Upgrading Ram Hassel

[me10]

Why is nothing ever simple eh??
I wanted to upgrade my RAM, but I was unsure what to get.
Under the recommendation of someone at TSG (wasper) http://forums.techguy.org/hardware/587848-would-work-ram-upgrade.html I purchased a single stick of PC3200 512MB.
I bought the RAM from eBay, brand new from someone with 100% positibe feedback
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI....MEWN:IT&viewitem=&item=180135342608&rd=1&rd=1
But it's not working

It is simply not recognised, I first placed into slots 2 and 3 and it just found the usual 512MB of RAM. I then took my original RAM out and placed the new memory into SLOT 1 and the system did not post. I'm sure I have installed it correctly - the label is facing the left, towards the processor and heat sink and the connection is secure. I swapped the memory back and it worked fine - so my technique of installing RAM is fine.

Any help would be appreciated, thanks a lot!


Motherboard Site:
http://www.asrock.com/mb/overview.asp?Model=K7S8XE+&s=

PS. My other stick is 512MBPC3200 so they are the same...so there should be no compatability issues...:-/

 

[lefty1953]

This is what your Mother board says about the ram you need.
- 3 x DDR DIMMs, DDR400/333/266
- DDR 266 Max. 3GB
- DDR 333 Max. 2GB
- DDR 400 Max. 1GB
What is the Clock speed on the ram you bought? Check the settings in BIOS to see if the ram is set correct.

Most people with 100% Positive feedback on E-bay are very trustworthy.
How did Crucial figure out what your Motherboard is? Thats is new tech to me. What is the Memory say that is in the PC? PC2700/PC3200 or PC4000? It will say on the chip.

 

[me10]

I had an original stick of 512MB PC3200
The new memory is a stick of 512MB PC3200
The clock speed is set to auto - it has no trouble detecting my original RAM (even when I move it into slots 2 and 3)
I believe PC3200 = DDR 400.
He says I can have a refund, but I would much rather just get it working and save hassel
Crucial scans your system (you install an app) and the site recommends memory to you. It detects suitable memory upgrades.

 

[me10]

does anybody have any advice??
Please help - because I need to send it back if it doesn't work...

 

[me10]

bump

 

[DoubleHelix]

Send it back. Sometimes memory is bad or faulty. You can't force it to work. You've already determined the chip is the problem. There's nothing more to do but get a replacement.

 

[me10]

thanks, have done so.
And thanks for replying, glad you agreed.
Just wanted to check I had purchased the correct RAM, which I think I had.

 

[Rich-M]

With ddr ram sometimes even buying the same model from a different batch of ram will not work. Cheap motherboards are also notorious for being difficult to match with ram. I would buy it from Crucial and then it is guaranteed to work and there prices have gotten really decent lately.