Can you use slots 2 and 4 rather than 1 and 3?

[ajf]

Hope this makes sense.
New motherboard has 4 slots. Typically pair the memory in slots 1 and 3 then 2 and 4.

With only two slots used, can I use 2 and 4 if nothing in 1 and 3?

Reason I ask is slot 1 slightly hinders heatsink on CPU.

 

[ajf]

Didn't want anything to go bang!
If it's just a matter of won't work rather than might damage then fine.

The manual is a bit unclear too on that issue.