How do I slow down my RAM on Asus A8V Deluxe?

[dugawug]

i have 2GB dual channel of this RAM: http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-detailsInactive.asp?Sku=K24-5824

and an Asus A8V Deluxe mobo.

i've had the BSOD quite a bit and my minidumps seem to suggest RAM problems.

using one stick alone, either one, i seem to have no problems. a friend suggested that maybe slowing down the RAM might help it run without the BSOD.

but i'm a newbie...i see a ton of settings in the BIOS for RAM and am not sure what to do!!

like CAS, TRC, TRFC, TRCD, TWR, TRWT, TRAS, TRP, TWCL and more...
they are all currently set to AUTO

what is the best way for me to tweak these settings?

help is appreciated!!

 

[Merc14]

If the RAM is set to auto then the timings are already very conservative and it would be unlikely that setting them any lower would do any good. Auto means the board goes right to the RAM and accesses an onboard chip (the SPD) that tells the board what speed to run RAM at. These settings are very conservative so as to run stably on all boards.

It may be that you have a hogh temperature problem with the CPU or the PSU isn't up to the task. What are your specs, specifically the PSU name and wattage as well as amps on the 12v rail, CPU type, motherboard name and model, video card(s), and all peripherals. Also, can you get a temp reading off the CPU during heavy load.

 

[dugawug]

it's a brand new system i built, my first, but was helped with a friend whose done 100's of machines from scratch.

XP Pro SP2
Asus A8V Deluxe
AMD 64 3500+
Zalman copper heatsink
2GB (1gbx2) 400mhz DDR Kingston value ram 184 pin
Antec Sonata II with Smartpower 2 400w P/S
2 Barracuda SATA HD's, 7200RPM
3dconnect radeon 9550GE video card
Plextor DVD burner

i had my minidumps examined on this site and he suggested my frequent BSOD's were from faulty RAM.

i've tried either stick alone and it ran fine, that's when my friend thought to drop the, what he thought would be high, demand on the mobo for the RAM.

the problem is the BSOD comes at odd times, so when I tried each stick, it was only for 2-3 hours of use, and a BSOD may take longer...it's hard to say but it's driving me nuts.

i'm real close to just buying higher quality Corsair XMS RAM in place of this for starters.

 

[Merc14]

Load Asus probe from your mobo CD and open it. Under history there is a record function. Set it to record and run a very intense game. If you get a BSOD then examine the recorded readout for high temps and/or wild voltage variations. Unfortunately, the mobo sensors don't always give the best voltage readouts but they can see wild fluctuations.

Make sure sure Cool&Quiet is doisabled in BIOS. Are you overclocking?

Lastly you can test the RAM by running memtest86, a free utility that runs from a bootable floppy or DVD. Google it and then follow the instructions on the site about how to run it. Let it run a few hours. If there is a problem with your RAM it will find it.

Download EverestHome (ggogle it) for a good readout of all your systems pats and also CPUz at cpuid.com. for a true readout of your RAM settings and CPU /mobo info.

Get back to us after these diagnostics. All the above is free and very very handy to have on hand.

 

[dugawug]

thanks alot, to answer your questions on some of that first:

no, not overclocking and yes, Cool and quiet is disabled

and actually i ran memtest86 already...it ran all night with no errors...but cpc2004 (among another) have all said this about memtest:

"If memtest report the ram is faulty and the ram is faulty. Vicevers if memtest does not report the ram is faulty, it does not mean the ram is good. As ome faulty ram can pass memtest. It is the reason why my ram debugging procedure does not have memtest."

you can see that thread here: https://www.techspot.com/vb/topic34053.html

but anyway, i'll try the Asus probe and Everst home, thanks for those...

also, i just did a few tweaks to the RAM settings on the advice of a super geek friend. i put the CAS latency right at 3 as per the RAM's specs, also a few other minor tweaks...

 

[Merc14]

What RAM do you have exactly?

 

[dugawug]

What RAM do you have exactly?

link given in top of this thread

it's apparently on the approved vendor list too for my mobo.

i don't get it, everything on this system is new...i highly doubt it's the p/s.

again, for now i'm trying the system with some RAM tweaks in the BIOS, particularly a CAS latency of 3...if i get another BSOD over the weekend, i'm going to return this RAM and hope higher quality Corsair XMS RAM does the trick..

 

[dugawug]

i don't see anything strange really, not sure what to look for here.

i do see i'm somehow using 480MB of physical RAM with just Everest and 1 IE window open.

 

[Merc14]

That seems a bit on the high side but I'm using 460 right now with Everest Firefox and several utilities running. I have 2GB loaded though.