New stick of RAM

[Seahawks]

Hey guys
I just bought a new stick of RAM online and went to put the stick into the computer only to find that the computer won't boot up whenever the stick is in the computer. I already had a 2GB stick of RAM working fine and i put the new stick into the second slot and the computer wouldn't start. I tried only having the new stick of RAM in the computer without the old one in case they weren't compatible or something but the computer still wouldn't boot. Everything still works when i only have the old stick of RAM in so no harm has been done to the Motherboard. I know my computer takes DDR2 RAM so i made sure that the new stick of RAM is DDR2 when i bought it.

I guess what I'm asking is: Is the only thing you need to look at when buying a new RAM stick the type of RAM (i.e. DDR2) or are there other components that factor in which is why this RAM doesn't work on the computer or is the stick of RAM just faulty?

TL;DR - is the type or RAM (i.e. DDR2) the only thing that you need to look at when buying a new RAM stick?

 

[crazyman143]

A couple other things that are important:

The RAM speed, such as 1333MHz, 1600MHz, etc. You need to ensure that the speed of the RAM is in a compatible range with your motherboard. The higher the speed the better, and usually if you mix and match speeds its okay, but your board will fall back to the clock speed of the slowest module.

Also, ECC and non-ECC. ECC RAM has error checking functionality but most desktop motherboards will not support it. Usually you want non-ECC for desktop boards, and ECC for server boards.

These specifications should all be listed on the support site for your motherboard manufacturer, so you can verify your RAM is compatible.

 

[Celery]

Also there's single density (chips on one side) and double density (chips on both side) memory. This may be the problem so look at the old and the new and compare.

 

[BikerEcho]

You should be able to see a compatibility list in the manual on your computer.
If you don't have it anymore, you can find it online, or google "(motherboard name) ram support".
You can find the name on your board with CPU-ID.
CPU-Z | Softwares | CPUID

Luckily the general ram support have gotten MUCH better with DDR3.

 

[cb600fshornet]

You tend to find with double and single density RAM, that if the motherboard only supports single, if you put a double in, the stick only shows as half the amount.

I suspect the RAM stick is faulty, have you got anything else to test it on?

 

[Seahawks]

So as an update the new and old RAM stick are double density which is what the motherboard specifications say it should have, as far as i can tell it should be compatible with what the motherboard ram support site tells me (takes 800 Mhz DDR2 RAM which is what the RAM stick is), I couldnt find the ECC/non ECC thing that was talked about in the first comment.

Is there a special way to install RAM or is it as simple as making sure that the computer is unplugged, put the stick of RAM into the slot and then start the computer back up?

If there isnt a special way to instal RAM then I'm pretty sure the stick is faulty.

Thanks for the help so far guys! I really appreciate it

 

[Seahawks]

For an unknown reason the computer now works when i turn it on with the RAM stick in. Im sure i had it put in properly the first couple of times i tested it but maybe i was wrong. Either way its working now. I learnt a lot about RAM and everything is working fine so I'll call it a successful day. THANKS HEAPS to all those that provided some input. I appreciate it a lot.

 

[cb600fshornet]

Computers are weird and wonderful things, the number of times I've plugged in a graphics card, and it hasn't worked for the first attempt... lol

 

[Celery]

Since you had an empty slot for some time the contacts were probably dusty. Inserting and pulling the module cleaned it up.

Glad to hear you're back on the road.

 

[donetao]

Hi computers are designed to drive us all crazy. It's a plot against us. I think Celery probably has as good a answer as you will get. It seems I always have to do things at least a couple of times before I get it right, but that's because I seldom read directions before I try to do the task!! LOL
Gary!!