Dell StudioXPS8100 dosen't boot after memory upgrade "guaranteed" to work

[Mekado]

Hi,

 

I'm trying to upgrade the RAM of my studio xps8100 and i'm having issues. I bought 2 kits of memory, a Corsair guaranteed to work with my model (CMX8GX3M2A1333C9) and a Kingston hyperx with the same specs.I'm having the exact same issues with both. Originally my computer has 4G ram (2x2 Elpina 1333mhz 1.5V), when i add the new memory in slot 3 and 4 my computer enter a boot loop. it loads normally for approx 10 seconds and then reboots, it even reboots when i'm in the BIOS but i did have time to see the computer recognized 12G RAM. If i use only the new memory the computer stops loading at about 25% at the Dell splashscreen, it nevers gets to windows, i can't go into the BIOS with just the new RAM. I reset the CMOS after unplugging everything to be sure it recognized the new RAM correctly (shouldn't have to since it's the same voltage clock and all but heh) and i have the same issues afterwards. My computer's mainboard (Dell DH57M01) should take 16G (4/4/4/4) RAM and i updated the BIOS to the last version (A05, was originally A03) to be sure but it's doing the same.

 

At this point, i'm pretty stumped, especially since the Corsair i bought said black on white guaranteed to work with Dell Studio XPS 8100...

 

Anyone has ideas ?

[peanutz94]

I bought 2 kits of memory, a Corsair guaranteed to work with my model (CMX8GX3M2A1333C9) and a Kingston HyperX with the same specs.

It's never recommended to mix memory even if they are the same exact model/part number. Including if you had purchased two kits of the Corsair memory. For the memory to be "guaranteed" to work it must all come from one single matched kit.

 

Basically your mixing memory that is made from different chips even though they may have the exact same specs, there is just no way to say if any two random kits will play nice with each other.

 

Remove ALL your memory and then clear your BIOS and insert JUST the corsair memory and see if it will boot correctly and be recognized correctly in Windows.

 

Then you could do the same with the competitor memory making sure you clear the BIOS again before inserting JUST the other brand and see if they are recognized correctly.

 

If you are wanting a total of 16gigs then you should return what you bought and buy a single matched 16 gig kit. When you mix sets all bets are off.

 

I reset the CMOS after unplugging everything to be sure it recognized the new RAM correctly (shouldn't have to since it's the same voltage clock and all but heh)

Not true. You always should reset the CMOS before switching memory to be sure any settings that were from the previous memory get flushed out and the new can take hold. You may even have to remove the MB battery for 10 mins or so just to make sure it clears correctly.

 

If after that it still won't boot , then see if you can insert just one stick of the Corsair memory in A! and see if it will boot correctly that way, Rinse and repeat with the other stick. If both boot that way test them with memtest 86+ for a minimum of three passes just to be sure you don't have a failing module. I highly doubt it since both sets are exhibiting the same symptoms.

Now I can't find anything about your BIOS on the net but can you tell me if it is locked or do you have the ability to adjust your system voltages? IF you do try increasing the memory voltage to 1.55-1.6v to compensate for the increased load on the memory controller with that much memory. Often the DELLs are locked and don't allow for those adjustments , but if it's not it's worth a shot and will often cure this sort of issue.

 

You may also have to reduce the speed to 1066mhz when mixing memory which also may be another thing to try.

[Mekado]

It's never recommended to mix memory even if they are the same exact model/part number. Including if you had purchased two kits of the Corsair memory. For the memory to be "guaranteed" to work it must all come from one single matched kit.

 

Basically your mixing memory that is made from different chips even though they may have the exact same specs, there is just no way to say if any two random kits will play nice with each other.

 

Remove ALL your memory and then clear your BIOS and insert JUST the corsair memory and see if it will boot correctly and be recognized correctly in Windows.

Thanks for answering, you misunderstood my 2 kits thing, i don't want or haven't tried mixing them, i bought the other first since "it should have worked" and bought the Corsair after since it was guaranteed to work after seeing these problems with the first kit.

 

What i'm trying to do is install the corsair kit (bought as a matching kit2x4) possibly on top of my original RAM (2x2) but i can do with just the Corsair 8G

 

Then you could do the same with the competitor memory making sure you clear the BIOS again before inserting JUST the other brand and see if they are recognized correctly.

 

If you are wanting a total of 16gigs then you should return what you bought and buy a single matched 16 gig kit. When you mix sets all bets are off.

 

 

Not true. You always should reset the CMOS before switching memory to be sure any settings that were from the previous memory get flushed out and the new can take hold. You may even have to remove the MB battery for 10 mins or so just to make sure it clears correctly.

 

If after that it still won't boot , then see if you can insert just one stick of the Corsair memory in A! and see if it will boot correctly that way, Rinse and repeat with the other stick. If both boot that way test them with memtest 86+ for a minimum of three passes just to be sure you don't have a failing module. I highly doubt it since both sets are exhibiting the same symptoms.

Now I can't find anything about your BIOS on the net but can you tell me if it is locked or do you have the ability to adjust your system voltages? IF you do try increasing the memory voltage to 1.55-1.6v to compensate for the increased load on the memory controller with that much memory. Often the DELLs are locked and don't allow for those adjustments , but if it's not it's worth a shot and will often cure this sort of issue.

 

You may also have to reduce the speed to 1066mhz when mixing memory which also may be another thing to try.

 

The old and new memory is at 1333mhz and there dosen't seem to be a voltage adjustment in my BIOS but the old and new RAM is at 1.5V so if i replace 2 sticks with 2 sticks it should be just about the same load i suppose... this is *the* model recommended by the Corsair memory finder for my computer :bigeyes:

 

I haven't tried booting up with just 1 stick in, i guess i'll try that but even if it does work it dosen't do me much good, i need a pair :s

[peanutz94]

Thanks for answering, you misunderstood my 2 kits thing, i don't want or haven't tried mixing them, i bought the other first since "it should have worked" and bought the Corsair after since it was guaranteed to work after seeing these problems with the first kit.

 

What i'm trying to do is install the corsair kit (bought as a matching kit2x4) possibly on top of my original RAM (2x2) but i can do with just the Corsair 8G

Yeah, were on the same page sort of. Your original memory would still be considered a "kit" and adding the Corsair memory along with it would still be considered mixing memory and there is just no way Corsair can guarantee that their modules would operate correctly or at all when installed along any other memory.

 

Only one matched kit per system is supported or suggested more or less because of the kind of trouble you are running into now

 

The old and new memory is at 1333mhz and there dosen't seem to be a voltage adjustment in my BIOS but the old and new RAM is at 1.5V so if i replace 2 sticks with 2 sticks it should be just about the same load i suppose... this is *the* model recommended by the Corsair memory finder for my computer .

That is correct. If you take out the original memory then reset the BIOS and insert just the Corsair memory there should be no need for any voltage adjustments. But adding the two sticks of Corsair or competitors memory ALONG with the original memory , being an unmatched sets may require that adjustment because of the increased load on the memory controller . Going from two sticks to a total of 4 sticks , especially with different sets is hard on the memory controllers .

 

I understand your reasoning and it used to be that you could add just about any memory to a system and it would work with the older systems. But when the memory controllers themselves got moved from the motherboard to the CPU as they are now, it became really important to have have all your memory come from a matched set because the memory controllers have become more sensitive to different chips.

 

The only exception to that would be if you bought a 4x4 gig kit that is matched also should not require any adjustment , but will also depend on your CPU's memory controller. I like to say they are like fingerprints and no two will behave the same way even if they are the exact same CPU.

 

There is a good article in the Corsair BLOG that would help explain. Now ,the article involves overclocking, which you are not doing but you'll see that they had to go through about 25 CPU's to find just one that would act the way they wanted it to. The same goes with standard memory in regards to the memory controllers at stock speeds. Some will run four sticks with no adjustments necessary. While the same exact cpu in an identical machine may not behave the same way. But it may give you a good idea of what I'm talking about.

 

http://www.corsair.com/us/blog/vengeance-extreme-3000mhz-setup-and-overclocking-results/

 

I haven't tried booting up with just 1 stick in, i guess i'll try that but even if it does work it dosen't do me much good, i need a pair :s

Sorry about that I should have made that more clear. After clearing the BIOS and inserting just one stick, if it boots correctly, you could then shut the machine down and add the second stick. The machine should be okay after that as long as you stick with JUST the Corsair memory. You could try the same with the competitors memory too just for testing purposes, but don't try it with the original memory installed at the same time or with the competitors memory and be sure to clear the BIOS before swapping them out.

 

This is why Corsair takes the time to test, match , and package memory into "kits" of various sizes. And the only way they can "guarantee " that the memory would operate in your system .

 

Let us know how you make out.

[RAM GUY]

You might try and remove all of the memory from your system and turn it on it should come up and beep or blink for no memory detected. Then UN-plug it DO NOT TURN IT OFF, then install our modules and plug it back in and turn it on go to BIOS setup and see if you can load defaults, this will force a BIOS error and then next time it posts it will try and rescan the system for new hardware.