Dual channel memory failure on cold boot

So this is a problem that has been trying me for the past year. Here is what happens:

First boot: my computer has been off for several hours. I know that booting into Windows will just BSOD (MEMORY_MANAGEMENT and all that jazz) and booting into Linux will cause several applications to shut down until X.org crashes. So I'll boot into memtest86 to find out the status of my 2x2GB of RAM. Tons of errors right off the bat.

Obviously the RAM is kaput then, right? I decide to sleep on it, pop out one RAM stick, and boot back into Memtest86. No errors. So this has narrowed it down to that one RAM stick, then, since there are no errors? The problem is, if I boot with both RAM sticks, and then shutdown from BIOS, and then start my computer up again, there are no problems with either stick.

Here are some relevant system specifications:
i5-750 at stock, GA-P55-UD3R (BIOS F8a), 2x2GB G.SKILL Ripjaws F3-10666CL8D-4GBRM

Originally I thought it was perhaps the power supply, being the only part that I would think could fail to function upon first boot and thus perhaps not providing enough power to my RAM or something (especially since the "faulty" RAM functions perfectly after the first boot: I've been using the two sticks for the past year on all kinds of programs and games, without failure). I switched from the Antec earthwatts 500W PSU to a Corsair 400W CMPSU-400CX PSU but no dice, same errors. In case you're wondering about the downgrade, I'm fairly certain that my system can run on 400W of power, I was more concerned about some sort of bad circuitry or something else. Additionally, the errors persist if I remove my IDE hard drive (concerning power issues) and optical drive.

Full system specs:

Processor: Intel Core i5-750 @ 2.8GHz
Motherboard: GA-P55-UD3R (BIOS V.F8a)
Graphics Card: SAPPHIRE HD 4870 1GB
Monitor: LG W2343, 1920x1080 60MHz
RAM: 2x2GB G.SKILL Ripjaws DDR3 1333 8-8-8-24
Hard Drives: WD Caviar Black 1TB, Seagate 300GB IDE
Case: Antec Sonata III
Power: Antec earthwatts 500W
Optical: HL-DT-ST DVDRAM

Not sure what else to do. I've checked for bad capacitors on the motherboard, I've reset my BIOS to both "default" and "optimized" settings, checked all of my drivers (not that I'd have to worry about that pre-OS level). It looks as though maybe my motherboard is to blame, although I hope that isn't the case. The only thing more awful to replace than the PSU (which I just did) is the motherboard. But perhaps there is something I've overlooked.

μ

Make sure the two modules are installed in DIMM slots DDR3_1 and DDR3_3 sockets, which are the 2nd and 4th slots from the CPU socket. Manually set the DRAM voltage to 1.5-1.55V, and the four primary RAM timings to 8-8-8-24-2N (Command Rate). Also check to make sure the System Memory Multiplier is manually set to x10, for an effective DRAM Frequency of 1333MHz at a default 133MHz BCLK.

I agree on the settings, make sure it is all set correctly. Other than that If you already updated your BIOS, do a long test on each stick of memory and try and see if one is bad. Run it for awhile. Also try each of the two slots, see if one of the slots is bad/acting up.

It comes down to either memory, motherboard slot, BIOS, or the motherboard itself, really.

Was this resolved?

Hi mu,

Did you ever get this problem sorted? I'm experiencing a very similar one.

I too just replaced my PSU, but still linux crashes on cold boot. My workaround is to turn on and allow to go through POST and start boot loader, then power off (using the motherboard switch), wait a couple of seconds, then power on. I don't believe there are any changes to CMOS settings between boots.

Someone suggested that it could be the RAM holding a charge, or failing too, from a cold boot. Is that what you found?

My system:

mboard: MSI X58 Pro-E (MS-7522 v3.1)
processor: Intel i7 930 @ 2.8GHz
ram: G.Skill F3-12800CL9T-6GBNQ (2Gx3)
psu: Seasonic X-650