AsRock Extreme3 Gen3

[dylarsen12]

I have a very odd situation, nothing i've found has been similar... When booting there are two scenarios.
1. Boots normal, goes through post fine and windows loads
I shut computer down and then when I turn the computer back on it wont start and stops on post code 2f (Memory Initialization (other))
So half the time my computer works, the other half it does not. I'm also able to get around the computer posting 2f by either unplugging the psu or clearing cmos. I have not Overclocked my system or anything and I'm quite lost as to what is going on.

Core i7 2600k
Asrock z68 extreme3 Gen3
ABS 1100 W psu
EVGA gtx580
Thorv2
Edit: Suppose the type of ram is important? Hah.
Gskill Sniper Low Voltage 2x 4gb ddr3 (Says it's compatible on mobo website)

 

[abekl]

Time to test your memory with memtest86+

 

[dylarsen12]

Time to test your memory with memtest86+

I've tried using the mem test that comes with windows, it says nothing is wrong. do I really need to use software from a different company to test it accurately?

 

[omega21xx]

I have an ASRock 970 Extreme 4 (AMD however) i got errors like this all the time with the bios the board came with, once updated to their newest bios errors were gone. There is a chance your ram was not supported at the time of the bios release currently on your board.

 

[dylarsen12]

I have an ASRock 970 Extreme 4 (AMD however) i got errors like this all the time with the bios the board came with, once updated to their newest bios errors were gone. There is a chance your ram was not supported at the time of the bios release currently on your board.

Well, I just tried pulling the cmos battery as well as flashing the bios to newest version (after the battery pull) and neither has changed anything.

 

[omega21xx]

Try getting the ram to run at it's rated speed in BIOS. Low voltage ram can run weird if running at different speeds than they are rated for.
Edit: I should also point out that ASRock boards tend to have a slightly higher DOA rate than other brands. My first board from them wasn't dead but it did throw out errors like crazy. After an RMA, a week of waiting, and putting in the same components back in the new board, everything went smooth. Try to rule out as much as possible first though, if you have a friend with a compatible board/ram try it out on theirs and vice versa.

 

[dylarsen12]

Try getting the ram to run at it's rated speed in BIOS. Low voltage ram can run weird if running at different speeds than they are rated for.
Edit: I should also point out that ASRock boards tend to have a slightly higher DOA rate than other brands. My first board from them wasn't dead but it did throw out errors like crazy. After an RMA, a week of waiting, and putting in the same components back in the new board, everything went smooth. Try to rule out as much as possible first though, if you have a friend with a compatible board/ram try it out on theirs and vice versa.

Would be taking it up with ASRocks tech department but Chinese new year has hit me right when I need them! Might RMA it to newegg, I've tried pretty much everything but pulling it apart and reseating everything.

 

[omega21xx]

Would be taking it up with ASRocks tech department but Chinese new year has hit me right when I need them! Might RMA it to newegg, I've tried pretty much everything but pulling it apart and reseating everything.

Well reseating everything is definitely something to try. Especially reseat the ram, boards tend to be picky about which slots they are put in, try one at a time and then try a combination of the slots 1a/1b, 1a/2a, 2a/2b 1b/2a, 1b/2b. There's alot of minor things that could happen. I know I spent a few hours over the course of 3 days trying a few different things just to be sure.

 

[dylarsen12]

Well reseating everything is definitely something to try. Especially reseat the ram, boards tend to be picky about which slots they are put in, try one at a time and then try a combination of the slots 1a/1b, 1a/2a, 2a/2b 1b/2a, 1b/2b. There's alot of minor things that could happen. I know I spent a few hours over the course of 3 days trying a few different things just to be sure.

Mobo instructions insist you put them in a1 b1 or a2 b2 to get the dual channel. I will try it with none and then one and report back. after that I guess take everything out and put it back in, see if there is a difference if not rma?

 

[omega21xx]

Mobo instructions insist you put them in a1 b1 or a2 b2 to get the dual channel. I will try it with none and then one and report back. after that I guess take everything out and put it back in, see if there is a difference if not rma?

That's probably what it will come down to, how long did you run memtest? 1 pass is not enough, it sometimes takes a few hours before problems pop up.

 

[dylarsen12]

Just the one time, this is my first build, spose I'll run it over and over?
just tried it without ram post stuck at 53 (no compat ram) and with 1 stick in a2 it continued to stall at 2f

 

[omega21xx]

try the other stick in a2, then try the other slot (a1) with each stick, you could have one bad stick or one bad slot (dimm). If one stick works and not the other, bad ram. If one dimm works and not the other bad board.

 

[dylarsen12]

Found out that the ASrock website lists my ram compatible while the gskill website does not list my mobo as compatible. Could one or the other be incorrect? If it were incompatible why would it be working half the time and recognized in bios?
Both sticks work during the initial boot up, the issue is if I shut down and try to reboot it posts at 2f. does that show bad board?

 

[omega21xx]

Found out that the ASrock website lists my ram compatible while the gskill website does not list my mobo as compatible. Could one or the other be incorrect? If it were incompatible why would it be working half the time and recognized in bios?
Both sticks work during the initial boot up, the issue is if I shut down and try to reboot it posts at 2f. does that show bad board?

Sites like corsair g.skill will not usually keep up to date on what their ram is compatible with after their ram is released. It's usually up to the motherboard co. to list these things or release updates to make them compatible. If ASRock lists it compatible then under their test setup they incountered no problems. I'd say you could talk to ASRock about the problem, but they are notorious for just saying "send the board back, we will test it" i've heard many cases where they sent the board back saying they didn't encounter the problem. If they don't ask that they'll usually just say to return for another. I don't think they have enough people who know how to troubleshoot problems on the phone. When you are in windows, bring up cpu-z and look at the ram specs, see if they are running in dual channel ganged/unganged and speed and so on.

 

[dylarsen12]

running cpu-z as I type, is it normal for a cpu to cycle from 1596 mhz to 3591?
as far as ram specs what all should I list? running one stick brings up in the SPD tab: single channel
JEDEC#1 622MHz 7.0-7-7-22 29 1.28v
JEDEC#2 711 MHz 8.0-8-8-25 33 1.28v
JEDEC#3 800MHz 9.0-9-9-28 37 1.28v
xmp-1600 800MHz 9-9-9-25 40 command rate of 2t 1.25 v
And in the Memory tab
798.2MHz
1.6 FSB
9.0-9-9-28 Command rate of 1T

 

[omega21xx]

The CPU cycling between the two is just the CPU spinning down when its not under stress, saving power.
Do you have the problem when just having the one stick of RAM? If so try with the other stick. If it doesn't happen with one stick then ones bad, usually memtest will pick up on bad RAM too

 

[dylarsen12]

The CPU cycling between the two is just the CPU spinning down when its not under stress, saving power.
Do you have the problem when just having the one stick of RAM? If so try with the other stick. If it doesn't happen with one stick then ones bad, usually memtest will pick up on bad RAM too

It happens with one stick or two, it doesn't make a difference.. Just tried unplugging and plugging all power to the mobo.
(Side question)
I have my fans hooked up to be powered by my front panel rather than through the mobo, would this cause the mobo to think there are no fans in the computer?

 

[CaedenV]

I had a similar problem with my ex3 gen3. It worked fine for 2 weeks and then started having random crashes, and boot problems. You need to run memtext86+ for 5-8 hours to be sure that the Ram is OK, the windows checker is not that great.

For my issue it turned out to be both a bad stick of ram, plus bad power management on the mobo when using all 4 sticks of ram (which was a real pain in the ass to troubleshoot by the way). I thankfully have a friend who owns a computer repair business and lent me 10 4GB sticks of ram to play with for troubleshooting, which helped me figure out what was wrong, and no combination of 4 sticks would work in the board after the problem developed. Thankfully I have had my new board and ram for over a month with no problems (though I did notice that the gold plating is missing from the caps on the replacement board.... but I'm not complaining if it works properly!).

Most likely though you have bad ram, but just know that the mobo could be at fault (ASRock is the budget line of ASUS, so some lack of QC is to be expected).


To the fan question, no. All the mobo cares about is temperature, so long as temps are good then the system will love you.

 

[omega21xx]

^+1 yep, its very common with asrock, I had this happen as well like I mentioned. Sadly I built a computer for a friend with asrock and he got unlucky with not 1 but 2 boards, by then we just went and got a gigabyte board. When an asrock board works, they are amazing, but you press your luck sometimes.

 

[dylarsen12]

I had a similar problem with my ex3 gen3. It worked fine for 2 weeks and then started having random crashes, and boot problems. You need to run memtext86+ for 5-8 hours to be sure that the Ram is OK, the windows checker is not that great.

For my issue it turned out to be both a bad stick of ram, plus bad power management on the mobo when using all 4 sticks of ram (which was a real pain in the ass to troubleshoot by the way). I thankfully have a friend who owns a computer repair business and lent me 10 4GB sticks of ram to play with for troubleshooting, which helped me figure out what was wrong, and no combination of 4 sticks would work in the board after the problem developed. Thankfully I have had my new board and ram for over a month with no problems (though I did notice that the gold plating is missing from the caps on the replacement board.... but I'm not complaining if it works properly!).

Most likely though you have bad ram, but just know that the mobo could be at fault (ASRock is the budget line of ASUS, so some lack of QC is to be expected).


To the fan question, no. All the mobo cares about is temperature, so long as temps are good then the system will love you.

Ok, thanks. answered a lot of questions I hadn't gotten to yet. Right now i'm sitting at 10% on windows memtest and have been there quite awhile. I'm hoping it is just the ram, much easier to replace.

 

[dylarsen12]

Wondering if it IS the board, now when I get it into windows it won't show the network adapter. I'll have to work around install memtest. There a reason it would forget its onboard adapter?

 

[omega21xx]

I should point out if the dimm's on the board are bad then the ram will always seem bad. Best way to check is with someone else's system if you can.

 

[omega21xx]

Board seems to be showing its true colors maybe?

 

[dylarsen12]

I should point out if the dimm's on the board are bad then the ram will always seem bad. Best way to check is with someone else's system if you can.

Unfortunately, not an option for me. It's either it works or it doesn't. Don't know a whole lot of people who have ddr3 systems haha.
Would Memtest86 pick up on bad dimm's?

 

[omega21xx]

I doubt it would be able to differentiate between a bad dimm or bad ram. If you see errors and its not too much trouble you could always rma both to be sure.