Intel DG45ID audio and memory problems - please help!

[GPSJane]

Chassis: Gigabyte Setto 1000
PSU: Corsair TX750
MoBo: Intel DG45ID
CPU: Intel Core2Duo E7500
Memory: Corsair 2 x 2Gb DDR2 800Mhz matched DIMMs

I'm having a problem where the motherboard speaker emits 3 beeps on POST and does not boot. According to the manual this means a memory failure but this is not a consistent problem. It happens with both memory DIMMs installed and with one memory DIMM installed (tried each separately) but the setup also sometimes works.

Which is it likely to be; the memory or motherboard? The other computers in the house don't take DDR2 so it's a real mission to test them separately.

I also have a problem with the audio drivers but I am not sure if it's even possible for the 2 issues to be related. The audio drivers just will not install and even when I occasionally get them to install they disappear; when I start Windows it asks me to install a new device even though it was just working!

If the audio device disappears due to a hardware issue then the drivers should still be there but no one else has reported this issue so how can it be a driver issue?

The troubleshooting guide says to uninstall the driver package and reinstall then alternately to disable the audio in the BIOS, reinstall Windows, then re-enable in the BIOS. I have tried this step by step and it did not work.

Of course until I sort out the memory issue I can't really properly fix the audio issue because every second time I reboot I get a memory failure.

Aaargh!

 

[Adrenalin]

Haven't tried another stick of memory then? 9/10 when my PC fails and gives me BSOD's / Beeps it's the stupid memory sticks and because they are so cheap these days, I just upgrade. Waiting for the next ones to fail so i can get DDR1333

Try memory first I would suggest but i am no tech fundi. Just a PC lover.

 

[GPSJane]

Ok, yeah I will. I have to go 'borrow' some. lol

I might also plug mine into their board too. Hopefully it givs the same error and then I know and I can just return it. (It's about a week old)

 

[Gnome]

because they are so cheap these days, I just upgrade.

:wtf: Some people operate in the strangest ways.

Most memory today has lifetime warranty. Mostly because memory doesn't get damaged over time, usually if it survived the first 24/48 hours it should last a lifetime. I've fixed quite a few PCs in my life, haven't actually ever had memory die on me except when overclocking, lightning (IE. some kind of intentional or actual damaged occurred). Running within specs memory is probably the least likely component to get damaged IMHO except for the CPU (I have to this day, not seen a single DOA CPU or had a CPU die on me, don't overclock much tho).

I might also plug mine into their board too. Hopefully it givs the same error and then I know and I can just return it. (It's about a week old)

Many stores will only provide store credit, so the buy and then return option isn't such a good idea usually. Not to mention that it isn't the best way to go about "testing". Don't you have ANY friends that could help you out?

Had a old motherboard that gave the problem, Pentium 2 I think, memory just needed to be pushed into place really hard (and wiggled a bit till it made proper contact) but it sound like the motherboard to me. Those beeps are usually indicative of no memory installed, not so much memory failure.

 

[GPSJane]

Gnome: yeah exactly why I can send it back if it's faulty - it's in warrranty.

And yes I am going to go plug my DIMMs into someone's mobo and plug theirs into mine. I'll let you know.

Oh and I did some testing on my mobo and it seems as if only one of the DIMMs is the problem. It fails about half the time. The other doesn't fail - so not the mobo.

 

[Adrenalin]

:wtf: Some people operate in the strangest ways.

I am a strange little man. Had alot of memory decide to give me BSOD's and the like.
And returnign memory takes like 3 damn weeks at stores where customer service is not a high priority *cough* PC Zone *cough*

These sticks have lasted me ages though. 2 years+

CPU has NEVER died on me, had it for like 10 years+. (Next upgrade!)

 

[Gnome]

I am a strange little man.

Had alot of memory decide to give me BSOD's and the like.
And returnign memory takes like 3 damn weeks at stores where customer service is not a high priority *cough* PC Zone *cough*

Yeah I feel you. Luckily I learned that lesson a long time ago and only buy from stores that actually offer decent turn around (eg. Cyberdyne systems swaps out right there, same for Esquire. Prophecy sent it back to me as soon as they received a replacement, probably 3 days).

Still strange that memory died later, as I said, I've never actually had memory die on me but in terms of receiving bad memory from the get go, I have about a 50% success rate so far. (So about half the modules I buy I usually end up sending back because they don't pass memtest/prime 95).

It's been better of late, previously (when DDR2-800 just started selling for acceptable prices) I had so many failures I started asking the people to test the modules before I leave.

CPU has NEVER died on me, had it for like 10 years+. (Next upgrade!)

Hehe, CPUs die hard