RAM: 6gb Installed, 4gb Usable

[Shurman292]

Hello,

 

I am having issues with my motherboard recognizing all 6gb of my ram. Windows and the BIOS shows that only 4 gb are available. I have tried using the MemOK! button on my motherboard which resets all of my CPU overclock settings to factory default, however it does make all 6 gb available afterwards. The problem is that when I resume my normal overclock settings and then restart it a few times, it will go back to showing 4 gb. I am running my i7 930 at 3.8ghz, 1.18v, and the memory (rated for 1600mhz) is running at 1452mhz. Why does it randomly switch back to 4gb? I have not tried updating the bios yet but I may do this in the near future after it stops storming.

 

Thank you in advance for your help and let me know if you need more information from me.

 

i7 930 @ 3.82 ghz | 1.18v

Zalman 9900

Asus p6x58d-e MB

G.Skill 6gb RAM

EVGA GTX 470 @ 726mhz/1683mhz

Corsair 650W PSU

WD 1TB

Asus BD ROM

Antec 900

Windows 7 Ultimate x64

Edited August 4, 2010 by Shurman292

[ebarone]

Probably a dying motherboard.

 

I was having the same problem: http://forums.overclockersclub.com/index.php?showtopic=176423

 

The motherboard finally died completely and after it got replaced everything was hunkey dorey.

[Shurman292]

Probably a dying motherboard.

 

I was having the same problem: http://forums.overclockersclub.com/index.php?showtopic=176423

 

The motherboard finally died completely and after it got replaced everything was hunkey dorey.

 

Thank you for the quick reply! I would hope I do not have to RMA this board because the bios does recognize all 6gb after pressing the MemOK button which makes me think there is a setting within my overclock that the memory/board does not like. But if all else fails, this is what I will have to do I suppose

[l1o2l]

There's a topic on this issue on G.Skill's forum. http://www.gskill.us/forum/showthread.php?t=5136

 

Might help. Dunno.

[ir_cow]

it could be quite a few things, first like always reset the bios to defaults and boot Memtest86 and run test. also i do see you are trying to run them at 1600 but does all 6gb show normally at default 1066?

 

 

in the end if everything shows fine at defaults settings make sure when you have it up to 1600 or whatever your gonna need 1.65v into the ram (which is the highest intel recommends before causing damage to cpu). well first lets see if they show up without any overclocks or high ratings.

[ccokeman]

I would not jump to a new board problem that fast. THere are more than a few things that can be wrong

 

Voltages, the memory divider you are using, the timings you are using and how "strong" the memory controller is.

 

 

Save your OC settings in the bios and then hit load setup defaults the go turn of the boot screen menu so you see the POST cycle and see if you can see 6144mb listed during POST. My guess is you have a memory multiplier that your memory controller does not like or the timings are to tight for one stick of memory to run with causing one channel to no show.

[Shurman292]

I am currently back up to 6gb but we will see how long that lasts lol usually about 3 days...Anyways my settings right now are still 1452mhz on the ram (still not able to use all 1600mhz due to odd bios options) and 8-8-8-20 timings (was 9-9-9-24 before bios update). Yesterday I flashed the bios with the new update so I am hoping it holds out for the remainder at full capacity. I ran memtest86+ a while ago and it checked out ok and detected all 6gb of ram. Yea like you guys said, if it defaults back to 4gb again I will try using stock 1066mhz (1300 something with my overclock) for a while to see if it is stable there.

 

Thanks for your help!

[Shurman292]

Well the bios update did not work. I will try backing down to 1066mhz to see if I can get any stability there. Would it be possible that 1.18v on the cpu is too low to be stable?

[MrAlex]

Question...is your RAM supported officially by the motherboard? I've attached the QVL for your motherboard, since you haven't stated the model of your RAM.

 

If it isn't supported...that could be the problem

P6X58D Premium Memory Qualified Vendors List.pdf

[wevsspot]

Shurman,

 

Please post up the following information about your BIOS settings;

 

DRAM Voltage

CPU Voltage

QPI/VTT Voltage

 

DRAM Frequency

 

Or better yet, thow up all of your AI Tweaker settings and let us take a look at them.

[Shurman292]

I am using G.Skill (3x2gb) DDR3 1600mhz ram. Attached are shots from my AI Tweaker. As you can see from the system information screen, the bios is currently recognizing 6gb because I turned the ram back to 1066 (1095 w/overclock). Hopefully it will decide to stay there for the remainder but it seems to randomly crap out after 2 or 3 days and return to 4gb.

 

--Edit-- So far it has been staying at 6gb on the 1066mhz setting, though I want to give it a couple of days before I can say that it is completely stable at this frequency. If the frequency does end up being the culprit, how can I safely boost it up to around 1600mhz? Will I need to increase the DRAM voltage or my CPU voltage? Thanks for all the help!

Edited August 7, 2010 by Shurman292

[Shurman292]

Alright, so it has been a few days and my computer is holding strong at 6gb, so I will call it stable at 1066mhz. Now if anyone could assist me in boosting that up to the rated 1600mhz that would be awesome!