Another day, another bsod........

[johng]

hi all, have recently undertaken a new build with specs as thus:
gigabyte ga-870a-ud3
amd phenom ll x4 955
g.skill 2x2gb dual channel kit (Ripjaws 4GB kit (2GB x 2) DDR3-1333 (PC-10666) CL8-8-8-21 )
galaxy gtx465
stock cooling on cpu, front and rear fans, temps all seem stable in bios
coolermaster 520w (waiting on a corasir 750w)
1TB sata drive
windows 7 ultimate 64-bit clean install

all was well for the first week, no issues at all, past 3 days getting seemingly random bsod and freezes
have ran memtest on both sticks of ram, each had 10 passes with no errors
cannot run dual channel in either slots 1/2 or 3/4 (was in 1/2)
cannot run two sticks of ram in 2/3 or 2/4
only time systenm is stable is with one stick of ram in slot 2/3/4
either ram in slot 1 causes immediate bsod

though i feel it is the motherboard  my technicla knowledge is limited so i dont want to assume and rma the wrong thing! could there be a memory compatabiltiy issue?
everything is running as standard, im not an overclocking type
thanks

[absic]

Hi,

Looking through the specs you have posted the only thing that really jumps out is your PSU which seems a little underpowered. BSOD's, can be caused by many things, not just hardware and the fact that your RAM has completed 10 passes of Memtest would indicate that everything is fine in that department.
As a general rule, today's motherboards, on there own with no added cards, require a minimum of a 500W PSU and your Graphics card will require quite a lot of extra power too so I think that the problem lies in the power draw.

The best course of action would be to wait until you take delivery of your new Corsair 750W PSU. If you still have the problem with a better PSU, then would be the time to consider RMA'ing the board.

[Dark Mantis]

I agree totally with what absic has said that it sounds like a power problem. If you could list any more BSOD messages exactly though it might be helpfull in case we are wrong.

[johng]

hi- thanks for the replies

i should get the new psu tomorrow so will leave things for now and see if that helps

if not i shall induce a couple of bsod to get the error messages!

[Dark Mantis]

From what you say I don't think the problem will be inducing the BSODs

[johng]

From what you say I don't think the problem will be inducing the BSODs

  quite true!

as an afterthought, would it be helpful to update the bios? my current version is F1

[absic]

An update to BIOS might help a little as the F2 updates the CPU code amongst other things.

If you are not sure how to update BIOS check out he FAQ here: http://forum.giga-byte.co.uk/index.php/topic,2441.0.html

[johng]

updated bios without success and new psu never arrived but as it happens the problem seems to have come from elsewhere- with some help from another site i made some changes in the bios to the voltage settings and everything is running smoothly (for now anyway!)
will still be getting the new psu though, no point in putting the powers of fate to the test!

[Dark Mantis]

Fingers crossed for you. Keep us informed of the situation though.

[absic]

What BIOS settings did you alter?

That kind of info might really help other members facing similar problems.

[johng]

What BIOS settings did you alter?

That kind of info might really help other members facing similar problems.

as it hapopens the prblem has returned- still can only run one stick of ram and only in dimm 2.

cant decide if its because the memory is  incompatible or a problem with the board.

i was already half way to being bald, at this rate i'll be there before the week is out!! 

[johng]

having read around the net i came across a few mentions of the heatsink on the same motherboard being loose and checked mine- is it meant to give at all or should it be solid? as it is mine feels as though it might just drop off at any moment 

[Dark Mantis]

Are you referring to the CPU heatsink? If so it should be held firmly against the chip not forgetting the thermal paste in between.

[johng]

could have sworn i replied to this already!?!

heatsink is fine, was just clutching a straws
seems more likely to be a memory issue, have posted on the g.skill board to see if they can decide what the best settings are

[Dark Mantis]

I just realised nobody has asked whether you are trying ot run your memory in unganged mode? What is the setting in the BIOS?