TW3X4G1333C9DHX One Stick Showing Up Incorrectly

[RAM GUY]

Do you have the latest BIOS version installed?

[JjcampNR]

Unfortunately yes. When I had v 0204 installed I was seeing some errors running memtest, so I updated to 0401 (latest) which seemed to resolve the errors in memtest, however that's when I started getting these random lockups.

 

I can't determine what's causing the lockups since the RAM passes memtest fine, I've tested the hard drives and they're fine (and it happens booting to a CD which doesn't use the drives at all), the graphics card seems to be fine, and when things lock up it's a complete freeze so nothing goes into the Windows logs. My temps are all OK as well, the motherboard temp is around 90F and the processor temp is about 108 or so (not much load on either since they freeze up pretty quickly). If anyone else has another thought or something else I can test, I'm happy to do it!

[Neekaulth]

I have the same issue with my Maximus Formula Extreme. I know some people had my issue and just got older BIOS and it worked fine, the problem I have is that only the newest BIOS supports my CPU, so I can't flash to older BIOS revs.

 

I have random lockups during gameplay, videos, or whatever..

 

If you find an issue, please let me know !

[DerekT]

1. Shut the system down
   
2. Remove the power cord
   
3. Remove the CMOS Battery
   
4. Set the CMOS_CLR Jumper to On
   
5. Press the power button for 10 seconds
   
6. Let sit for 10 minutes
   
7. Set the CMOS_CLR Jumper to Off
   
8. Insert the CMOS Battery
   
9. Insert the Power Cord
   
10. Restart the system
    
11. Enter the BIOS
    
12. Load Default Settings
    
13. Save Default Settings and Exit
    
14. Restart the System and enter the BIOS
    
15. Insert the previous settings using 1333Mhz for the DRAM and MCH to Auto.
    

 

Insert two sticks of DRAM in Slot 1 & 3 and test with Memtest v2.01. Remove those sticks and insert the second set and retest.

 

Results?

[JjcampNR]

I will try this tonight, thanks!

[JjcampNR]

OK, well here's what I did...

 

As suggested, I reset the CMOS and let it sit for an hour (overkill, but I had to run out anyway) with the jumper in the reset/clear position (pins 2-3) and the battery removed completely (power cord unplugged from the PSU as well). I also removed my video card for the duration of this process since it blocked access to the jumper and CMOS battery. After I got back, I put the battery in, moved the jumper back, and replaced/reconnected my video card. I let the system boot and notify me the clock and BIOS needed to be reset, hit F1, loaded default settings, entered the settings you guys provided me before leaving NB/CPU voltage on Auto. I rebooted and was presented the same "Overclocking failed" message as before, even though I was actually clocking down the RAM speed.

 

After getting the message, I hit F1 to correct BIOS settings and again nothing had changed, all my previously entered settings were in there still. I ensured they were all set the same and then saved my BIOS settings. My machine rebooted as expected and went into the Memtest86+ sequence where I let it run all night (just about 9 passes over 11 hours or so). No errors. I booted back into Windows and everything has been OK - no system lockups today, typically my system was freezing within 5 minutes so I'd say I'm in good shape now. It's odd, I had cleared my CMOS already during this process, perhaps I didn't let the system drain completely before I put the jumpers and battery back in. I haven't seen the "overclocking failed" message again since the first time it showed up, I'm guessing this is some sort of BIOS bug that'll be worked out (I hope, this board definitely needs a new BIOS revision) in the future. Thank you all again for your help, you've been invaluable through this process.

 

Now, would it be reasonable to try 7-7-7-20 timings since I'm clocking down my RAM a bit? Would voltage levels need to change? I'm not really interested in doing any serious overclocking, but if I can easily tighten my RAM timings a bit without getting into too much testing/troubleshooting, I'd definitely like to do that.

 

Thanks again, I now have a working system instead of just an expensive pile of the latest technology that isn't compatible.

 

Edit: Just got a BSOD while running PCMark and Prim95 is erroring on the In-Place Torture test. I haven't changed any of my timings yet, still on the 9-9-9-24 timings. I'm investigating the stop code, unsure of what the cause is as of right now. I have not enabled BitLocker or anything like that - just a stock Vista x64 SP1 with all MS updates install (and Nvidia 174.74 drivers).

 

Edit 2: This may have been a driver issue. I just installed the drivers for my Creative X-Fi and a few other things (Intel Matrix RAID manager, JMicron RAID controller, and my two NICs) and I've re-run PCMark without issue. For some reason Prime65 is still dumping out, however it now runs for about 20 minutes and about 6 or 7 passes instead of stopping after just a few runs.

[RAM GUY]

Thanks for the update, please keep us up on what happens.

[JjcampNR]

I've continued to troubleshoot this, it's definitely some sort of motherboard/RAM compatibility issue. When I set the settings provided manually and save, I get the "overclocking failed" error even though I'm underclocking my memory to stock speeds (absolutely nothing else is overclocked in my system). If I go back into the BIOS, check settings, then continue on everything comes up OK and my system doesn't freeze but stability tests fail (like Prim95) which means there's still a problem. I've played around with different combos of BIOS settings for memory/voltage/etc and ensured all the default overclock crap is turned off, but I can't seem to get stable. The closest I get is with the settings you gave me, however every single time I do a cold boot I have to go into the BIOS and hit F10 to save and reboot before I can get into Windows OR if I set everything to Auto, set the Memory profile to XMP, and disable the Spread Spectrum settings.

 

RAM GUY - If you're in contact with anyone over at Asus can you give them a big WTF for me? I think I'm going to try bumping back down to the 0204 BIOS tonight, it didn't lock up on me but did give Memtest86+ errors with manual settings. Maybe I'll be able to get the settings right with that version.

 

Any other thoughts on what I can do to get these settings correct and fix compatibility with this motherboard/RAM? I figured this would be a compatible combo since the 1GB sticks are validated in this board. Has anyone successfully used these sticks/motherboard? Besides moving back down to the 0204 BIOS and trying this all over again, I'm kind of at the end of what I can think to test. Help would be greatly appreciated.

[RAM GUY]

Let's get them replaced, please use the On Line RMA Request Form and we will be happy to replace them.

[JjcampNR]

The thing is, I don't think there's any problem with the RAM (I did RMA one pack early on that was showing problems, but both packages are now testing fine). I can run Memtest86+ on them all day and night and not a single error pops up (I ran it for about 24 hours straight and no errors over almost 22 passes on all 4 sticks). I'm just getting random system freezes when I try and let the motherboard figure out some of the settings, and when I try and manually input them it doesn't like to boot and complains about "overclocking failed" even though I'm lowering the speed of the RAM. I'm wondering if you know if these sticks are successfully working on an Asus P5E3 Preimum (WiFi) anywhere in Corsair and if so what the motherboard settings are and which BIOS it's on.

 

I truly believe this is a problem with the Asus BIOS continually trying to overclock on its own (even when those settings are disabled) or with the BIOS trying to figure out the correct memory settings (whatever isn't specifically entered) for the RAM.

[DerekT]

Sadly this is one of the issues with state of the art technology. Often we become beta testers. This is an issue with software and hardware. I personally always stay one rung lower than state of the art. I will not move to DDR3 until the boards and BIOS's have been fully ironed out. There is no excuse for issues with high end premium based boards but there it is. :sigh!:

[JjcampNR]

I completely agree with you - when I bought this board I didn't realize how new it was since the P5E3 has been out for a while now. I'm not sure what the deal is with Asus, they seem to have really dropped off in quality and support over the last few years. Thanks for the help, if I find a solution I'll let you all know what it turned out to be.

[RAM GUY]

What BIOS version are you using and have you talk to their Tech support about this? What did they say?

[JjcampNR]

I'm using BIOS 0401, which is the most current - version 0204 was the last version and I couldn't get my memory to test clean with it, 0401 seemed to fix that issue but introduced the system freezes.

 

I've called Asus support and tried to work with them, they insist that if I can boot to a Windows install CD then there's no way it's a problem with the motherboard or the BIOS on the motherboard - even if the install locks up completely. They also didn't address the issue that if I disconnect all non-essential components (everything but RAM, 1 CD drive, my CPU, and graphics card) and boot to a bootable Windows CD it still locks up. Their support wasn't nearly what I expected, especially since I passed along the results of all my testing with you guys and the testing I've done on my own. They basically told me good luck with that, you should try buying a different model Asus motherboard and seeing if that fixes my problem. I'm totally at the end of my options I think, my only hope is a new BIOS release will fix this - but they weren't willing to even tell me if they were working on a new release at this time. Sigh....

[RAM GUY]

I just checked there site and there are no BIOS or drivers listed for that MB, maybe they are updating the site I would give it a few days and check the download page again, and look under CPU support as well. But we have tested that version of the MB and in fact we have several running in the lab with out problems. I think I would RMA the MB based on what you have said. I would just call their customer service and see if they will let you RMA the MB 510-739-3777

[JjcampNR]

I see the downloads, depending on how you got there you may not see anything - try this link: Asus P5E3 Premium WiFi

 

I think I'm going to have no choice but to RMA since my 30 day return period is up with Newegg in about 3 more days. Bummer, I was hoping Asus would get this nailed down so I wouldn't have to gut my system to replace the motherboard. I know the Q9450 isn't listed on the CPU page, I didn't realize this before I bought the board since it's advertised as 45nm compatible and Quad Core ready - guess they don't me the 45nm Quad Cores, just one or the other.

[RAM GUY]

Chances are they might have a new BIOS in the works, but I would try and RMA the MB based on what you have said.

[JjcampNR]

I've just let Prime95 run for an hour and a half and I haven't received a single error or warning. Memtest also ran for a single full pass and didn't error so I'm cautiously optimistic right now. I've spent the last two evenings playing with the 0402 BIOS and it looks like I've finally come up with a working configuration for my memory and this temperamental motherboard/BIOS, the changes are simple enough that I don't think I ever bothered to try them together but without any other tweaks. OK, so I now have everything in the AI Tweaker section set to AUTO with the exception of the following:

 

Static Writes: Disabled

Static Reads: Disabled

DRAM Voltage: 1.70

 

That's it - apparently letting the AI Tweaker do its thing but setting the voltage manually and disabling static read/write is enough to get this BIOS/motherboard stable. In Memtest86+ 2.01 I now see the following info for my system (minor overclocking courtesy of the Asus AI Tweaker, not set by me):

 

CPU: 2672 MHz

FSB: 334 MHz

RAM: 668 MHz (DDR 1336) Transfer: 5218 MB/s

 

I'm very excited with the possibility that I may finally be able to use my system after a month, but I have more tests to run before I come to the conclusion that everything's fine. I do have one question for you memory gods while I'm typing - do these speeds look OK for my MCH and motherboard? It's an X48 based board so I would imagine that chip can handle these speeds even though all 4 banks are populated, but you guys are the all knowing ones so I defer to you. Should I look to clock things down a bit or are these settings OK?

 

Just a side note:

My RMA'd board arrived and it suffers from the same issue, it's 100% a BIOS problem that is causing this. When I'm on BIOS 0151 Memtest fails in the exact same place in test 2 and throws the exact same number of errors every single time regardless of my BIOS settings (as long as the system POSTs) - however I can boot and the system runs stable without locking up. On 0401 or 0402 I get no Memtest errors but system freezes on both boards, unless I use the settings above.

 

Thanks again for all your help, you guys kept me sane and helped me find the settings to get this to what looks to be stable! I'll report back once my testing finishes and let you know if it meets my standards of stable - let me know about the memory bandwidth and speed settings.

[DerekT]

Static Writes: Disabled

Static Reads: Disabled

DRAM Voltage: 1.70

 

CPU: 2672 MHz

FSB: 334 MHz

RAM: 668 MHz (DDR 1336) Transfer: 5218 MB/s

 

do these speeds look OK for my MCH and motherboard? It's an X48 based board so I would imagine that chip can handle these speeds even though all 4 banks are populated, but you guys are the all knowing ones so I defer to you. Should I look to clock things down a bit or are these settings OK?.

 

Once you find your system stable, then you want to tweak the DRAM until you are at better speeds. Considering 2.6Ghz and at 1333Mhz (not sure of timings) with performance settings to Auto or disabled, that's about right.

 

Once you are certain of system stability, then we can go about optimizing your system. With all the issues you have had, stability is first and foremost.

[JjcampNR]

Timings are 9-9-9-24; in my opinion things are definitely stable at this point. The system has run memtest over 10 passes without issue, run Prime95 for about 5 hours or so with no heat or memory issues (before it would fail with a rounding error within 30 minutes), and hasn't given me any other signs of the instability I experienced before. It's even been OK going to sleep and coming back a few times.

 

I haven't really done much overclocking, I'm typically more concerned with stability, but I think the CPU/memory/motherboard I have can give me much better performance than the stock settings so I'd like to give it a shot. What would you suggest for the first steps of optimizing?

[DerekT]

Timings are 9-9-9-24; in my opinion things are definitely stable at this point. What would you suggest for the first steps of optimizing?

Static Reads: Enabled

Retest. This will make a marked improvement. Test your stability and then your bandwidth. Static Writes are not to be set to Enabled.

[JjcampNR]

Well, my system has gone back to random freezes even without these changes so I'm going to need to work on this a bit more. Anyone know what the "standard" voltage settings are for CPU PLL, Vcore, GTL, etc for a Q9450? Also suggested safe/stock FSB and Strap settings?

[DerekT]

Download memtest from--->

[/url]

Here

and extract the ISO image. Burn the ISO image to an CD-ROM disk.

Download CPU-z from-->

Here

Download Prime95 for Quads from-->

Here

Download Real Temp from-->

Here

Enter your BIOS. Load Setup Defaults. Save Setup Defaults. Set to these values:

 

AI Tweaker


Configure System Performance Settings


Ai Overclock Tuner = Manual.

CPU Ratio Setting = 8

FSB Strap to Northbridge = 333

DRAM Frequency = DDR3-1333

DRAM Command Rate = 2N

DRAM CLK Skew on Channel A = Auto

DRAM CLK Skew on Channel B = Auto

DRAM Timing Control = Manual

CAS# Latency =  9

RAS# to CAS# Delay = 9

RAS# PRE Time = 9

RAS# ACT Time = 24

All Else to Auto

DRAM Static Read Control = Auto

DRAM Dynamic Write Control = Auto

Transaction Booster = Auto


CPU Voltage = 1.20

CPU PLL Voltage = 1.5

FSB Termination Voltage = 1.25v

DRAM Voltage = 1.8v

NB Voltage = 1.45v

SB Voltage = 1.50v

Clock Over-Charging Voltage = Auto

Load Line Calibration = Enabled

CPU GTL Voltage Reference = Auto

NB GTL Voltage Reference = Auto

CPU Spread Spectrum = Disabled

PCIE Spread Spectrum = Disabled[/Code]

 

Run Memtest for two full passes, then (If Stable), enter Windows and post screenshots of CPU-z's CPU, Memory and SPD tabs. Run Prime95 (Large FFTs) for 20 minutes. Post a screenshot of Realtemp when Prime95 has been running for 20 minutes.

[JjcampNR]

Thanks, I'll give this a shot and see how it goes. I've also been running with my memory at DDR3-1066 and I seem to be more stable now. This stupid BIOS will fail to POST if I try and set some of the options manually even to the default settings, this is why it's been so hard to get a stable system. Right now I have everything on auto except Static Read/Write = Disabled, DRAM Voltage = 1.70, and the RAM speed is set to DDR3-1066 (but no other RAM settings like CAS/RAS-CAS/ACT/PRE are manual).

 

I'll give the new settings a shot at 1333 and see how it goes for a day or two of use then report back, thanks again!

[DerekT]

Thanks, I'll give this a shot and see how it goes. I've also been running with my memory at DDR3-1066 and I seem to be more stable now. This stupid BIOS will fail to POST if I try and set some of the options manually even to the default settings, this is why it's been so hard to get a stable system. Right now I have everything on auto except Static Read/Write = Disabled, DRAM Voltage = 1.70, and the RAM speed is set to DDR3-1066 (but no other RAM settings like CAS/RAS-CAS/ACT/PRE are manual).

 

I'll give the new settings a shot at 1333 and see how it goes for a day or two of use then report back, thanks again!

 

My mistake with the above settings. Setting Static Read or Write to Auto is far better than Disabled. Many stability issues can arise with these settings disabled. Run the Memtest rather than just giving it some use. Two full passes of Memtest prior to even entering Windows is far more preferable with regards to stability. Then follow with Prime in Windows.