Rampage III Extreme 24gb Ram Help please?

[Darknlight_8]

Hey everyone, having a bit of trouble with a recent RAM upgrade I jumped into. Also this may get a little complicated and very long winded (if you're going to read this, you may want to make sure you have enough time) so don't beat yourself up if you have trouble following everything.

I've been using the Rampage III Extreme for about 6 months now and couldn't be more pleased with the performance up until now.

Previously I was using 12 gigs of OCZ ram (12800 / 1600mhz OC'd to 1744mhz) and had no issues. But I recently bought the G.Skill Ripjaws 24gig Hexa-channel kit which was also supposed to run @ 1600mhz w/1.5v.

Upon firing the comp up, the first thing I noticed was the incredible boot time. (only during the "starting windows" boot screen, mobo went to post just fine)

The boot took a good 2 or 3 minutes instead of the usual 8 - 10 seconds. Finally the desktop came up and Icons / startup processes that are normally ready to go were still barely starting. Clicking the start menu took a good 10 seconds to pop up. The computer *was* however recognizing all 24gigs. I then took a look at system usage and the CPU was spiking like crazy (jumping all over the place between 40 and 80% usage, sometimes 100%) yet there was no single process taking up much of the usage. ie if I were to open a folder, explorer.exe would suddenly jump up to 20% cpu usage then back down to 0.

Next was process of elimination, so I ran Memtest86 as a first things first which came back with no errors. Then I found an article online that explained issues like this can be caused by a start up program / process, so I did a clean start (stopped all services / startup processes other than MS services). No luck after doing that.

Then I tried booting into safe mode to see if the problem was there. This time upon booting, I could see the system get hung up on classpnp.sys, for again, 3 minutes or so. Once I was in safe mode however, everything seemed fine. No lag or ridiculous cpu usage.

Next I started booting the comp 1 stick of ram at a time, to make sure I didn't have a faulty stick. Everything boots and performs perfectly until I put in the last stick of RAM to bring it to 24gigs. The last stick isn't faulty however, as I tested each stick individually.

Finally I noticed that the computer isn't recognizing 20gigs (when I put in 5 sticks in instead of 6), it simply stays at 16gigs. So I'm a bit lost on that one, why it would show 24 gigs, but not 20.

I did of course make sure to set the timing / voltage, and even underclocked the RAM to 1066mhz to make sure it wasn't the issue. I also reset the cpu settings to the default so no overclocking could possibly interfere.

When I tried to activate the XMP profile, the mobo wouldn't go to post. I've asked around a few places to try and get a response (G.Skill's site has been useless up to this point -_-).

One person said the following (hopefully one of the tech savvy people here can point out whether or not it's true)

"This is almost certainly due to an excessive load on the address and data buses that is causing a major degradation of the signaling ... resulting in very degraded operation of your memory subsystem. I'm surprised you didn't also have problems with 6 2GB modules, but they may have been right "on the edge" of reliable performance.

Bottom line: With unbuffered modules, you'll have FAR better reliability if you don't install more than three double-sided modules in your triple-channel board.

You can confirm this by installing just 3 of your 4GB modules (just to confirm it's a loading issue and not a basic memory compatibility issue). If the system works well with that configuration, I'd leave it like that -- 3 4GB modules will be much more reliable than 6 2GB modules, due to the much lower bus loading. That won't, of course, let you get to 24GB ... but if you really want (or need) that level of RAM capacity, you should consider upgrading to a board that supports buffered RAM.

There's a good reason server boards virtually all use buffered RAM modules -- that essentially eliminates loading as an issue, since your modules than present 1 load/module instead of 16 loads/module (or even more for quad-density modules)."

With that input, I'm hoping this isn't the case, as I don't see why G.skill would put out any kind of ram kit that wouldn't work with a top of the line board like the R3E. Also, the Processor I'm using is the i7-950 if that makes any difference.

If anyone has any clue on this one, it'd be greatly appreciated. At this point, if I can't get an answer here, I have no clue who would possibly know.

Thanks all (and congrats if you read all that)

[Hapatingjaky]

I would say that its true but not on the Rampage III, this issue effected the COre 2 Duo line that when populating each channel resulted in missing memory. Your issue is your using 6x4GB sticks, populating all channels, disapearing memory can be a few issues.

1.) Bad Ram.

2.) Incompatible Ram.

3.) Defective memory ports on the board.

4.) Bent CPU pins in the socket.

5.) QPI/DRAM Voltage not properly set or DRAM voltage not properly set.

What I can suggest is to not use XMP, XMP is the lazy mans way of doing things and usually causes more issues. What you need to do since you are populating all memory ports you should look at upping the QPI/DRAM, With popluating all slots you should look at 1.4v or higher depending on memory speed. If your ram calls for 1.65v you should try 1.66v instead.

Can you post the model of the GSkill ram you purchased? The model number please so I can see if 6x4 is supported but the board. Sometimes its an issue with this.

EDIT: Checking with Asus the G.Skill model ending in GBRL which I assume is yours:

http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231359

Is not supported in 6x4GB. This may be what is causing your issue. I might try some Corsair Vengance or maybe some Patriot kit. The first review of the G.Skill ram in Newegg states they could not get it stable at the rated speeds on a Rampage III.

[Darknlight_8]

Thank you *so* much Hapatingjaky, that is the FIRST true answer I've received from anyone (including G.skill's support).

I definitely only used the xmp 1 time as a test, but other than that I'd set the timing / voltage myself. I tried pushing 1.65v even though it only required 1.5v and downclocked to 1066mhz instead of 1600mhz thinking that it would help stability.

But none of that really matters if, as you so kindly found out for me, the ram isn't supported with this board.

Time to RMA.

Thank you so much again, seriously. How do I give you +rep or a thumbs up (I just signed up here)

EDIT: Would you mind looking at this refined newegg search showing the five 24gig hexachannel kits @ 1600mhz? (no corsair vengeance unfortunately, though i see corsair dominator). I just want to make sure the next kit I order is compatible to avoid a repeat.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=100007611%20600006050%20600006081%206000...)

Did I already say thank you? you just ended a week long headache.

[Hapatingjaky]

Darknlight_8 wrote:
Thank you *so* much Hapatingjaky, that is the FIRST true answer I've received from anyone (including G.skill's support).

I definitely only used the xmp 1 time as a test, but other than that I'd set the timing / voltage myself. I tried pushing 1.65v even though it only required 1.5v and downclocked to 1066mhz instead of 1600mhz thinking that it would help stability.

But none of that really matters if, as you so kindly found out for me, the ram isn't supported with this board.

Time to RMA.

Thank you so much again, seriously. How do I give you +rep or a thumbs up (I just signed up here)

EDIT: Would you mind looking at this refined newegg search showing the five 24gig hexachannel kits @ 1600mhz? (no corsair vengeance unfortunately, though i see corsair dominator). I just want to make sure the next kit I order is compatible to avoid a repeat.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=100007611%20600006050%20600006081%206000...)

Did I already say thank you? you just ended a week long headache.

I've had great success with Patriot Memory so that would be my first choice. I used to run 6x2GB on an EVGA board without issue. When I got the Rampage III I purchased 3x4GB of Patriot again.

I have a buddy that purchased 6x2GB Corsair Dominator on an Asus P6X58D Premium and could run the memory at the rated 1600MHz but 1.5GB would be missing. I recommended to replace the memory and go with a different board ( he was scammed getting this board ). He replaced it with another Corsair 12GB kit and a Rampage III Gene and hasn't had a problem. But there are others even on this board that have had issue populating all memory slots when using Corsair so its 50/50 that it will work.

[Darknlight_8]

Hey Hapatingjaky,

Not sure if you're still around, but I received the patriot 24g kit and encountered the same problem again. Once all 6 sticks are in, computer becomes heavily bogged down and barely operational.

That being said I think we can scratch off the first 2 possibilities of bad ram or incompatible ram. As for the other possibilities you suggested.. If there were defective memory ports on the board, wouldn't I have the same issues when I had the 12gigs installed previously (6 x 2g so all the slots were occupied).

And with the bent cpu pins in the socket, wouldn't I have also noticed a problem with the 12gigs before..? oh and not that I'm questioning your input, but how would bent cpu pins effect the ram?

If you're still around and able to answer these it'd be greatly appreciated (once again).

Thank you

[martin_metal_88]

It might not be a compatibility issue. It's not new that mobo don't like to have all ram slot populated. Also, the R3E haven't been designed for 24GB since when it come out the 4GB stick were rare as hell. You only bet is to find some even more rare low poer 4GB stick.

For the CPU pin, if the pin make no more contact with the CPU and it's one of the pin used for the memory that could make issue. It's pretty usual to see people running 6GB only see 4 because a pin is bended.

Since 24GB take a lot more power than 12GB your issue is probably only coming from the fact that you have to much memory and the northbridge have hard time with it. You would probably need to push the voltage over the limit to get it work properly.

But, why do you need 24GB, seriously...

[Hapatingjaky]

martin_metal_88 wrote:
It might not be a compatibility issue. It's not new that mobo don't like to have all ram slot populated. Also, the R3E haven't been designed for 24GB since when it come out the 4GB stick were rare as hell. You only bet is to find some even more rare low poer 4GB stick.

For the CPU pin, if the pin make no more contact with the CPU and it's one of the pin used for the memory that could make issue. It's pretty usual to see people running 6GB only see 4 because a pin is bended.

Since 24GB take a lot more power than 12GB your issue is probably only coming from the fact that you have to much memory and the northbridge have hard time with it. You would probably need to push the voltage over the limit to get it work properly.

But, why do you need 24GB, seriously...

The Northbridge has nothing to do with memory management, the memory controller is on the chip now, the Northbridge controlls PCI-E etc.

Darknight sorry to get back to you so late, busy at work...

Here's what I want you to do:

1.) Enable the QPI-LLC Jumper located underneath the 24-Pin ATX Plug on the motherboard.
2.) Restore Bios Defaults and check to see if 24GB is seen in the bios ( not Windows )
3.) Set timings and Voltage Manually in the bios as well as set Load Line Calibration to full and reset and enter the bios again checking to see if the memory is seen.

If the bios detects 24GB, enter Windows and see if 24GB is detected. The reason I am asking to set the QPI-LLC Jumper is that possibly the voltage is dropping or spiking too much causing the memory drop out. If this does not work:

4.) Set QPI-DRAM Voltage to 1.35v
5.) I am just guessing as to which Patriot kit you purchased if its 1.65v set DRAM Voltage to 1.66v. Try to stay away from the 1.5v memory, this memory is very tricky on Socket 1366 systems, the CPU's were designed for 1.65v memory. 1.5v memory is more geared toward the Socker 1156 and 1155 versions, even though there are 6GB kits out there for tripple channel these are mainly suited for the newer 1366 CPU's.
6.) Save and restart, entering the bios again, check to see if 24GB is detected.

If its detected enter Windows and see if its detected there.

Download Memtest86 and run it for 3 hours, download OCCT and run it at Max for 1 hour straight. I don't want any Overclocking done, run the system at base clock durring all of this.

Give it a try and see what happens.

[Darknlight_8]

@martin_metal_88,

I appreciate the response but, I feel like I repeat myself quite a bit in forums. I'd be surprised if it was an issue of the motherboard "not liking all the ram slots being populated". It's made for 6 sticks of Ram, that's what it's expected to do.

I also ran all 6 slots occupied with 6 x 2g (12g of ram) before the upgrade with no issues. I would certainly hope the R3E was designed for 24GB as it clearly says on any spec sheet you look at, that it's compatible with 24GB Ram up to 2200mhz. I wouldn't want to think that Asus lied about it's 24gb compatibility if it wasn't designed for it.

If it's an issue with a cpu pin, that'd make a bit of sense - however, as I said above, I have no issue with the computer recognizing all 24g - that part is working fine. It's the other symptoms that are the problem.

Lastly, why I need 24gb - have you ever built something you had a passion for? Made it above and beyond what you'd need? Or seen someone's project car with way more horsepower than they'd ever need? Simply put, it doesn't have to be a necessity in order for one to want something for their pride n joy.

They don't call us enthusiast's for nothing 😉

Anyhow, at this point, I've exhausted my resources and I'm pretty sick and tired of it all. Contradicting statements from many different people from multiple reputable websites.. Some say it's bent cpu pins, others say the board cant handle it while the board specs clearly say otherwise and there's about 10 videos on youtube of people with this exact same board running 24gb with no sweat.

There's really only one last question I haven't heard a direct answer on; does an i7-980x make a difference as to the compatibility. The only key difference in every video or post of someone running 24gb on the R3E is that they're using an i7-980x where as I'm using an i7-950. So far no one has hinted a word about the processor being relevant in all this, but I figured I'd ask anyhow.

Don't misunderstand this post as ungrateful. I really appreciate the responses and advice I've received, especially from Hapatingjaky, as I won't have to wonder "what if i'd done this?"

thanks

[martin_metal_88]

Motherboard is a really strange world. None of them is identical. It's not unusual to have 2 identical system giving different result. For thr R3E, it can acheive 24GB, under some special circumstance. That's like back in the P45 day where you could read on many mobo box Up to 1066Mhz memory ( under OC ). It's not always out of the box. Since 24GB is on the limit of the mobo, many unit wont do it, your seems to be in the package. The board that was after you on the building chain is maybe able to do it. But well, you have done a lot of research on this and I am sure you figured out that it's a issue with allthe high end mobo that have hard time getting 24GB working well. It's simply that a 4GB stick is very dense and can demand a lot of power which not all board are made for. On the 6 slot side, the R3E have been design to run 6 X 2GB but again, it's not a mobo limitation. On that side it's the Intel memory controller ( north bridge in older model ) that don't like it only because it's a lot of bandwith I guess.

I hope you didn't take it to hard when I asked why you wanted this, it wasn't my intention. I simply ask because so many people come here with this issue and want 24GB only for gaming or such use so it's a total waste. Wanting it for the premium is fine 😉 we have a lot of member here that buy hardware only for the love of it. I would be part of it if I was more rich ahah 😛

Hope you'll enjoy the place and the people! come take a look at the folding section we have a lot of folk in here that love to play with hardware and you might enjoy it a lot!

[Darknlight_8]

@Hapatingjaky,

No need to apologize, we all get busy, and I appreciate that you're taking any time out of your day to help me out.

I'll enable the QPI-LLC Jumper as you mentioned - would you be able to explain what that does?

i'll up the QPI-DRAM voltage as well. I had the DRAM voltage set to 1.65v but i'll bump it up one more notch, and yes you're correct, I went with the Patriot viper II kit @ 1600mhz.

It seems there are some things I forgot to mention from the get go.

Basically, the bios has had no issues in detecting all 24g. In my very first post I mentioned that it wasn't detecting the ram when only 20 gigs were in, but that was a stupid mistake on my part (I was loading the ram from left to right, not right to left).

Also, from day 1 with these issues, Windows (when it finally boots) also detects all 24 gigs. The symptoms seem Identical to when I've worked on other computers where the ram wasn't getting enough juice. Problem is up until now the only thing I've ever had to adjust is the DRAM voltage / timings.

Lastly, wanted to mention that I've done all this at stock settings, I know better than to create even more factors when trying to figure out what's causing instability. I even bumped the ram down to 1066 mhz thinking that it'd surely be more stable if it was at a slower speed, but no dice.

Anyhow, I'll follow your instructions to the book and get back to you with the results (other than memtest as i'll run that overnight). Thank you again.


@martin_metal_88,

I also appreciate you trying to help, and I'm glad you explained why you asked about me needing that much ram.

I've been doing this for so long that it never even occurred to me you were asking with my best interest in mind. To make sure I wasn't some ignorant gamer wasting money because I thought I needed much more than I did. I usually get frustrated when I see someone asking for advice on how to fix something, and then seeing other people respond by questioning why the person needs it as if it's helpful at all. I understand now that you were just trying to help out, and as such I apologize for getting defensive.

I've been meaning to check out the folding@home scene for a long time now, so perhaps i'll drop by at some point.

Thank you both.