Pc3200 400mhz 1gb ram problem.

[leeaskey]

Hi guys happy to have joined but i must start my membership with an apology in advance im sure you have all been asked this a 1000 times!! i have bought a stick of pc3200 400mhz 1gb ram and its only running at 512mb and 200mhz i have an asus p5s800-vm/s motherboard is there some way i can adjust the settings to allow this to use all 1gb of ram?? please help me its driving me mad!!!! thanks in advance

Please use proper thread titles from now on.Thanks.

 

[captaincranky]

Well, Maybe Even More Than A Thousand...

Please follow this link to the Tedster's guide on upgrading RAM: https://www.techspot.com/vb/topic65114.html
If none of this helps (not likely), by all means come back and we'll discuss it.
First posts always seem to start with an apology, don't give it a second thought.

 

[leeaskey]

hmmm still confused

thanks for your response captain but im still confused the only conclusion i can get is that its not compatible, that or its only running at 200mhz because i haven't adjusted a bios setting but im still unsure how i would go about altering the bios to make it run the ram at 400mhz do you have any ideas on this or am i condemed to upgrading my motherboard, because if i am then im going to make it pci-e plus ddr2 ram because in the long run this is what will happen anyway right!

 

[captaincranky]

Tick Tock, Tick tock....

400 MHz Dual Channel RAM runs at 200MHz. It yields information on both ends of the clock cycle. Sooo.... clock frequency times 2 = actual DDR (Dual Data Rate) frequency. So if it's running in dual channel mode, it's running right

 

[captaincranky]

Tick Tock, Tick tock.... PART 2

Unfortunately, you can't have dual channel RAM with one stick anyway. If the board supports dual channel operation you need to install 2 512MB sticks not 1 1GB. I think I understand your question, do I? Sorry, I hit reply instead of edit, hence the double post. The irony wasn't intentional

 

[leeaskey]

no idea

lol im afraid i don't know what you mean, all i know is that i purchased a 1 stick of 1gb ram and my computer is telling me it is only 512mb stupid computer can i not force it to run dual or something like that??

 

[captaincranky]

Tell it to run or it's grounded...

Whew, we all wish that would work.
First, I'm not really on the page where you remove a 512 module and replace it with a 1 Gig module, why would you do this? To get to 1 Gig capacity you just put another 512 module in the vacant slot. It costs half as much. Dual Channel Ram is motherboard dependent. I don't recognize your board number. So I can't tell you if the darn thing will run in a dual channel mode. What I'm certain of is; in a dual channel configuration the clock frequency is half the rated speed of the modules. So, if you read the clock frequency of a dual channel PC3200 400MHz system it will be 200MHz. Please, do yourself a favor, download the manual to the Mobo in question, and give it a go. RAM modules are generally a plug and play situation, IF YOU FOLLOW THE RULES. Are the chips in the right slots? are they compatible with this board? Is the module defective? Does this board require intervention in the BIOS to add RAM (Most don't but, I don't want to deal in absolutes). These are the possible solutions, but you still have to do the research.

 

[leeaskey]

hmmmmm

well the reason replaced with 1gb module was because it was running 256 not 512mb just checked my mobos online details and it will support the ram in question and i have tried it in both slots so im completely stumped!

 

[CCT]

Sounds like you should return the stick and exchange it for 2 x 512's; it is defective and you need 2 x 512 for the interleaving to function.

 

[Tedster]

if you read the guide, it explains reasons why ram might not show true capacity. More than likely you have a compatibility issue. ASUS is VERY picky about brands and types of RAM.

 

[CCT]

Tedster has an idea -IF you can buy a second stick from the same source and install it AND then if your mobo runs like a sprinter with that matched set of ram you are da winner!!!!


On the other hand, you have an Asus mobo that wants matched sets of RAM to run the BEST.


Do what you want. ALSO - read some more.

 

[captaincranky]

Just For Curiosity's Sake

Are task manager and system information sticking to the same story?

 

[leeaskey]

how would i find out?

 

[captaincranky]

The Cat, The Computer, They're Both Tabby

Summon the Windows task manager with CNTL+ALT+ DELETE. On the "Performance " tab it will tell you how much RAM is there, and how much is being used. On the "Process" tab it will list the usual suspects. (Who's using it). Don't know if the machine is capable of telling 2 different stories. But it's a usefull tool for many other reasons

 

[CCT]

Some info here that may pertain:

http://www.wizcrafts.net/ram.html#half

 

[leeaskey]

well thank you to all who have helped and as far as i can tell i have 2 options available to me i can either get a ner mobo and update ram and graphics or buy an identical ram stick as they work better in pairs and hope i get 2gb show thanks to all of you again