MemTest86 Questions

[brandonnys]

Hello,

I was unsure as to whether I should put this in the memory section or the computer help section, but I figured this section was more well suited.

I have a computer I built with the following hardwares:

MSI 785GM-E51 Mobo
AMD Phemom II X4 965 Black Edition
2x ADATA AXU1600GB2G9-2G Memory (4 gig total)
XFX Radeon HD6870 Black Edition 1GB Video Card
CoolerMaster Extreme Power Plus 500W (For CPU/MOBO)
APower AK Series 850W (Dedicated to video card)

Before I go too much further, I should explain the two power supplies. I have a new one on the way. I was concerned that the APower's 2 12v rails were not actually 2 separate, so I dedicated it to the video card to make sure the CPU and video card both got enough juice.

I've been having some weird issues with the ATI driver stopping and restarting while at the desktop, as well as random BSODs, so I've been doing a lot of troubleshooting. As part of my troubleshooting I ran MemTest86 on my PC to see if the memory sticks were working correctly. During the first run (with both of the 2gig sticks in) the Memtest86 threw 8 errors on test #7. So, to see if it was a fluke, I ran the test again. This time, it threw 112 errors.

Puzzled, I tested each stick individually. After two runs on each stick, I have 0 errors. I'm running the test again now to see what I get this time, and I'll update the post with the results.

Does anyone have any idea what could be going on? I've made sure that the voltage on the mobo is 1.71 for the RAM, and that the RAM is running 9-9-9-24 (the settings printed on the sticker). Any ideas?

-Brandon

 

[nboy22]

Hello,

I was unsure as to whether I should put this in the memory section or the computer help section, but I figured this section was more well suited.

I have a computer I built with the following hardwares:

MSI 785GM-E51 Mobo
AMD Phemom II X4 965 Black Edition
2x ADATA AXU1600GB2G9-2G Memory (4 gig total)
XFX Radeon HD6870 Black Edition 1GB Video Card
CoolerMaster Extreme Power Plus 500W (For CPU/MOBO)
APower AK Series 850W (Dedicated to video card)

Before I go too much further, I should explain the two power supplies. I have a new one on the way. I was concerned that the APower's 2 12v rails were not actually 2 separate, so I dedicated it to the video card to make sure the CPU and video card both got enough juice.

I've been having some weird issues with the ATI driver stopping and restarting while at the desktop, as well as random BSODs, so I've been doing a lot of troubleshooting. As part of my troubleshooting I ran MemTest86 on my PC to see if the memory sticks were working correctly. During the first run (with both of the 2gig sticks in) the Memtest86 threw 8 errors on test #7. So, to see if it was a fluke, I ran the test again. This time, it threw 112 errors.

Puzzled, I tested each stick individually. After two runs on each stick, I have 0 errors. I'm running the test again now to see what I get this time, and I'll update the post with the results.

Does anyone have any idea what could be going on? I've made sure that the voltage on the mobo is 1.71 for the RAM, and that the RAM is running 9-9-9-24 (the settings printed on the sticker). Any ideas?

-Brandon

I would test each stick of Ram individually and run it through a few more times.

If one stick ends up throwing errors and the other has no error, that stick that has the errors is the culprit.

If both sticks turn up with errors, I would think it either could be a freak incident where both ram sticks went bad at the same time (Pretty unlikely). Or it could be another hardware error. I would see if I could borrow some ram from someone else just to make sure.

if you even get one error using memtest that means your ram is bad. I'm thinking it should only be one stick though. I would just test a few more times to see if the bad stick shows it's face again. The funny thing about bad ram is that every time you run memtest you may not get the same results.

 

[brandonnys]

As I mentioned, I ran each stick individually without any errors... it was only when both were mounted did I get any errors.

 

[BoomerD]

More info on your Apower PSU please.

Please post a pic of the PSU label, or if that's not available, the full model number and UL listing number.
I've searched the sites, and A-Power appears to be a very low quality PSU from a shoddy company. It MAY be that the problem stems from this power supply.

While the Coolermaster isn't a top-of-the-line PSU, 500 watts should be more than enough to power your rig with the components listed.

 

[Lemon law]

My guess is that the problem stems from the ram sticks running together at those particular timing and voltages. I would be calling adata and checking my mobo manual.
And you might end up having to try another brand of ram sticks.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Isn't A-Power one of those really cheap, NON-UL-LISTED, PSUs that geeks.com sells? I don't know how they get away with that, because non-UL-listed PSUs aren't even supposed to be sold in the USA.

 

[brandonnys]

Isn't A-Power one of those really cheap, NON-UL-LISTED, PSUs that geeks.com sells? I don't know how they get away with that, because non-UL-listed PSUs aren't even supposed to be sold in the USA.

It's possible the PSU isn't UL Listed. I looked all over the box and the PSU and it doesn't show a UL sticker, but keep in mind that the APower PSU is only powering the video card via 2 6-pin connectors. It's not contributing power to anything else.

I ran the memtest again and got no errors with both sticks in, so maybe reseating the RAM fixed it? I have no idea at this point. I'm going to run some tests and see if I can make it go crazy again.

 

[rnjeezy]

you could remove the external graphics card and therefore also its powersupply, and perform the tests again.