Loyd's New Year - A Trio of Problem Systems
by Loyd Case on January 13, 2010 12:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Systems
The Constantly Crashing P7P55D
Now let’s consider a different problem, also with an Asus motherboard at its core.
I’d built a system running a Core i7 860 and the Asus P7P55D. The GPU installed was an AMD Radeon HD 4890. The system booted normally, and Windows 7 installed with no hiccups.
Periodically, the system would go into sleep mode – this was normal – but would then lock up. This was decidedly not normal. Occasionally, the system would lock up during multiplayer gaming sessions, too. Updating the BIOS didn’t fix the problem.
Then I came across several posts on several forums suggesting an incompatibility that was specific to the Radeon HD 4890. So I swapped in an eVGA 260 GTX Core 216 SSC.
Lockups still occurred, with the same frequency and symptoms. So the problem had nothing to do with graphics cards. Finally, I removed the memory – some early Corsair DDR3-1600 (though it was only running at 1333MHz) and swapped in some OCZ DDR3-1600 (also running at 1333MHz.)
The system has now been running smooth as silk over multiple gaming sessions.
These particular Corsair memory modules had actually given me fits in a number of different Intel-based motherboards, including P45, X48 and now a P55 motherboard. The Corsair memory is a 4GB kit, labeled CMS3X2048-1600C7DHX. What’s interesting about these modules is that when you drop them in an AMD AM3 based motherboard, the system seems to run perfectly fine. It’s quite a mystery, but illustrates how complex the issue of compatibility between components can be.
Lesson learned: nothing in particular, except to maybe to not trust forum posts, even multiple posts that may agree with each other. The graphics card wasn’t the problem here – once again, it was DRAM.
One other thought: despite rapidly falling DDR3 memory prices (or maybe because of rapidly falling prices), the state of the art in DDR3 modules seems to be evolving rapidly. This seems to create incompatibilities between specific motherboards and specific modules. I’ve had Kingston modules run great in Gigabyte motherboards and behave in a crashtastic manner in Asus boards. I’ve had OCZ memory behave badly in Intel boards, while running like a champ in eVGA X58 boards. Whether I adjusted timings, or ran in default modes, didn’t seem to matter.
How anyone can keep track of which modules run well on which motherboards at this point in time is a mystery. So the lesson here, I suppose is: if you don’t have a large supply of different modules and motherboards on hand – and most people don’t – make sure you buy your components from a reseller with a robust return and exchange policy.
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semo - Sunday, January 17, 2010 - link
i think i have a similar issue with a studio 1557. i can't get the i7 to work at its rated 1.6GHz freq. it stays at 900MHz even with 1 to 8 instances of cpu burn in running (and speed step enabled or disabled).that's what we get for feeling confident about today's technology and living on the edge. And this DDR 3 compatibility issue sounds scary (hope it doesn't affect laptops too)
AstroGuardian - Wednesday, January 13, 2010 - link
That serves you right for buying that Dell crap.Just a little joke mate, no hard feelings. I support your effort in making the issue public and forcing Dell to take action and deliver what you payed for.
Thumbs up!
SlyNine - Wednesday, January 13, 2010 - link
The computer could be perfect too, thats the really crappy thing about all this.It just needed a bigger PSU, under battery power it runs at full speed.
ezero - Wednesday, January 13, 2010 - link
On the 2nd system you said "How anyone can keep track of which modules run well on which motherboards at this point in time is a mystery."You can easily track which modules runs well by checking the motherboard's Qualified Vendor List for memory modules.
For example, the P7P55D's list can be found at http://www.asus.com/product.aspx?P_ID=RBA8CzWoopUl...">http://www.asus.com/product.aspx?P_ID=RBA8CzWoopUl... and clicking on the Memory Support List tab.
Bertus - Wednesday, January 13, 2010 - link
My experience with the QVL is different. I have an Asus Formula Rampage board with the latest bios, and I have bought that board to try and run a (amongst others) memory overclock on. All the memory that was on the QVL that was certified for better-than-normal memory timings and frequencies was either only obtainable in Asia or end-of-life. The QVL was never updated since.After trying several sets of matched pair memory modules from OCZ (Reaper) and Kingston, the results were:
- post only with 1 module inserted
- would not post with 2 modules, not even with DDR2-800 standard settings
I gave up and bought a pair of standard DDR2-800 value edition. Works just fine.
Bottom line is: QVL is not always helpful.
mackintire - Wednesday, January 13, 2010 - link
Installed the latest BIOS update, tweaked the memory as recommended, ran memtest. Booted up and everything is great.Granted with BIOS 903 I had a couple memory related issues.
camylarde - Wednesday, January 13, 2010 - link
seconding thatPeroxyde - Wednesday, January 13, 2010 - link
Emily's computer issues could be fixed without even opening the case. Install Linux, start with Ubuntu, it is easier to begin with. Emily is computer savvy. She will figure out how to use Linux in no time. At least my daughter did.Once Linux installed, the computer will be blazing fast, no antivirus, no anti spyware needed. You will ever again do any cleaning of crap and bloatware. After a while, you will realize that your own machines need more care than Emily's computer, then may be you will consider yourself also switching to Linux.
synaesthetic - Wednesday, January 13, 2010 - link
If he wanted to make sure his daughter never used the computer again for anything, installing Linux on it would be a good way to accomplish that goal."Slightly more computer savvy than the average teenage girl" does not translate into "enthusiast PC user with an interest in *nix OSes."
cfaalm - Wednesday, January 13, 2010 - link
I'll agree we can forego opening the case. Why do we want to saddle up Emily with Linux? I have an Ubuntu install on one of our old laptops and I like it, but XP is OK. I'll agree that w7 > XP. It also depends on you budget and situation. Some stuff that I use won't work on w7-64 and I'd hate to upgrade to w7-32.When my PC messes up (it seldom does without my own stupidity involved) I restore an activated XPSP3 up to a certain date with no software, just OS, mobo and graphics driver. That's still the best way do deal with a real mess.
Next step is installing my software again: a good way to select what you really need. The only downside is that I don't know how to save settings and preferences for every app before the reinstall, some have UIs for that, others don't. Templates are not to be stored on C:
All it takes is some preparation. Store your apps in a convenient manner and place e.g. bunch of .iso-files on an external USB drive.