RAM Probs

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Hi All

Made a bit of a mess of this. Got someones PCs which was running slow as it only had 128MB SDRAM fitted. I had another 128 MB stick handy (same spec 133 SDRAM) but was unsure if it worked or not. So I stuck it in the spare slot and PC would not boot. Removed the new stick and now PC will not boot with original RAM. So is it fecked? And has anyone else experienced this or am I a total idiot?

 

Doesnt do anything - no beeps etc. RAM light is on on mobo and tried another slot.

 

try resetting the cmos

grim

 

Maybe the mobo is knackered

 

Were you earthed when you were changing the ram sticks? Let's hope you haven't shortened the mobo.

 

Yeah thats what I was thinking, it doesn't happen that often but it is probable.

ESD can screw yer comp

 

I did the old trick of touchin the case metal b4 hand. Still got lights on the mobo and there is power going to it. Does that suggest a knacked mobo?

 

Have you reset the CMOS as suggested ?

Personally I'd think the chances of ESD damage are slim, there are however many ways you could break a PC, simply flexing a poorly mounted mainboard could break the many tracks in a multilayer PCB.

 

Not necessarily. You would have to do a process of elimination in this case to narrow things down to the motherboard or ram. Start by resetting the bios and with the original ram stick in. If it still doesn't boot try the other memory module slot, if its no good try the other memory stick, etc.

 

Have you tested the PSU it may only have little power going to it, if your mobo is ok, do the drives spin when you switch on?

 

i think you would have noticed if you fried the mobo with static and what are the chances of incorrectly fitting both modules. remove the power from the back of the psu and pop the battery. resetting the power and the cmos suprisingly fixes alot of problems. when i (long time ago) fitted memory incorrectly it killed the mobo and the memory was fine. on the bright side if you have killed anything its pretty cheap to replace with ebay

grim

 

I dont think its a power issue as this system was working fine until i tried to add another stick of RAM which may not have been working.

Will try reseting the cmos and removing the battery etc and let u know.

 

It's quite possible to fry a mobo with static and not even know you did it. It doesn't take a jolt you can feel through your fingertips... all it takes is an unnoticeable trickle of energy in the wrong place.

 

i've only ever seen it happen once before and that was 7 years ago, got to be pretty unlucky. i tend to just touch the metal case before i do anything (touch wood) not happened to me yet.

grim

 

no.... touch metal. It tends to work better

 

damn these plywood chassis

grim

 

hi guys

removed cmos battery and waited a bit then refitted. system now boots. excellent. thanks to all who replied. Saves me replacing ram etc.

 

no probs, here to help

grim