Is this definitely a RAM problem?

tirral · 02-25-2009, 09:26 AM

Hi, and thanks for the advice. I recently bought a new motherboard, PSU, ram, and processor to upgrade my old system. When I connected all the components and pressed the power switch, everything would turn on for 2-3 seconds, then immediately cut off. Then it would turn on again, then off, at 2-3 second intervals, until I switched off the power supply.

I was given advice on another board to change the PSU (I had originally bought a RaidMax, which they said was an unreliable brand), so I did - to an Antec. When it arrived yesterday, I connected it to the mobo (nothing else) and tried again. Same results - cycling on and off every 2-3 seconds.

The components I purchased (from Newegg) are as follows:

AMD Athlon 64 X2 5050e Brisbane 2.6GHz Socket AM2 45W Dual-Core Processor Model ADH5050DOBOX

ECS GF8200A (V1.0) AM2+/AM2 NVIDIA GeForce 8200 HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard

G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory

Antec earthwatts EA430 430W ATX12V v2.0 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Power Supply (Note: this is the second PSU)

In addition to swapping the PSU, I tried changing the RAM in various configurations on the board (one DIMM, both DIMMs, slot 1, 2, 3, 4, no RAM), all with the exact same results. This had me convinced that it was not a RAM problem, until I came to your forum.

---

Now I get to the part of my story where I feel like an idiot. Upon reading the stickies on this board (particularly the READ BEFORE YOU BUY RAM one), I discovered that the RAM I purchased was incompatible with my motherboard - in fact, it's made for Intel systems. So, my question is: are the results I'm seeing definitely related to RAM problems?

Before I read that sticky, I was thinking that I had a faulty mobo, and that I needed to RMA it. But now it's clear I should be replacing my RAM instead. However, I would like to make sure that the cycle-on-off thing is supposed to happen with no RAM installed. I know you aren't supposed to power up without RAM, but I thought perhaps that the power would at least stay on, and that I'd get an error chirp from the speaker. Is this cycle-on-off process to be expected for a computer booted with no RAM, or with incompatible RAM?

Also, do you have recommendations for 1066mhz RAM which would be compatible with this mobo?

Thanks again for your time and attention.

**wrench97** · 02-25-2009, 03:30 PM

Couple of things, with no ram the motherboard should beep continuously not shut on and off.

Hate to say it to you again but the second psu isn't any better then the first, Antec Neo's and Trio's used to be good but no more and the earthwatts never were.

As to the shutting on and of do you have the board in the case? If so pull it out and do a bench test percisely following the steps here> How to Bench Test Your System

Your ram should slow down to 800 but try the above with 1 stick lets see what it gives you.

tirral · 02-25-2009, 09:19 PM

Currently the mobo is on the box it came in, this board has an on-board power switch which is pretty convenient for frustrating times like this. A one-stick trial gives the same results, so I think it is probably the PSU as you suggested. Can't believe I have to RMA two of those things.

I don't have a good working PSU right now (posting from a laptop) but I will see if I can get a friend to lend me one this weekend before I RMA the second one. Thank you very much for the help!

02-25-2009, 09:26 AM	#1 (permalink)
tirral Registered User Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 2 OS: Windows XP, SP2	Is this definitely a RAM problem? Hi, and thanks for the advice. I recently bought a new motherboard, PSU, ram, and processor to upgrade my old system. When I connected all the components and pressed the power switch, everything would turn on for 2-3 seconds, then immediately cut off. Then it would turn on again, then off, at 2-3 second intervals, until I switched off the power supply. I was given advice on another board to change the PSU (I had originally bought a RaidMax, which they said was an unreliable brand), so I did - to an Antec. When it arrived yesterday, I connected it to the mobo (nothing else) and tried again. Same results - cycling on and off every 2-3 seconds. The components I purchased (from Newegg) are as follows: AMD Athlon 64 X2 5050e Brisbane 2.6GHz Socket AM2 45W Dual-Core Processor Model ADH5050DOBOX ECS GF8200A (V1.0) AM2+/AM2 NVIDIA GeForce 8200 HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Antec earthwatts EA430 430W ATX12V v2.0 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Power Supply (Note: this is the second PSU) In addition to swapping the PSU, I tried changing the RAM in various configurations on the board (one DIMM, both DIMMs, slot 1, 2, 3, 4, no RAM), all with the exact same results. This had me convinced that it was not a RAM problem, until I came to your forum. --- Now I get to the part of my story where I feel like an idiot. Upon reading the stickies on this board (particularly the READ BEFORE YOU BUY RAM one), I discovered that the RAM I purchased was incompatible with my motherboard - in fact, it's made for Intel systems. So, my question is: are the results I'm seeing definitely related to RAM problems? Before I read that sticky, I was thinking that I had a faulty mobo, and that I needed to RMA it. But now it's clear I should be replacing my RAM instead. However, I would like to make sure that the cycle-on-off thing is supposed to happen with no RAM installed. I know you aren't supposed to power up without RAM, but I thought perhaps that the power would at least stay on, and that I'd get an error chirp from the speaker. Is this cycle-on-off process to be expected for a computer booted with no RAM, or with incompatible RAM? Also, do you have recommendations for 1066mhz RAM which would be compatible with this mobo? Thanks again for your time and attention.

02-25-2009, 03:30 PM	#2 (permalink)
wrench97 Moderator, Hardware Team Join Date: May 2008 Location: S.E. Pennsylvania Posts: 18,578 OS: Win7	Re: Is this definitely a RAM problem? Couple of things, with no ram the motherboard should beep continuously not shut on and off. Hate to say it to you again but the second psu isn't any better then the first, Antec Neo's and Trio's used to be good but no more and the earthwatts never were. As to the shutting on and of do you have the board in the case? If so pull it out and do a bench test percisely following the steps here> How to Bench Test Your System Your ram should slow down to 800 but try the above with 1 stick lets see what it gives you. __________________ Power Supply and Selection

02-25-2009, 09:19 PM	#3 (permalink)
tirral Registered User Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 2 OS: Windows XP, SP2	Re: Is this definitely a RAM problem? Currently the mobo is on the box it came in, this board has an on-board power switch which is pretty convenient for frustrating times like this. A one-stick trial gives the same results, so I think it is probably the PSU as you suggested. Can't believe I have to RMA two of those things. I don't have a good working PSU right now (posting from a laptop) but I will see if I can get a friend to lend me one this weekend before I RMA the second one. Thank you very much for the help!