4 DIMMS WONT WORK

[Sammi]

I need help, I have tried everything... online searches everywhere.

 

Gigabyte Technology Co. Ltd. H170-Gaming 3 (U3E1)

16.0GB Dual-Channel DDR4 @ 1066MHz (15-15-15-36)

 

Yes I know it is old, but it works VERY well for my needs

 

so I bought 2 NEW dimms of IDENTICAL ram (freq and CLS) and it wont work, I tried to change the BIOS and nothing worked

 

1. I had the OLD RAM in A2 and B2 and worked well for 6 years

2. I added the NEW RAM into A1 and B1 and the pc would just boot loop (so 4 Dimms all in) and it would just boot loop, I let it run 10 times

3. I tested the NEW RAM in A2 and B2 ALONE and it worked fine, I tested the NEWRAM in A1 B1 and it worked fine

4. I tested the OLD RAM in A1 and B1 and it worked well

5. I have UPDATED the BIOS to the latest version

6. I cleared the CMOS

7. I used OPTIMAL settings in Bios

8. when I say wont work... BOOT LOOP endlessly (let it run for 1 hour) could not get to BIOS or post.

 

So based on the above, all the DIMM SLOTS work, all the RAM works, but the BOARD will not accept 4 Dimms

 

I am guessing that my board BIOS needs to be adjusted and I cant find anything in the BIOS to do regarding the MEMORY as my board is h-170 and has no XMP

I downloaded the MANUAL for my MB and read it from front to back and can't find anything.

 

PLEASE help if you can, I have a new PC, I am using this one as a back up... Thank you.

PS I had 4 DIMMS of IDENTICAL DDR4 4GB ram and it also didnt work, 2 worked same situation as above, A1 B1 and then A2 and B2 but NOT in all 4... so again I am just CURIOUS as to why?

[RONOTHAN##]

27 minutes ago, Sammi said:

IDENTICAL ram (freq and CLS)

Just because those are identical doesn't mean the RAM sticks are identical. In low bins, especially base JEDEC bins like 2133MT/s, buying RAM with even the same part number has a decent chance of being two completely different memory ICs, and given that you bought the RAM 6 years apart, odds are it's two different ICs. Different ICs have different memory controller parameters in order to boot (this is more or less what memory training is doing), and while the range of values that work is relatively large at the low end, it's still not unheard of for two different DDR4 ICs to not work together even at speeds as low as 2133MT/s (I've got two DIMMs that work perfectly fine on their own, but in the same system they won't POST 95% of the time). You can verify if the two sticks are actually different with a program called Thaiphoon Burner, you can read the SPD of each stick to see if the memory die and memory manufacturer is the same or different between the two.

 

A BIOS update can sometimes help this if it gives better support for memory training, that would be the first place I'd start, as well as maybe try setting it up where the memory kits are in each channel individually (old in A1 and A2, new in B1 B2, or vice versa, this can sometimes help, sometimes it doesn't). 

[AlricTheFlatulent]

Did you check the QVL at Gigabytes Support page?  When I built my rig last spring, I put a pair of Corsair Vengence Pro 16GB sticks in it.  Which worked great, so when I got my points for all my parts, I went ahead and bought a second set.  Turned out my B550 MAG Gaming Plus works with about any pair of DDR4 RAM, but the faster you went with RAM, the small the size of chip it would support.  My system choked on four sicks of 16GB 4000 mhz DDR4, but ran fine with two.  I bought two sets of RAM before I checked with MSI what was compatible and ended up with what I have now.

[Sammi]

51 minutes ago, RONOTHAN## said:

Just because those are identical doesn't mean the RAM sticks are identical. In low bins, especially base JEDEC bins like 2133MT/s, buying RAM with even the same part number has a decent chance of being two completely different memory ICs, and given that you bought the RAM 6 years apart, odds are it's two different ICs. Different ICs have different memory controller parameters in order to boot (this is more or less what memory training is doing), and while the range of values that work is relatively large at the low end, it's still not unheard of for two different DDR4 ICs to not work together even at speeds as low as 2133MT/s (I've got two DIMMs that work perfectly fine on their own, but in the same system they won't POST 95% of the time). You can verify if the two sticks are actually different with a program called Thaiphoon Burner, you can read the SPD of each stick to see if the memory die and memory manufacturer is the same or different between the two.

 

A BIOS update can sometimes help this if it gives better support for memory training, that would be the first place I'd start, as well as maybe try setting it up where the memory kits are in each channel individually (old in A1 and A2, new in B1 B2, or vice versa, this can sometimes help, sometimes it doesn't). 

I will check that option 1+1 and see how that goes, but wont help if I cant use all 4... luckily I can return the RAM... thank you for your quick response.

PS I had 4 OLD sticks of DDR 4 memory 4 gb each and it also didnt work... so it HAS TO BE a motherboard issue.... 

[Sammi]

23 minutes ago, AlricTheFlatulent said:

Did you check the QVL at Gigabytes Support page?  When I built my rig last spring, I put a pair of Corsair Vengence Pro 16GB sticks in it.  Which worked great, so when I got my points for all my parts, I went ahead and bought a second set.  Turned out my B550 MAG Gaming Plus works with about any pair of DDR4 RAM, but the faster you went with RAM, the small the size of chip it would support.  My system choked on four sicks of 16GB 4000 mhz DDR4, but ran fine with two.  I bought two sets of RAM before I checked with MSI what was compatible and ended up with what I have now.

Checked with the seller (offline store) he looked at my MB specs online and my current specs of my RAM (I provided him the specs) and he cross referenced it online.
 

I had 4 OLD sticks of DDR 4 memory 4 gb each and it also didnt work... so it HAS TO BE a motherboard issue.... the question is why wont 4 dimms work?

 

Thank you for your response and time. Please be well and stay safe!

[RONOTHAN##]

1 minute ago, Sammi said:

PS I had 4 OLD sticks of DDR 4 memory 4 gb each and it also didnt work... so it HAS TO BE a motherboard issue.... 

That's a bit on the weirder side. It's not unheard of for early DDRX lifespan motherboards to struggle with 2 DIMM per channel configurations, but I've never seen it not be able to POST with them (except for DDR5 Z690, but that would still POST most of the time, just at super low speeds). My first guess would be that it's a BIOS issue and to try a couple BIOS revisions to see if that helps, though I've got no experience with that board or other similar boards so I can't tell you what BIOS revision would work and what one won't. 

[Sammi]

1 minute ago, RONOTHAN## said:

That's a bit on the weirder side. It's not unheard of for early DDRX lifespan motherboards to struggle with 2 DIMM per channel configurations, but I've never seen it not be able to POST with them (except for DDR5 Z690, but that would still POST most of the time, just at super low speeds). My first guess would be that it's a BIOS issue and to try a couple BIOS revisions to see if that helps, though I've got no experience with that board or other similar boards so I can't tell you what BIOS revision would work and what one won't. 

I have HAD the most up to date bios from 2009 no more updates after that... I dont really wish to go playing around with FLASHING new Bios in case I brick my machine... IF I can't figure it out here I will send it over to my tech next month to figure it out after I get my new machine. Thank you for your follow up. This forum was my last resort due to not being able to find the answer online so far and trying everything I could.

Basically NOW I am just CURIOUS as to WHY 4dimms wont work... its just driving me crazy!