Tested friends faulty ram in my system now I can't boot

tuxy

Hey I figured you guys might be able to help. A friend of mine got a 4gbx2 kit of memory. His system would only boot with one stick installed. So it looked like one of the sticks was faulty.

I put it in my system which already had 2x4gb installed to test it before sending it back. Of course the system would not boot, no surprise there. So I removed the faulty ram.

Now when I power on the system I just get a continuous boot loop.
I've reset the bios which did not help.
I've tried both my sticks alone that were working but not luck.

My motherboard is a msi p67a-gd55 what's the best way to diagnose the problem.

phily2002

check you didn't knock your hdd cable loose. Go into the bios and see if the hdd shows up there. Check your boot order that the hdd is selected first. A loop would suggest that it's not finding anything to boot. There's not really anything the faulty ram would have done... If that doesn't work take everything apart and blow out any dust and try again. good luck

tuxy

It's more of a post loop. The system keeps trying but can not post.
I have taken the board out of the case.
I have Just cpu,1 stick ram which I try in different slot and graphics card connected.
The system just keeps resetting every 5 seconds and will not post.

I didn't think the faulty ram could do any harm that's why I didn't even think before testing it.

Outkast_IRE

and you defo have the RAM reseatted 100% correctly ? maybe take it out and put it back in just to be sure.

Vicxas

Couldn't hurt to flash the CMOS battery too just to be sure

tuxy

Outkast_IRE wrote: »

and you defo have the RAM reseatted 100% correctly ? maybe take it out and put it back in just to be sure.

I've tried both my sticks that were working individually in every slot

Vicxas wrote: »

Couldn't hurt to flash the CMOS battery too just to be sure

I disconnected the power and left the battery removed for 20 mins

Prodigious

Try booting from Cd

tuxy

Methememb wrote: »

Try booting from Cd

The system will not post

tuxy

What do people normally do now to figure this stuff out since many motherboards do not come with a speaker connection anymore.

Serephucus

Does your board have an LED POST code yoke?

tuxy

Serephucus wrote: »

Does your board have an LED POST code yoke?

No, I wish it did.

-( i )- Wicker

Sounds like you might have knocked something loose when you were tinkering with the RAM. Have a look over all the connections on the motherboard, check all power is connected as it should be, and check that the gfx card is secure in the pci slot. (They might look fine but some of them might need a slight wiggle)

tuxy

-( i )- Wicker wrote: »

Sounds like you might have knocked something loose when you were tinkering with the RAM. Have a look over all the connections on the motherboard, check all power is connected as it should be, and check that the gfx card is secure in the pci slot. (They might look fine but some of them might need a slight wiggle)

I've done this a few times since the motherboard is now outside the case for testing.

Did you take anti-static precautions ?

tuxy

Deleted User wrote: »

Did you take anti-static precautions ?

Yes I used the grounded psu to discharge any static in my body like I always do.

Vicxas

Is the HSF tight to the processor? I know this is simple stuff but good to get it out of the way

tuxy

Vicxas wrote: »

Is the HSF tight to the processor? I know this is simple stuff but good to get it out of the way

Yes I'm sure the heatsink and fan are fully secured.
The system had been working perfectly since I put it together 14 months ago.

tuxy

I've figured out where the speaker connects to the MB but I have a 600t with no case speaker. I guess I will have to order one. I'm open to any suggestions that might help while I wait for it to come.

-( i )- Wicker

I assume you cant get to the bios since its not POSTing. I know its a pain but it might be worth disconnecting everything from the mobo (except the heatsink) and testing with just the basics connected (no gpu or headers). Shouldn't be that much hassle since you already have the mobo removed from the case.

tuxy

-( i )- Wicker wrote: »

I assume you cant get to the bios since its not POSTing. I know its a pain but it might be worth disconnecting everything from the mobo (except the heatsink) and testing with just the basics connected (no gpu or headers). Shouldn't be that much hassle since you already have the mobo removed from the case.

Yeah no post means no bios menu.

I had that done already too. Same result. Actually the system acts the same even if I have no memory installed.

phily2002

Do you have a different psu to test with it? Your next stop is probably to try known working parts(if you can get some) untill you find where the error is...

tuxy

No I didn't have any other parts available to me right now. Just what's in the system.

smileyj1987

http://support.asus.com/Diagnosis/SelfDiagnostic.aspx?SLanguage=en

Try this website and go through the steps they recommend .

tuxy

smileyj1987 wrote: »

http://support.asus.com/Diagnosis/SelfDiagnostic.aspx?SLanguage=en

Try this website and go through the steps they recommend .

Ok it tells me to connect a speaker to the motherboard just like I was planning to do when I can get my hands on one.

tuxy

I'm really starting to think the motherboard has developed some fault. It will take more testing to find out just not sure what to do next.

JackieChan

tuxy wrote: »

I'm really starting to think the motherboard has developed some fault. It will take more testing to find out just not sure what to do next.

If possible you could try the MB in a known working compatible PC and see does it boot into or beyond the BIOS. If you get the same behaviour then the MB is shagged. At this stage it would seem to be the MB at fault.

tuxy

JackieChan wrote: »

If possible you could try the MB in a known working compatible PC and see does it boot into or beyond the BIOS. If you get the same behaviour then the MB is shagged. At this stage it would seem to be the MB at fault.

It looks that way. Just a very strange coincidence that it would die after I changed around ram.

aFlabbyPanda

Take all the ram out. The system should power on a but beep to alert about the ram missing . If it does then the RAM is faulty. If it doesnt then the board is still at fault.

tuxy

It's not going to beep much with out a speaker. I have 4 ram sticks right now.
The faulty one from a friend and the other working one that was in the kit.
I also have the two sticks that were working in the system.

I have tried them all one at a time.

What are the chances of 3 good ram sticks all failing at the same time?

gctest50

Anywhere you could borrow a diagnostic card ? :

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Delectronics&field-keywords=diagnostic+post+card


useful yoke to have anyway

tuxy

Never saw one of those before. Looks like something handy to have.
I ordered a motherboard speaker off ebay 10 mins ago.

tuxy

I ordered a new motherboard last Friday because I couldn't think what else is wrong.
I went for the Asrock z77 extreme6, I didn't realy need something that high end but I had some amazon gift vouchers aftrer christmas. It has a floppy drive connector wtf!

Everything is working perfect with the new board. I can even reach a higher stable overclock using less volts.

I tested that faulty memory again, it will boot in this motherboard but gets errors in memtest, so that's an rma.

I'm left not knowing if I did something wrong or if the old old board just gave up. Not too bothered though, I have a working system again

marco_polo

Did you still have a warranty on the old one, worth an RMA surely. At least then you'll know as they'll tell you to feic off if its not a manufacturing defect

tuxy

Yeah I should have a year and a half left on the limited warranty. Worth a try.