How to get all 4 ram sticks to be reconized on my dfi lanparty nf4 ultra d

[Tamikanottammy]

I have 4 1gb ram modules installed in my dfi lanparty nf4 ultra d mobo but only 2 are being detected!!! Originally 3 were detected. now only 2 are detected! how do I get all four 1gb modules to be detected? the bios AND os currently only see 2 of the four modules detected by the way.

I have 4gb corsair pro series ddr ram 4x 1gb
I tried other brands that say they work with lanparty ultra d also.
No difference.


what do I do?
do I do something with the jumper or is something screwy with my mobo??

 

[10tacle]

First, did you buy all four memory modules in a kit of 4x1GB or buy separate modules like two different 2x1GB kits or individual 1GB modules? If you do not buy memory in kits, you risk others, even the exact same model, not working "nicely" with each other. The reasons for this are complex, but the bottom line is that manufacturing varations from one silicon day to another can cause microscopic issues. Kits are tested by the manufacturer and guaranteed to work as tested by the factory together as they are made on the same silicon production line.

With that said, I would test two modules in each of the 1-2 slots and do the same with the other two modules. I'd also change up each module and test them in the slots. So for example with "M" being memory module and A1, B1, A2, B2 being the slots, do this:

M1, M2 in A1, B1
M3, M4 in A1, B1
M1, M3 in A1, B1
M2, M4 in A1, B1

^^And do the same for the A2, B2 memory slots. That way you will know if you have defective or incompatible memory or defective memory slots on the motherboard.

 

[rgd1101]

MERGED QUESTION
Question from Tamikanottammy : "can't get all 4 gb working on my dfi lanparty nf4 ultra-d mobo"

I have 4gb corsair pro series ram in my dfi lanparty nf4 ultra d mother board but only 2gb are
detected in BOTH the bios AND the os.

why?!?!
what do i do about it?


specs:

4 1gb corsair pro series memory modules
ageia physix 100 series ppu card
8600 gt 256 mb gpu
725 watt psu
dfi lanparty nf4 ultra d
windows vista home premium x64
750 watt seagate hdd
amd athlon 3600+ single core socket 939 cpu

Test the system with 2 sticks at a time in slots 1 and 3 and then 2 and 4.
It could be that you need high-density RAM to populate all 4 channels.

Test the system with 2 sticks at a time in slots 1 and 3 and then 2 and 4.
It could be that you need high-density RAM to populate all 4 channels.

Just tried that. Two at a time works. Just wondering corsair pro series is not high density??

 

[rgd1101]

MERGED QUESTION
Question from Tamikanottammy : "how to enable all 4 modules on my dfi lanparty nf5 ultra d and my specific cpu model not detected"

I have a dfi lanparty nf4 ultra d with 4 1gb corsair pro series 400mhz ram modules however the bios only sees 3gb and also the OS (whether it be vista or 7) sees 32gb!!! It also says 3.2 usable. What the heck? also my cpu-athlon x2 3800+-works boots and all that good stuff but it jyst says-in the bios AND os-AMD Hammer Family model unknown. Say wha--? Weird huh? I mean runs okay and I can use the machine and all but the ram and the cpu model detection is kinda annoying nd an inconvenience that i'd like a find a way to remedy.

any ideas???

MERGED QUESTION
Question from Tamikanottammy : "How to enable 4gb on dfi lanparty nf4 ultra D motherboard"

How do I enable 4gb ram on dfi lanparty nf4 ultra D motherboard?

specs:
OS: Windows 7 Pro 64bit
GPU: currently a nvidia quadro 600 1gb gonna put in my new nvidia gtx 470 in a few days as soon as my L sata cables come
Other addin cards: ageia physx card 128mb ddr3 pcie x1
RAM: corsair pro series ddr-400 4x 1gb sticks
CPU: amd athlon socket 939 single core putting in a dual core later
HDD: 750gb sata seagate 3.5"
PSU: Corsair CX500 500 watt
Mobo: DFI Lanparty Nf4 Ultra-D

I changed my OS to windows vista and I changed my cpu and gpu..

specs:

4 1gb corsair pro series memory modules
ageia physix 100 series ppu card
8600 gt 256 mb gpu
725 watt psu
dfi lanparty nf4 ultra d
windows vista home premium x64
750 watt seagate hdd

for some reason i'm actually getting 2gb of the 4gb ram detected in both the bios and the os.

why? what should i do???

 

[Tamikanottammy]

I tried two different brands of ram. Also at least one brand is making contact since it boots successfully with no error beeps from the motherboard. Any other ideas??

 

[Paul NZ]

Well it must be faulty then

 

[Tamikanottammy]

Well it must be faulty then

 

[Tamikanottammy]

The board the ram or both??

 

[Paul NZ]

Well you've tried 2 lots of ram, it didnt work. The only thing left is the mobo

 

[Tamikanottammy]

Well you've tried 2 lots of ram, it didnt work. The only thing left is the mobo

That could be. I also heard something about messing with jumpers on the board to get all four working. Should I tried that and if so how??

 

[Paul NZ]

I have no idea how read the manual. I dont have this mobo

 

[Tamikanottammy]

I have no idea how read the manual. I dont have this mobo

 

[Tamikanottammy]

Hmmm

 

[10tacle]

In my 20 years of PC building, I've never had to mess around with motherboard jumper settings to get all memory DIMMs working. They either work, or they do not. It narrows down to bad memory or the motherboard or in an extreme rare case of a motherboard manufacturer BIOS update for certain memory and stability. I've come across that rare latter case only once.

This is of course taking into consideration that you did your homework and researched the QVL (qualified vendor's list) memory list for that motherboard and made sure your memory tested were on it. While generally other memory *should* work so long as you are using the same voltage memory, there's no guarantee as the motherboard maker never tested memory at the factory on that model motherboard. That's what the QVL guarantees.

 

[Tamikanottammy]

I just tried two in different arrangements i.e. one in a and one in c and then one in b and one in d either way I get 2096128k but with all four in I get 2882560k. Say wha--?

What is wrong here?

 

[Tamikanottammy]

okay I got from 2gb to 2.8gb. also the board only likes 1 1gb module in slot C but not any of the other ones.

any ideas?

First, did you buy all four memory modules in a kit of 4x1GB or buy separate modules like two different 2x1GB kits or individual 1GB modules? If you do not buy memory in kits, you risk others, even the exact same model, not working "nicely" with each other. The reasons for this are complex, but the bottom line is that manufacturing varations from one silicon day to another can cause microscopic issues. Kits are tested by the manufacturer and guaranteed to work as tested by the factory together as they are made on the same silicon production line.

With that said, I would test two modules in each of the 1-2 slots and do the same with the other two modules. I'd also change up each module and test them in the slots. So for example with "M" being memory module and A1, B1, A2, B2 being the slots, do this:

M1, M2 in A1, B1
M3, M4 in A1, B1
M1, M3 in A1, B1
M2, M4 in A1, B1

^^And do the same for the A2, B2 memory slots. That way you will know if you have defective or incompatible memory or defective memory slots on the motherboard.

 

[10tacle]

okay I got from 2gb to 2.8gb. also the board only likes 1 1gb module in slot C but not any of the other ones. any ideas?

It's your motherboard's memory controller failing. There can be nothing else I can possibly think of at this point. Have you kept that computer and motherboard relatively dust free? Over time, that can cause all kinds of failures of electronics.

 

[Tamikanottammy]

yeah. no dust as far as I can see.

okay I got from 2gb to 2.8gb. also the board only likes 1 1gb module in slot C but not any of the other ones. any ideas?

It's your motherboard's memory controller failing. There can be nothing else I can possibly think of at this point. Have you kept that computer and motherboard relatively dust free? Over time, that can cause all kinds of failures of electronics.

 

[Tamikanottammy]

yeah no dust that I can see

 

[Tamikanottammy]

is a memory controller fixable on my own??? this board is ancient and bought on ebay so....

 

[10tacle]

No it's not fixable. They are essentially mini CPU chips designed for their specific task. If they are dying, your motherboard is toast (I'm not familiar with AMD architecture but assume that old of a chipset never had on board, on CPU, memory controllers). That chipset is like 12 years old, so you got a lot of life out of it.

 

[Tamikanottammy]

figures. i'm trying to find a "new" older board for this computer. My customer had her eyes on this board:

Alienware Desktop Motherboard C51XEM2AA-8EKRS2H with an Athlon 2.40Ghz.

found it on ebay

http://

she's pretty particular about what she wants. and stubborn too. don't know jack squat about computers and only uses them for facebook. lol. But she (meaning her mom) is offering me $1,500 for the rig so she obviously get what she wants.

would this be a good replacement for her "legacy build". She demanded this board so I'm planning on getting it regardless. but I want to know so I can build the same setup for me.

also my customer just happens to be my ex-girlfriend. lmao

 

[10tacle]

Oh man. She could spend half that money and get a more powerful PC. What...the.....H. I still run an Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 gaming rig with GTX 275 SLI built in 2009 and thought that was ancient, lol. Anything older than that was either sold or now sitting in totes in the garage. Dating all the way back to a Packard Bell DX2 386 PC from 1992. I keep thinking one day some of that will be for a museum.

But the point being is that at some point, you have to cut your losses and move on!

 

[Tamikanottammy]

Oh man. She could spend half that money and get a more powerful PC. What...the.....H. I still run an Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 gaming rig with GTX 275 SLI built in 2009 and thought that was ancient, lol. Anything older than that was either sold or now sitting in totes in the garage. Dating all the way back to a Packard Bell DX2 386 PC from 1992. I keep thinking one day some of that will be for a museum.

But the point being is that at some point, you have to cut your losses and move on!

 

[Tamikanottammy]

I know right! She's paying good money so she unfortunately gets what she wants even though for that price I could essentially build her a killer gaming computer and still turn a profit.

So what is your take on the Alienware board I mentioned earlier?. She demanded I replace the dfi lanparty ultra d with this. Again we all are in agreement that I could build way better here but she's paying over a grand so I'll do as she asks.


The Alienware board any good as a "legacy" build. If this rig works out I'm gonna build a duplicate for myself. I'll have three rigs. Four after I pull the lanparty board.