Question DRAM LED Boot Loop after XMP/Game Boost - - - It worked earlier but now fails to boot ?

[Somrat_10369]

System Specs
CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 7600X
GPU: NVIDIA RTX 4070
RAM: TeamGroup T-Force Delta RGB DDR5 32GB (2x16GB) 5600MHz
Motherboard: MSI B650 Gaming Plus WiFi
Storage: Samsung 980 Pro 1TB NVMe SSD
PSU: Thermaltake Toughpower GF1 650W
Cooler: Deepcool AK400 Digital
Case: Montech 903 Air Max
Monitor: Gigabyte G27QC
OS: Windows 11 Pro

Problem Description:
My PC is currently unable to boot. Upon startup, the motherboard’s diagnostic LEDs show the following sequence:

1) Initially, both the Red CPU and the Amber DRAM LEDs light up simultaneously.
These two LEDs then turn off quickly.

2) Immediately afterward, the **Yellow/Orange (DRAM)** LED lights up again and begins to **blink in a cycle** — it stays on for a while, turns off, then comes back on repeatedly.

3) The **White (VGA)** LED never lights up.

There is no display output, and the system remains stuck in this state.

This behavior indicates a failure during the memory initialization phase. The system does not reach the VGA check or boot.

Timeline:
A few days ago, this issue first occurred but resolved itself after a short time. Since then, the PC had been functioning normally. This morning, I used the system for gaming and watching YouTube without any issues.

Later in the evening, after powering it on again, the same problem returned — but this time, it persists indefinitely.

Prior to the issue, I had enabled **XMP** for the RAM and activated **MSI Game Boost** from the BIOS. The BIOS has already been updated.

Troubleshooting steps performed:

• Reseated RAM in all configurations (single and dual channel)
• Reseated all power and data cables
• Cleaned RAM and motherboard of dust
• Fully cleared CMOS (including battery removal)
• Waited extended periods on boot attempts
• Changed power source

 

[Lutfij]

Welcome to the forums, newcomer!

Motherboard: MSI B650 Gaming Plus WiFi
+
The BIOS has already been updated.
For the sake of relevance, please include the BIOS version for your motherboard.

Fully cleared CMOS (including battery removal)
In order to clear the CMOS, it's advised that you disconnect from the wall and display, remove the CMOS battery, press and hold down the power button for 30secs to drain any residual power. Reseat the CMOS battery after 30mins.

You might want to remove the discrete GPU from your build and see if the POST process moves forward.

Have you tried sourcing(borrow, not buy) a ram kit to see if your ram is at fault here? Likewise you can drop your processor onto another known working motherboard to rule out your processor's memory controller going kaput.

 

[caution1397]

when it is "stuck", with ram yellow light, press and hold down the power button, (5 seconds), until the PC shuts down, - then wait 30 seconds, and press power button on, like normal start, it should do a long boot, might take 1-2 minutes, but it should boot the bios into "safe" mode. Once in the bios, turn off, **XMP** for the RAM and maybe **MSI Game Boost** from the BIOS.

 

[caution1397]

xmp is messed up. i have a similar problem with 6400 ddr5, if I turn on xmp in bios, it locks on ram yellow light and goes into a reboot loop, the power button case, hold until PC shuts down and repress to start it again, forced my bios into safe mode, so I could disable the xmp, - new computer, haven't looked at ai oc and the bios settings properly yet, to work out the proper settings, however, it's running 4x 16gb (64gb) stable at 4800, - eventually I'll work out the proper settings to get it up to the 6400. (I might have to put all the timings in bios manually, and look at the CPU ram fsb ratio, and voltages. etc....