Computer won't boot

[VernonRobinson]

My Quad 6600 which has been running for about 4 years has started doing something strange for the 2nd time. With 4 sticks of memory in the machine, it will not boot. If I remove 1 stick, it will boot. If I switch the sticks around in the machine it will boot until I add the 4th chip. This happened once before. When I took the two chips out and it rebooted, I assumed one of the chips were bad. I emailed Patriot and they sent new chips. Now 2 years later, it is doing the same thing. I upped the voltage to 2.3 volts per the memory stick requirements instead of leaving the bios to automatic. My web research said sometimes increasing the mchIO voltage helps. I increased it slightly, but it did not help. I hope this makes sense. I am puzzled by the behavior. It runs on two chips, but not on 4. I would guess it is a voltage problem, but the power supply (800 watts) is more than capable. Motherboard shows power as good. Before I send these two chips back to Patriot, I thought I would give you hardware gurus a try.

Thanks,
-Vernon

[jackfalbey]

Is it always the same 4th RAM slot that causes the problem? It could be that you have a bad slot on the mobo.

[Dave McElderry]

Is it always the same 4th RAM slot that causes the problem? It could be that you have a bad slot on the mobo.

I had this happen on a client's laptop. We thought he had a bad memory module but it turned out to be problems in the connector.

[VernonRobinson]

I will check it this weekend. But I think I can fill the "B" bank of slots and it will respond the same. I will let you know more on Saturday. Currently on the road.

Thanks,
-Vernon

[VernonRobinson]

Ok, so it took more than a week to get back to it. But here is what I did:

1. Removed memory from Bank A and left it in Bank B. Computer booted.

2. Switch memory that was in Bank A to Bank B. Only 1 Bank populated. Computer booted.

3. Ran MemTest86 on one set of memory for 4 complete passes. No errors.

4. Put 4 sticks of memory back into computer, failed to boot.

5. Increased ram voltage from 2.2 to 2.3, 2.4, 2.5, 2.6 .... still did not boot.

6. Requested RMA from Patriot Memory. They want to change memory from originally purchased Pdc22g8500elkto the PSD22G800KH as prior package is out of production. Though I have never overclocked the machine, it was my original intent. I wanted to wait until the warranty had expired. They are offering PC2-6400 memory versus the PC2-8500 memory that I originally purchased. Also, it seems to be in a lower performance class. Any thoughts on the Patriot proposed swap? I feel that the PGS24G6400ELK or the PDC28G6400LLQK is a more comparable swap and am willing to pay the difference. I did not see Pc2-8500 memory in their online store. Is this an unreasonable position to take? I am not sure at this point.

Regards,
-Vernon

[AVITRY]

longshots maybe, but perhaps flashing the bios after replacing the cmos battery just for haha's, it can't hurt, and it is a shot.

[VernonRobinson]

Well, Patriot is going to replace the memory. After I get the new memory, if I still have problems, I will be searching for new solutions. Right now the PC runs with 2 memory chips, just not 4. Go figure?

-Vernon

[VernonRobinson]

I know this is an old post, but I am closing it out for anyone ele that may have a similar problem. It appears that the problem was with the interaction of the memory and the motherboard. I bought high performance memory initially and it requires more voltage. When adding more chips, the problem was exacerbated. Upping the voltage in the BIOS did not resolve the problem. However, Patriot did replace the memory with a lower voltage version. Now the machine is running rock solid with 8 GB of ram. My original intention was to overclock the board, but in reality, I am more likely to just replace it when the time comes.

Regards,
-Vernon