New build freezes

[John Doe]

For some strange/unknown reason, the author below searches the
USENET archive for terms like "surge" and "power" so he can jump
into the group to spew wrong and sometimes hazardous advice.

See also:
w_tom
westom1 gmail.com

 

[Ron AF Greve]

Hi,

And that efficiency rating is an average over varying loads under some
PS new standard. Yes, the reviews are favorable for earthwatts, and
I've been to Antec on more than a few occasions over the years without
complaints. Though I prefer to research and buy my own PS units, if
somebody says 'do what it takes to build me one,' Antec is a likely
place to first start. Very.

The test link review you provided I determined is not a "real" test,
though --

http://www.sysopt.com/features/cases/article.php/12024_3660031_3

Thank's for the link, that's a nice test-setup .

I like his better -- lacking an $50,000 industry PS test unit, he has
two MBs loaded up to the gills, spit off into your PS, and he couldn't
even bring it to its knees. Now that's a "torture" test. Which
brings up the possibility you're looking at an Antec QC slip -- you've
been specially signaled out and Antec sent you a faulty unit. Ha -
fat chance.

Statistics say one quarter of PC problems are PS related (at some
discounted variance from a PS just pulled out of the box new, such as
yours) -- so you've 3 stones to pry up and look beneath.

I recall one that came back, where I found (not easily but at the last
minute before ordering replacement parts, probably a "fix all" PS) I'd
missed a ground connection somewhere. Weird problem, (maybe I swapped
in a know good unit and clued into) pulling the MB and totally redoing
the entire assembly with a close eye to detail -- sporadic reboots,
locks, or whatever else it was doing, solved.

I replaced the Gigabyte mobo completely with the Asus one, still same
problem. But letting it run on one stick works. Actually I do not notice
much difference in speed (if any at all). Still missing the extra 1.5GB
hurts a bit.

That and I'm a bit prejudiced towards anything beyond a very basic XP
-- inclusive of "make or break 'em" games, VISTA, and such. Took a
prybar and 5lb. mallet, actually, to make me let go of 98 and update
to XP.

Regards, Ron AF Greve

http://www.InformationSuperHighway.eu

 

[Flasherly]

I replaced the Gigabyte mobo completely with the Asus one, still same
problem. But letting it run on one stick works. Actually I do not notice
much difference in speed (if any at all). Still missing the extra 1.5GB
hurts a bit.

Might try letting Kingston know what's happened. Big enough name for
an 800# into attempting resolution. It's a higher-price premium you've
given them for faster memory that won't work on two among better-
regarded MB makes. Not something I'd think they'd want to be known
for were prospective memory buyers to see your experience echoed by
others.

DDR3 1066 specs on Newegg lists only 5 vendors in a 2 x 2G config
(Kingston, Mushkin, Crucial, & OCZ) -- not to be an I told you so
(hardly, I'd be looking in DDR2 were I building), but for $10 more on
some DDR3 there's nothing hypothetical to knowing I'd jumped on OCZ.
Crucial second, Kingston third -- Mushkin always has been a bit too
pricey for me.

 

[Guest]

What do you consider high quality?

Something from a company that produces RAM chips from scratch.

Kingston is at least as good as crucial or corsair or mushkin or ocz.

Neither Corsair, Mushkin, nor OCZ are quality.




Sometimes cheaper in fact, making it a better

value. -Dave

Not Kingston, Corsair, Mushkin, OCZ, or anything else from companies
that don't actually make memory chips.

 

[Guest]

I tried reinstalling the second stick. It froze within 30 minutes. I removed
it everything is fine again. It apparently does have to do with that extra
stick (and consequently running in dual channel mode).

I wonder how thorough memtest86+ acutally is (does it also test dma (as
opposed to just poking and peeking different values in and from memory).

I don't know about Memtest86+, only Memtest86 and its cousin, Memtest
+, but they're supposedly very good and, among PC-based diagnostics,
second only to a very few others, including those from RST, used by
many 2nd and 3rd tier module manufacturers.

Good point about DMA. I don't know of any PC-based diagnostics that
use it. I also haven't seen any tailored for each chip's internal
layout, which can allow for more thorough testing without wasting time
on relatively useless generic test patterns.

Extra modules mean extra capacitance on the memory bus, which slows
signals and hurts timings, and BIOSes usually slow the timings to
compensate, not always enough.

 

[Guest]

Wrong. Swapping a video card might change the load on the +12V rail. But
that is only one of three voltage railes. If one of the other rails is
inadequate, then the power supply is inadequate. FYI, I believe the RAM
(which he's having a problem with) runs off the +5V rail. -Dave

You could be right in the case of his equipment. I haven't measured
many motherboards (and no premium boards in several years), but the
few DIMM DDR and DDR2 supply regulators I have checked were linear 3-
pin low dropout devices driven by the 3.3V supply. Among motherboard
that powered their processors from the 12V supply, many drew almost
nothing from the 5V (probably just USB and plug-in cards).

 

[Ron AF Greve]

Hi

Might try letting Kingston know what's happened. Big enough name for
an 800# into attempting resolution. It's a higher-price premium you've
given them for faster memory that won't work on two among better-
regarded MB makes. Not something I'd think they'd want to be known
for were prospective memory buyers to see your experience echoed by
others.

Yes, that might actually be an good idea since I am curious. None of the
boards list 2x2G configurations so I wonder if they are just on the safe
side or if it is actually unlikely that such a configuration works.

DDR3 1066 specs on Newegg lists only 5 vendors in a 2 x 2G config
(Kingston, Mushkin, Crucial, & OCZ) -- not to be an I told you so
(hardly, I'd be looking in DDR2 were I building), but for $10 more on
some DDR3 there's nothing hypothetical to knowing I'd jumped on OCZ.
Crucial second, Kingston third -- Mushkin always has been a bit too
pricey for me.

Regards, Ron AF Greve

http://www.InformationSuperHighway.eu

 

[Dave]

Neither Corsair, Mushkin, nor OCZ are quality.

Whoa. What's this guy been smoking?

Sometimes cheaper in fact, making it a better

Not Kingston, Corsair, Mushkin, OCZ, or anything else from companies
that don't actually make memory chips.

Oh I see. He owns chip stock. -Dave

 

[Dave]

Neither Corsair, Mushkin, nor OCZ are quality.

And this can be confirmed how and or where? Any links you can point me
to that substanitates this?

No, because it is just plain wrong. -Dave

 

[Flasherly]

Yes, that might actually be an good idea since I am curious. None of the
boards list 2x2G configurations so I wonder if they are just on the safe
side or if it is actually unlikely that such a configuration works.

Neither, I'd like to think -- not quite or simply underhandedly, but
plausibly within bleeding-edge clauses (been there and done that. If
you'd bought backwards compatible DDR2 2x1G for $20/US, an allowance
and for some time when DDR3 is written in, the 2x2G modules would have
dropped $80 by then, but of course).