New build not displaying anything on power up
- Thread starter skudzy
- Start date
WOOO!! Just switched the 1 stick of ram i had in there with the other one and it booted to bios!! Would that indicate the first stick i had in there is faulty? Also what is it i need to change in the bios with voltages etc?
Also, just want to double check... in the bios it says the frequency of my CPU is 1.2GHz but then says the CPU operating speed is 2.4GHz. Does that sound right? The 1.2Ghz sounds a bit low...
Also, just want to double check... in the bios it says the frequency of my CPU is 1.2GHz but then says the CPU operating speed is 2.4GHz. Does that sound right? The 1.2Ghz sounds a bit low...
It should say 2.4Ghz.. but I wouldnt worry about that right yet. Try and resolve 1 issue at a time 
It may indicate you have a faulty ram stick, but as I've said OCZ ram is specced 1.9V+, while the motherboard defaults to 1.8V... Perhaps your 'bad' stick just wont play ball with less than 1.9V period.
Find the memory voltage override, and set it at 1.9V.. Even 2.0 or 2.1 wont be a problem with OCZ, or at least not as far as the warrently is concerned. They rate the ram at those voltages anyway.
I would set it at 1.9V, and save, and then try the original 'bad' stick again on its own. If it cant boot up with 1.9V on the memory and a single stick, then the stick's probably bad.
My friends system runs both sticks, with [email protected], and timings/speed at the full rating of the memory (800mhz, 4/4/4/12 I think). At 1.8V it doesnt even post just like yours.
The FSB of that processor is 1066, you should be able to confirm that in bios, if FSB has defaulted to something lower, then just up it to 1066 shouldnt be a problem. You could also lower the memory speed down to 1:1 (probably listed as 533mhz) while your 'testing' the system, and then increase it gradually back to full speed, tweaking the memory voltages further if needed. Use CPU-Z once your in windows to confirm the speed of the CPU. Dont worry too much about what the bios says, just as long as FSB is 1066 your good.
Recommended to use the lowest voltage that gives a stable PC. So if 1.9V isnt any good, dont go directly to 2.3V for example. Try at 2.0. Anyway its certainly possible one of your sticks is dud, but its worth trying it with higher volts, and lower speeds before you RMA it. At the very least it will give you more to write on the RMA forms
It may indicate you have a faulty ram stick, but as I've said OCZ ram is specced 1.9V+, while the motherboard defaults to 1.8V... Perhaps your 'bad' stick just wont play ball with less than 1.9V period.
Find the memory voltage override, and set it at 1.9V.. Even 2.0 or 2.1 wont be a problem with OCZ, or at least not as far as the warrently is concerned. They rate the ram at those voltages anyway.
I would set it at 1.9V, and save, and then try the original 'bad' stick again on its own. If it cant boot up with 1.9V on the memory and a single stick, then the stick's probably bad.
My friends system runs both sticks, with [email protected], and timings/speed at the full rating of the memory (800mhz, 4/4/4/12 I think). At 1.8V it doesnt even post just like yours.
The FSB of that processor is 1066, you should be able to confirm that in bios, if FSB has defaulted to something lower, then just up it to 1066 shouldnt be a problem. You could also lower the memory speed down to 1:1 (probably listed as 533mhz) while your 'testing' the system, and then increase it gradually back to full speed, tweaking the memory voltages further if needed. Use CPU-Z once your in windows to confirm the speed of the CPU. Dont worry too much about what the bios says, just as long as FSB is 1066 your good.
Recommended to use the lowest voltage that gives a stable PC. So if 1.9V isnt any good, dont go directly to 2.3V for example. Try at 2.0. Anyway its certainly possible one of your sticks is dud, but its worth trying it with higher volts, and lower speeds before you RMA it. At the very least it will give you more to write on the RMA forms
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After i put the voltage up to 1.9v I tested the other stick and it worked so ive now got them both in there and it works. That CPU frequency also went up to 2.44GHz after installing the second RAM stick. Next stop is sorting out the memory timings and speed. In the DRAM timing screen it has the following options, all set to Auto:
- CAS Latency Time
- RAS# to CAS# Delay
- RAS# Precharge
- Precharge Dealy
- Refresh Cycle Time
- Write Recovery Time
- Write to Read Delay
- Act to Act Time
- Read to Precharge
Basically im not sure where you set this whole 4/4/4/12 thing. Any help would be great
- CAS Latency Time
- RAS# to CAS# Delay
- RAS# Precharge
- Precharge Dealy
- Refresh Cycle Time
- Write Recovery Time
- Write to Read Delay
- Act to Act Time
- Read to Precharge
Basically im not sure where you set this whole 4/4/4/12 thing. Any help would be great
Set the volts to 2.1v, then change the timings to:
Frequency: 400 Mhz (800 Mhz active)
CAS Latency Time (tCL): 4 (four)
RAS# to CAS# Delay (tRCD): 5 (five)
RAS# Precharge (tRP): 5 (five)
Precharge Delay (tRAS): 16 (sixteen)
Refresh Cycle Time (tRFC): 43 (fourty-three)
Write Recovery Time (tWR): 7 (seven)
Write to Read Delay (tWTR): 4 (four)
Act to Act Time (tRRD): 5 (five)
Read to Precharge (tRTP): 4 (four)
Frequency: 400 Mhz (800 Mhz active)
CAS Latency Time (tCL): 4 (four)
RAS# to CAS# Delay (tRCD): 5 (five)
RAS# Precharge (tRP): 5 (five)
Precharge Delay (tRAS): 16 (sixteen)
Refresh Cycle Time (tRFC): 43 (fourty-three)
Write Recovery Time (tWR): 7 (seven)
Write to Read Delay (tWTR): 4 (four)
Act to Act Time (tRRD): 5 (five)
Read to Precharge (tRTP): 4 (four)
I'd only set the volts up to 2.1 if there is instability. The best voltage is the lowest voltage which ensures 100% stability. Sure if its unstable at the fastest speeds with 1.9V, then increase to 2.0, 2.1 even 2.2 if needed. However it the system is perfect with 1.9V on the ram thats better. Lower voltage = less heat being pumped into the case.
Your memory is rated at 1.9 - 2.0 volts, it has protection built in to prevent damage when using higher volts... but if its stable there's no point in having higher voltage anyway.
4-4-4-15 (CAS-TRCD-TRP-TRAS)
Your memory is rated for tCL 4, tRCD 4, tRP 4, tRAS 15. The other ratings arnt really listed, go with what fibby said, but I dont see the point in going 4/5/5/16 when your rams rated at 4/4/4/15 @ 1.9v @ 800mhz.
If your memory is good it should be able to reach its 'sold specification/speed' without problem, and may go faster if your lucky.
PS. Glad you got it working. Enjoy playing with the timings and maximising your computers performance. I strongly recommend running Memtest86 overnight to ensure the memory can handle the timings/clockspeed/voltage with 0 errors. If you get even 1 memtest error on an overnight run, then either up the volts, or slacken the timings.
Your memory is rated at 1.9 - 2.0 volts, it has protection built in to prevent damage when using higher volts... but if its stable there's no point in having higher voltage anyway.
4-4-4-15 (CAS-TRCD-TRP-TRAS)
Your memory is rated for tCL 4, tRCD 4, tRP 4, tRAS 15. The other ratings arnt really listed, go with what fibby said, but I dont see the point in going 4/5/5/16 when your rams rated at 4/4/4/15 @ 1.9v @ 800mhz.
If your memory is good it should be able to reach its 'sold specification/speed' without problem, and may go faster if your lucky.
PS. Glad you got it working. Enjoy playing with the timings and maximising your computers performance. I strongly recommend running Memtest86 overnight to ensure the memory can handle the timings/clockspeed/voltage with 0 errors. If you get even 1 memtest error on an overnight run, then either up the volts, or slacken the timings.
Ok Ive adjusted the timings for the RAM but i cant find anywhere to set the frequency of it. The only thing i can see that seems similar is DRAM speed which is a ratio of CPU
RAM. Is that it? If so which ratio do i want? Also, theres a PCI Express Frequency set to 100MHz... is that ok?
Finally, whilst trying to install vista it crashed to a blue screen a couple of times, the second time stating IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL so i guess this is the instability you're referring to. I'll try putting the voltage up to 2.0 and see if that helps.
RAM. Is that it? If so which ratio do i want? Also, theres a PCI Express Frequency set to 100MHz... is that ok?Finally, whilst trying to install vista it crashed to a blue screen a couple of times, the second time stating IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL so i guess this is the instability you're referring to. I'll try putting the voltage up to 2.0 and see if that helps.
Yep, thats a sure sign of instability.. Yes, DRAM ratio is what your looking for.
With your 1066FSB CPU, (at stock speed.. if you overclock the ram goes up too)
1066 1:1 533
1066 4:5 667
1066 2:3 800
1066 1:2 1066
Hope that helps.
If your ram needs 2.1V to be stable at the 2:3 Ratio (800mhz) setting, then so be it... its not a problem. Just pick the lowest voltage that is stable. If you reach 2.3V and its still unstable then I would be looking at RMA'ing the memory, as you bought 4/4/4/15@800mhz memory, and its overvoltage protection is supposed to kick in at 2.2V anyway.
If volts doesnt get you running on the tighest timings, and highest frequency, you can always slacken the timings to 4/5/5/16.. but that would annoy me personally as you pay extra to get tight timings, only to find it doesnt work at the lowest latency's etc.
PCI Express @ 100mhz is stock. Some motherboards increase this if/when you overclock, but if you pick 101 for instance it should lock the frequency independant of the processors 'overclock'. For a non overclocked system though 100mhz is correct.
Its probably worth noting, if you start overclocking, you need a different ratio.
Say 1333mhz FSB instead of 1066, would bring the 4:5 multiplier up to 833mhz, which would be slightly over the spec on your memory, while the 1:1 ratio at 1333FSB would run your memory at 667, which is actually below your memorys highest spec.
That said with Core2 Duo the gains for memory being faster than 1:1 are considerably less than AMD, as the FSB is a bigger bottleneck than AMD's integrated memory controller.
With your 1066FSB CPU, (at stock speed.. if you overclock the ram goes up too)
1066 1:1 533
1066 4:5 667
1066 2:3 800
1066 1:2 1066
Hope that helps.
If your ram needs 2.1V to be stable at the 2:3 Ratio (800mhz) setting, then so be it... its not a problem. Just pick the lowest voltage that is stable. If you reach 2.3V and its still unstable then I would be looking at RMA'ing the memory, as you bought 4/4/4/15@800mhz memory, and its overvoltage protection is supposed to kick in at 2.2V anyway.
If volts doesnt get you running on the tighest timings, and highest frequency, you can always slacken the timings to 4/5/5/16.. but that would annoy me personally as you pay extra to get tight timings, only to find it doesnt work at the lowest latency's etc.
PCI Express @ 100mhz is stock. Some motherboards increase this if/when you overclock, but if you pick 101 for instance it should lock the frequency independant of the processors 'overclock'. For a non overclocked system though 100mhz is correct.
Its probably worth noting, if you start overclocking, you need a different ratio.
Say 1333mhz FSB instead of 1066, would bring the 4:5 multiplier up to 833mhz, which would be slightly over the spec on your memory, while the 1:1 ratio at 1333FSB would run your memory at 667, which is actually below your memorys highest spec.
That said with Core2 Duo the gains for memory being faster than 1:1 are considerably less than AMD, as the FSB is a bigger bottleneck than AMD's integrated memory controller.
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The ratio options i have are:
- 1:1.00
- 1:1.20
- 1:1.25
- 1:1.50
- 1:1.66
- 1:2.00
So not sure which one i need! The External clock is set to 272MHz and it has a min of 200 and max of 600 i can enter. Thats the only place i see the bios even mentioning FSB frequency so not sure if thats right either! Thanks for all this help!
- 1:1.00
- 1:1.20
- 1:1.25
- 1:1.50
- 1:1.66
- 1:2.00
So not sure which one i need! The External clock is set to 272MHz and it has a min of 200 and max of 600 i can enter. Thats the only place i see the bios even mentioning FSB frequency so not sure if thats right either! Thanks for all this help!
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Ahh yes, I almost forgot that, noticed with my friends IP35 that it defaulted to 272 rather than 266.. Naughty abit 
thats a small 'stock' overclock.
That said, 1:1.5 is the correct ratio to hit 800, it will actually be 816 on the memory due to the IP35's slight overclock, unless you override it by putting 266 into the External clock field.
The ratios I said 4:5 2:3 etc.. they are mathamaticaly the same as 1:1.25, 1:1.5 etc just different bios using different ways of expressing the same ratios.
Good luck with the system, and I do recommend running memtest86 overnight to confirm total memory stability. enjoy your new system!
thats a small 'stock' overclock.That said, 1:1.5 is the correct ratio to hit 800, it will actually be 816 on the memory due to the IP35's slight overclock, unless you override it by putting 266 into the External clock field.
The ratios I said 4:5 2:3 etc.. they are mathamaticaly the same as 1:1.25, 1:1.5 etc just different bios using different ways of expressing the same ratios.
Good luck with the system, and I do recommend running memtest86 overnight to confirm total memory stability. enjoy your new system!
Thanks for all your help guys its really helped me get up and running!
Only problem now is that because the vista install crashed it wont start again... keeps coming up with "BOOTMGR IS MISSING" even when i set it to boot from DVD as the top priority. It does come up with "press any key to boot from DVD" but ignores my frantic key pressing. Maybe its my wireless keyboard not being detected...
Only problem now is that because the vista install crashed it wont start again... keeps coming up with "BOOTMGR IS MISSING" even when i set it to boot from DVD as the top priority. It does come up with "press any key to boot from DVD" but ignores my frantic key pressing. Maybe its my wireless keyboard not being detected...
Yeah, thats a typical response with a wireless keyboard.
Go into bios, somewhere there will be an option which says something about legacy USB devices.
You need to enable legacy USB devices to get usb keyboards workout inbetween bios, and windows loading (IE to press the key)
Once you do that your wireless keyboard should be fine.. Otherwise you'll have to try a PS2 Keyboard.
Go into bios, somewhere there will be an option which says something about legacy USB devices.
You need to enable legacy USB devices to get usb keyboards workout inbetween bios, and windows loading (IE to press the key)
Once you do that your wireless keyboard should be fine.. Otherwise you'll have to try a PS2 Keyboard.