Question DRAM light on with no RAM installed

NateTheCarrot

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Dec 1, 2019
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Hello,

I've received new RAM (2x16GB) for the holidays and have been trying to install it along with my old RAM (2x8GB). The old RAM sticks have been placed in the 1 and 3 slots while the new RAM sticks were placed in the 2 and 4 slots. Once they were seated, I powered on the computer and got the DRAM light on. I have a X570-A PRO MSI motherboard. I have tried multiple things, such as new RAM sticks in 2 and 4 and 1 and 3, switched them around so the one that was previously in 2 was in 4 for example, I have tried the old RAM sticks in the same method too. I have also tried old and new RAM sticks in 3 and 4, but to no avail.

In the end, I tried no RAM sticks at all, yet the DRAM light is still on. I get no output on my monitor as it displays "No Signal". On inspection of the slots, no pins appeared to be damaged. Every other component of the computer appeared to be working fine. Any advice or help would be greatly appreciated.
 

TJ Hooker

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Was everything running fine with your previous RAM prior to getting the new kit? But now you can't get it to work at all, even with just the old RAM? Have you tried it with just a single stick of your old RAM installed?

Full system specs please. CPU, exact PSU make/model, etc. Do you know what BIOS version you're on?
 

NateTheCarrot

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Dec 1, 2019
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Was everything running fine with your previous RAM prior to getting the new kit? But now you can't get it to work at all, even with just the old RAM? Have you tried it with just a single stick of your old RAM installed?

Full system specs please. CPU, exact PSU make/model, etc. Do you know what BIOS version you're on?

Everything was working fine before and the system registered the RAM. I have tried a single RAM stick but it did not work sadly.
AMD Ryzen 7 2700x CPU
X570-A PRO Motherboard
GeForce RTX 2060 GPU
Corsair Vengeance DDR4 2x8GB (and Corsair Vengeance RGB Pro 2x16GB now)
Corsair RM 850 PSU
Corsair H100i v2 Liquid Cooler
Hope this helps.
Edit: I unfortunately do not know my BIOS version.
 

NateTheCarrot

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Dec 1, 2019
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I'd try a single kit of the old RAM, and try it in every slot. If none of that works, repeat with the other stick of the old RAM.

Before you do that, clear the CMOS. Your motherboard manual will have instructions on how to do this if you're not familiar.
I have now done both of those tips but neither worked unfortunately.
 

TJ Hooker

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This may be a silly question, but are you sure the RAM was fully inserted? I remember one time I was having memory issues when installing new RAM, and it turns out they weren't all the way in. It felt like they were settled, but with another firm push they went in a bit further.
 

NateTheCarrot

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Dec 1, 2019
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I'd try a single kit of the old RAM, and try it in every slot. If none of that works, repeat with the other stick of the old RAM.

Before you do that, clear the CMOS. Your motherboard manual will have instructions on how to do this if you're not familiar.
Sorry for the double reply, but I have just tried your tips again, but this time, I have gotten no DRAM LED on. Instead, I get the boot light on and an output on my monitor saying something about CMOS being reset, which I believe was in the right direction. If I try to add any more sticks than 1, I get the DRAM LED. I will try and configure the settings there where it said I could and update you then.
This may be a silly question, but are you sure the RAM was fully inserted? I remember one time I was having memory issues when installing new RAM, and it turns out they weren't all the way in. It felt like they were settled, but with another firm push they went in a bit further.
Yes, I also have had issues RAM not fully being in so I make sure I hear a click-like sound on both sides when seating the RAM.
 
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NateTheCarrot

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Dec 1, 2019
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This may be a silly question, but are you sure the RAM was fully inserted? I remember one time I was having memory issues when installing new RAM, and it turns out they weren't all the way in. It felt like they were settled, but with another firm push they went in a bit further.
Right now, my system can run in BIOS with an old RAM stick seated in slot B1. My BIOS build date is June 4th, 2019. I am using MSI Click BIOS 5. There is nothing that appears in setup that will help. I pushed F1 to run setup and it just brings me to the BIOS with no specified location, so I clicked on "Memory". There, the information is: current DRAM frequency: 2133MHz, DIMMA1: unknown, DIMMA2: unknown, DIMMB1: Corsair, DIMMB2: unknown. If there is any other information you need in the BIOS, please let me know.
 

NateTheCarrot

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Dec 1, 2019
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Does it work with either of your old sticks in that slot, or only one in particular? If the latter, that could indicate one of your old sticks is damaged.

I'd try updating to the latest BIOS.
I do not happen to have a USB on me right now, so I unfortunately can't update my BIOS. When I can get one, I will do so.
Edit: It is now updated, will most likely update again if it doesn't work.
Edit 2: I've managed to get both original RAM sticks to work luckily. Unfortunately, the new sticks along with the old sticks still gives me a CPU LED on.
 
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TJ Hooker

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Combining RAM sticks that were't purchased together as a kit is never guaranteed to work unfortunately. It's recommended to get all the memory you need in a single package. Do the new sticks without the old sticks work?

What do you use your PC for? 32GB is more than enough RAM for most people, maybe just sell your old sticks if you get the new ones working.