PnP
Expansion Capabilities ISA, PCI, AGP, USB

[ System ]

System Properties:
Wake-Up Type Power Switch

[ Motherboard ]

Motherboard Properties:
Product SiS-755

[ Chassis ]

Chassis Properties:
Chassis Type Desktop Case

[ Memory Controller ]

Memory Controller Properties:
Error Detection Method 64-bit ECC
Error Correction None
Supported Memory Interleave 1-Way
Current Memory Interleave 1-Way
Supported Memory Speeds 70ns, 60ns
Supported Memory Types SPM, EDO
Supported Memory Voltages 5V
Maximum Memory Module Size 2048 MB
Memory Slots 2

[ Processors / AMD Sempron(tm) Processor 2600+ ]

Processor Properties:
Manufacturer AMD
Version AMD Sempron(tm) Processor 2600+
External Clock 200 MHz
Maximum Clock 4000 MHz
Current Clock 1600 MHz
Type Central Processor
Voltage 1.5 V
Status Enabled
Upgrade ZIF
Socket Designation Socket 754

 

Also, I might add that, I recently did buy a stick of RAM that I made absolutely sure all the specs were exactly the same as the 1GB that I had in, even right down to the 2.5 Volts and, when I installed it, it just plain didn't work at all. That really chapped me, after all the trouble I went through to find an affordable stick of RAM! And the only difference was the MANUFACTURER. So, any way, I have to try to send that card back now and, after noticing that atleast the 512MB works in my PC, I am back to trying to get up and running with a gig and a half atleast. "Fickle" is right Risk Reversal.:cry

 

As I indicated earlier, mobos can be very picky. Buying 2 identical ram modules will not guarantee that they will both be recognised and work together.

My advice in the first instance is to contact the manufacturer's support desk explain what you want to do and ask them for help. It may be that ECS do have a page with supported memory for this board and I would have a trawl though their website also.

BTW Crucial webpage has a memory selector which they say quarantees compatibility with a 30 day money back guarantee.

Good Luck

 

Ohhhh, I see..........THANX...........:cool