I'm having a problem with my other computer, which started back around Christmas time. It would occasionally give me the no memory present error (the repeating long beep when turning on the machine) even with sticks installed. After a bit of fiddling I narrowed it down to a (possibly) dodgey memory stick and an intermittent memory controller. If the PC complained when turning it on, usually turning it off and on again, at most twice, would cause it to boot up fine.

There have been no stability issues with the machine so I think it's just a memory detection issue. Also over the past few months the problem has surfaced less and less. Until last night that is, having just re-configured it for a Uni project, and a soft-reboot after installing DirectX and it won't turn on since. Finally given up the ghost? Any suggestions? I'm just trying to get some other oppinions since the only solution I can think of is a replacement board. I've got three memory sticks and whatever combination I try, no difference.

It's a bit saddening since this used to be my main machine for years, and is lightening fast for its spec (power button to windows desktop is around 10 seconds, with w98 anyway).

Yep, sounds like either faulty memory, or a faulty motherboard.
If your other computer has the same type of memory in it, try swapping the memory to see if it'll work. If not, it's the motherboard itself and you'll need to a new one

From the fact that it's an intermittent issue, I'd be inclined to think it's the board, but try and rule out the memory first if you can.

I'm fairly confident the memory is sound, one stick was brand new for xmas, another other I pinched from a mates working system last night. I'll double check all the sticks work in his machine so I know what memory is good and what isn't.

In the meantime I've found a very similar board on ebay for under a tenner delivered, I'll snap that up.

Intel or AMD?

Try memtesting it just to be sure on the memory front

EDIT - AMD's memory controller is integrated on the CPU, btw - if it really is the memory controller a new mobo wont help

Good point. Hmm. I might just buy the board for the hell of it, only a tenner (well, and rising, bloody people are bidding). Spare boards always come in handy. If I have to accidentally purchase another CPU, so be it.

Edit: sod it, got too expensive. I'll try thieving my house mates CPU when he's not looking...

what cpu btw ?

Could be the power supply, have you tried weeding that out yet? Maybe try using someone else's?

Quote from Jakg :

Intel or AMD?

Try memtesting it just to be sure on the memory front

EDIT - AMD's memory controller is integrated on the CPU, btw - if it really is the memory controller a new mobo wont help

Correction, the memory controller is integrated into the die of any AMD CPU from Socket 754 (used by the original Athlon 64) and later, including Socket 940, Socket 939, Socket AM2, and Socket F.

Socket A (aka Socket 462, used by the original Athlon, non-64) has the more traditional configuration of having the memory controller in the north bridge of the chipset on the motherboard. It was also phased out when Jakg was 10 years old.

The board you're looking at there is Socket A.

I should really have looked up the facts myself.

Once I've tested everything it looks like I'll be back on ebay for boards then...

Edit: If Jakq as much of a geek as I was, he'd of been pulling PCs apart at 10 anyway, so should know all stuff like that. Bring back the days of the DX2!

g'ah, sorry, didn't know that!

I was no where near as much as a geek as you, i was putting them apart at age 11

Hmm, as much as I love my MSI boards, I'm not keen on spending £20+ buying one to keep an aged system alive. I could well be tempted.

My housemate who has a similar age system is letting me abuse his PC to see what components work and don't, if it is indeed the board (as I suspect) then I'll take you up on your offer. Postage for a board should be around a fiver, depends mostly on the weight, I posted most of the internals of a PC for about £13 over christmas (including PSU). I'll happy send a tenner your way.

OK, things just got more interesting.

My house mate is out for the day and has let me use his PC to test out my bits to see what still works. The upshot of it all is, not a lot.

Having tested all three sticks of memory in his PC, it gives no memory present errors with any stick installed. So this much I know: all three sticks are dead.

The question is, since one of those dead sticks he only gave to me from his system the other day, thus I know it's fine, what state is the board in? We've one working memory stick left (and it's not mine) so I don't want to plug it into my board to test the board, since I think the board is eating any memory plugged into it. Pretty f***ed. Plausable though?

In the meantime I'm going to start swapping out other components in case the board has eaten anything else. If it's just the board (and memory) that's dead, I'll take your offer up Quint999, order some new memory and RMA my OCZ stick (lifetime warranty). When I get it back I can give it to my house mate to replace the stick of his that my board ate. Ah the joy.

Quote from Bob Smith :

Plausable though?

My Dad's Asus A7N8X liked to steadily raise RAM voltages when left on - usually his PC wasn't on for long, but we woke up after we left it on to find parts of the actual memory slot had melted onto the gold contacts, the memory (as you'd imagine) was f*cked

Well at least the graphics card still works. What's the chances of the CPU being damaged? I can't be arsed to swap them over to test.

Bob, the way to test memory is to put one stick in at a time, and then move that stick from slot to slot. If you put all of the sticks in at once and even just one is bad then you'll get errors.

And yes, I am aware that the nForce2 chipset has a dual channel memory controller. However, it will run just fine on one channel. I seem to recall reading that it's actually 2 separate memory controllers that are combined. They do the same thing on their graphics cards, they call it their Crossbar memory architecture.

Sorry, my text is a bit ambiguous, poor wording on my part. I did test each stick individually.

Well it's not exactly usual, but I guess if it fit's what's happened then it does indeed sound like the board has killed the stick of memory. Of course it could just be coincidence that it's chosen just now to fail as well

As Jakg mentions, you could check the voltage settings in the BIOS to see if they're too high, but if you're changing the board anyway.....
I'd leave the CPU till you've got your replacement board and then test in that. If it fails in that, then check it with your mates board before splashing out an new CPU.

Quote from need :

As Jakg mentions, you could check the voltage settings in the BIOS to see if they're too high, but if you're changing the board anyway.....

Seeing as I can't boot the board up without memory in it, and I'm not willing to risk it killing the last DDR stick, I can't really test that. I'm pretty confident seeing as 2 perfectly good sticks died in 24 hours (my third stick was suspected faulty back in December, when I first started getting this problem).

Anyway I've got an RMA request for the only stick still in warranty, will post that off soon. I've PM'd Quint999 regarding his motherboard offer. I'll probably order another stick so I can get that system up and running ASAP, I've an assignment due a week Friday that needs two PCs so this is really bad timing. Kinda my fault for leaving it so late but I wouldn't be a proper student if I'd started it with plenty of time...

Quote from need :

As Jakg mentions, you could check the voltage settings in the BIOS to see if they're too high, but if you're changing the board anyway.....
I'd leave the CPU till you've got your replacement board and then test in that. If it fails in that, then check it with your mates board before splashing out an new CPU.

i didnt say that because theres only one mobo that will give enough volts to blow memory in the bios, and thats DFi, my Dad's mobo was set to 2.4 (i think) but seemed to have steadily doubled!

Hi,

what CPU you have and revision?

I know some A64`s memory controllers doenst like combination of single sided+double sided memory running together.It was mainly with older revisoon of A64 for socket 939.

It's a 32-bit Socket A Athlon chip. I can't remember what speed it is though, it might be a 2100. I'd boot it up and check but...

For anyone wanting to know the conclusion to the story, my memory got replaced under warranty and I got a replacement board for postage costs from Quint999, so the system is up and running once again. Leaving me with the usual dilemma of what to do with it!

Although the new board has status LEDs, the red one to alert you that the power supply is connected and powered on. So there's now permanent, rather ominous looking, red glow coming from the corner of my room (the side of the case is vented). I'll sure be sleeping easy the next couple of nights...

Its great Bob that its running again.
I have same red glow comming from my powersuppy power switch.I can sleep well with that