ASUS A8N32SLI-Deluxe and 4GB of RAM

[Petar]

I desperately need help to make 4GB of RAM work on my ASUS A8N32Sli-Deluxe MB. I’ve tried everything I could think of: lowering memory settings (speed, latency), boosting mem voltage (up to 2.9V), setting everything in BIOS to default, but to no avail. When I run Memtest86 with highly overclocked memory settings (even at 220MHz), everything goes without any problem for all 4GB. However, when I try to boot into Win XP X64, it either freezes or reboots. I have managed to enter Windows only once, but it lasted only for minute or so.

When I disable the “Memory Hole” option in BIOS everything works fine, but I get only 3GB.

Any suggestions, ideas?

 

[enakje]

What sticks are you using? This is pretty important info we're missing.

I'm using 4x1GB Samsung UCCC on the A8N Sli Deluxe without trouble.
They run from between 230 and 260mhz at 3-4-4-9 at 2T (ofcourse).
The secondary timings are quite low, they are 13, 22, 3t, 2t or something like that.

 

[Agis]

I think the only thing you can try is to set Command Rate at 2T,the divider at 166 and push the memory voltage for one step,may looser timings helps is well.

Also in BIOS MTRR Mapping>Continuous and Hardware Memory Hole>Enabled.

And ofcourse you have to run your CPU at stock speed.

If you don't manage to make it work this way then i am afraid you have to use only two sticks.

Agis

 

[Petar]

What sticks are you using? This is pretty important info we're missing.

I'm using 4x1GB Samsung UCCC on the A8N Sli Deluxe without trouble.
They run from between 230 and 260mhz at 3-4-4-9 at 2T (ofcourse).
The secondary timings are quite low, they are 13, 22, 3t, 2t or something like that.

I use 4 x HYB25D512800BE-5B Kingston 1GB modules, currently running at 207 MHz, 3-3-3-7-13 at 2T. These modules are on Qualified Memory Vendors List.
The highest voltage I've tried was 2.9V.

 

[Petar]

I think the only thing you can try is to set Command Rate at 2T,the divider at 166 and push the memory voltage for one step,may looser timings helps is well.

Also in BIOS MTRR Mapping>Continuous and Hardware Memory Hole>Enabled.

And ofcourse you have to run your CPU at stock speed.

If you don't manage to make it work this way then i am afraid you have to use only two sticks.

Agis

I've tried all of this already, even 133 MHz, but to no avail. CPU-Z software shows all four sticks, memory bandwidth tests are showing excellent results, but all I can use is 3GB...and I need more.

 

[Nebulous]

I'm unsure as I've seen this problem before on several boards. Have you tried testing each stick with memtest? Does each stick along run normally without issues?

 

[Petar]

I'm unsure as I've seen this problem before on several boards. Have you tried testing each stick with memtest? Does each stick along run normally without issues?

I haven't tested each stick separately, but I've tested all four of them together (with Memory Hole enabled in BIOS), run all extended tests in Memtest86 and they all passed...can't see any reason why any of the sticks wouldn't pass the tests individually.

 

[QuietIce]

Here's a thread on the MS site about that:
https://forums.microsoft.com/TechNe...x=9&SiteID=17&PageID=9&PostID=1292561#1292561

 

[Petar]

Here's a thread on the MS site about that:
https://forums.microsoft.com/TechNe...x=9&SiteID=17&PageID=9&PostID=1292561#1292561

Thank you for the effort, but this is a thread about boot problems with 4GB and Windows Vista and I am using Windows XP x64...

 

[Petar]

Any other ideas, thoughts...?

 

[QuietIce]

Sorry about the mistake in OS's.

IMO - if Memtest86 is running it OK then the issue has something to do with a setting in x64. Didn't I read somewhere that even though Vista and x64 could both see 4GB there was still some kind of switch that needed setting in the ini(?) or boot(?) file for that to happen, else they would default to 3GB (because it takes less addressing) ...?

 

[Nebulous]

Sorry about the mistake in OS's.

IMO - if Memtest86 is running it OK then the issue has something to do with a setting in x64. Didn't I read somewhere that even though Vista and x64 could both see 4GB there was still some kind of switch that needed setting in the ini(?) or boot(?) file for that to happen, else they would default to 3GB (because it takes less addressing) ...?

Hmmm, I read that also, but can't pinpoint where

 

[Petar]

I know about the switches in boot.ini file for 32-bit Windows, but, AFAIK, there should be no switch for 64-bit. There is a patch for 64-bit Vista to “see” 4GB, but have nowhere found anything about one for XP x64…

 

[redduc900]

Try changing the "MTRR Mapping" BIOS option to "Discrete", from the default of "Continuous".

 

[Petar]

Try changing the "MTRR Mapping" BIOS option to "Discrete", from the default of "Continuous".

I keep it at "Discrete" all the time, since I have stability issues with "Continuous" setting even with Memory Hole disabled...