Issues with new RAM

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Jamo114

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Hey everyone.

I decided to finally get some more RAM to speed my PC up, went from 4GB to 8GB. Wasn't thinking too clearly when I bought the RAM and didn't check whether the sticks were compatible with my mobo (the new RAM is the Kingston HyperX Blue 8GB kit, 2x4GB).

So after I install the sticks (replacing the old ones - not in addition to), I boot up the PC. POST detects that I now have 8GB of RAM running at 1600MHz and continues to the "Starting Windows" screen. Once those words appear the system seems to hang without the waving flag appearing. I restart, and the same problem occurs. I try with one stick then, except I now get a BSOD after it reaches that point with the message "IRQ_NOT_EQUAL_OR_LESS". I put both sticks back in and now it just freezes without the BSOD.

I reinsert the old sticks, everything boots up fine and I download the ISO of Memtest and burn it to a disc. Reinsert the new sticks and boot into Memtest. It starts running and gets to 26% on the first run the just stops, and no key presses do anything.

So I figure there are two possibilities here: either the sticks are faulty and I should go get replacements, or they aren't compatible with my mobo and I can get that new CPU and mobo I have been wanting for a while now. Any thoughts as to which situation it could be?

My system is as follows:
CPU: Intel Core i5-661
Mobo: Gigabyte H55M-S2H
GPU: VTX Radeon HD 6870
OS: Windows 7 Ultimate
Old RAM: Kingston Value RAM (2x2GB)
New RAM: Kingston HyperX Blue 8GB (2x4GB) - KHX1600C9D3B1K2/8GX

Thanks in advance! :)
 
Jamo114 said:
Hey everyone.

I decided to finally get some more RAM to speed my PC up, went from 4GB to 8GB. Wasn't thinking too clearly when I bought the RAM and didn't check whether the sticks were compatible with my mobo (the new RAM is the Kingston HyperX Blue 8GB kit, 2x4GB).

So after I install the sticks (replacing the old ones - not in addition to), I boot up the PC. POST detects that I now have 8GB of RAM running at 1600MHz and continues to the "Starting Windows" screen. Once those words appear the system seems to hang without the waving flag appearing. I restart, and the same problem occurs. I try with one stick then, except I now get a BSOD after it reaches that point with the message "IRQ_NOT_EQUAL_OR_LESS". I put both sticks back in and now it just freezes without the BSOD.

I reinsert the old sticks, everything boots up fine and I download the ISO of Memtest and burn it to a disc. Reinsert the new sticks and boot into Memtest. It starts running and gets to 26% on the first run the just stops, and no key presses do anything.

So I figure there are two possibilities here: either the sticks are faulty and I should go get replacements, or they aren't compatible with my mobo and I can get that new CPU and mobo I have been wanting for a while now. Any thoughts as to which situation it could be?

My system is as follows:
CPU: Intel Core i5-661
Mobo: Gigabyte H55M-S2H
GPU: VTX Radeon HD 6870
OS: Windows 7 Ultimate
Old RAM: Kingston Value RAM (2x2GB)
New RAM: Kingston HyperX Blue 8GB (2x4GB) - KHX1600C9D3B1K2/8GX

Thanks in advance! :)
Click to expand...

The fastest way to speed up a pc is upgrade to ssd.
 
Try memtest with old sticks to see if it completes? Try memtest with new sticks one at a time? Try boot to bios and confirm new sticks are recognized - possibly change to auto detect ram speed etc?
 
Make sure the BIOS is fully updated.

I had an issue where there was nothing wrong with the new RAM. Just an outdated BIOS.

Update BIOS.
Test

Report back.
 
Iamnotageek said:
Make sure the BIOS is fully updated.

I had an issue where there was nothing wrong with the new RAM. Just an outdated BIOS.

Update BIOS.
Test

Report back.
Click to expand...

+1 to this. Gigabyte boards usually ship with an old(ish) bios loaded. I had to flash my mobo for the GPU to be detected
 
Intel Core i5-661 Memory Specifications
Max Memory Size (dependent on memory type) 16 GB
Memory Types DDR3-1066/1333
# of Memory Channels 2
Max Memory Bandwidth 21 GB/s
 
Make sure memory settings in the bios are on auto/default and nothing is overclocked.

If that does not work, put in the old memory again, make sure it is running without any issues and then download the latest bios as suggested. Here is the link to Gigabyte's page.

Don't try and update with the new memory installed.

Also obviously backup anything important in case anything goes wrong.
 
I have updated my BIOS now, to version F7. I ran Memtest with the old sticks in and this was the result. I then tried booting with only one of the new sticks in and only gets this far. It then reboots itself and continues this loop.

I then put both of the new sticks in and try to run Memtest. It only gets this far and then just hangs. All of the memory settings in the BIOS are set to auto/standard.
 
I suspect your ram timings are a bit too tight. You need to put your settings on auto, or load the safe default settings on your bios.
 
Loaded the fail-safe defaults, still hanging at the "Starting Windows" screen or the 50% mark in Memtest. I'm going to try go to a mates house now to test them out in his rig and see if they work there.
 
That should give you a definitive answer then. If it works at your mate's, it's your mobo. If it doesn't work at mate's, it's the stix.
 
In my opinion there is problem with memory controller, PCB traces or a bad CPU contact. It didn't show on the old memory, as some addressing lines are not used. Take out CPU, clean and renew thermal paste and if it doesn't help, go back to the supplier and claim that they sold you product which didn't work properly from the beginning. Even if it is out of warranty, they should assist you in finding memory module which is working on this machine. I wish them a luck. :)
 
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