2 Quick questions for a first time builder

[tmccumber]

Hi I am assembling my first PC and have 2 questions and I am sure they are stupid.

1. RAM - in installing the ram my sockets are colored blue blue and black black. In looking at the manual for the motherborad they are labled A1 B1 (both the blue ones) and A2 B2 (the 2 black ones). If I am installing 2 DIMMs do they go in the same color or same letter?

2. I am hooking up the case power, reset buttons. If the wires are pairs of wires are blue/white and red/white which are the grounds?? The white wires or the red and the blue.

Thank you

 

[Dystopia]

If you just read the mobo manual it should tell you. Under RAM, in the mobo manual, you should find where there are some figures (at least one) and it will show you. usually, for dual-channel RAM, you would put 1 stick in DIMM 1 and the second in DIMM 3. Then when you get more RAM, you would put one stick in DIMM 2 and the other in DIMM 4.

As for the cables, just look in the manual. There should be a section for hooking those up, and then you just have to examine the motherboard and compare it to the figure shown in the manual.

Hope that helps.

 

[tmccumber]

Thanks for getting back. Manual for the MB does not specify the order in which to put the RAM. Based on what I have done in the past I would have done the 1,3,2,4 order but based on the colors on the MB slots it almost seems like It should be 1,2,3,4.

The order and color of the slots are as follows:

1 Blue DIMM_A1
2 Blue DIMM_B1
3 Black DIMM_A2
4 Black DIMM_B2.

As for the cables I can see where they go and the correct pair of pins they go on. Question I had was on which was the ground. Example is for my reset cable I have a blue and a white wire. They plug into the bottom left 2 pins on the MB pannel connector. The manual has pin on the MB #19 as the reset and #20 as the ground. Same holds true for the power switch...have 2 wires blue and white and they go onto pins 16 power and 17 ground. Would the blue or the white be the ground?

Thanks again.

 

[blazin8556]

if you just plug the wires in and something doesn't work, turn the comp back off and turn the connector over. i hardly ever get it right the first time. the led's are diode. so current will only go in one direction. your not gonna blow it out or anything. the switchs won't be hooked up backward all the switches do is put a temporary short across the pins. i use a screw driver sometimes to turn on a computer im working on if i have the button unplugged.(not recommended for a beginner)

as for the memory i agree with. use blue/blue first. and then black/black

 

[Drenlin]

^ I dunno... A1/A2 and B1/B2 seem just as likely to pair up, don't they?

TS, if you can give the model number of your mobo, we can tell you for sure. And heck, if nothing else, use trial and error. If you plug them in and they won't run in DC, try a different configuration.

 

[blazin8556]

^ I dunno... A1/A2 and B1/B2 seem just as likely to pair up, don't they?

TS, if you can give the model number of your mobo, we can tell you for sure. And heck, if nothing else, use trial and error. If you plug them in and they won't run in DC, try a different configuration.

yeah that looks good too. lol. i think it may have to be trial and error. or look it up on google or something.

 

[blazin8556]

i just looked at a board i have laying around here. its a dell board that takes ddr1 and a 775 cpu. it has a black white black white memory set up. on both whites it says dimm channel 0 and both blacks dimm channel 1. sooo.....i dunno.

 

[Drenlin]

That's a different mobo, though...there's no reason why it should have the same configuration, though typically, like elimin8or said, slots 1 and 3 are for the first 2 and 2/4 for the second set.

 

[blazin8556]

thats what i meant. i think. for this board. 1 3 and 2 4. i see why im confused. i didn't read the chart thing right that he put up. so it would be A1 and A2 with that setup.

 

[Dystopia]

Thanks for getting back. Manual for the MB does not specify the order in which to put the RAM. Based on what I have done in the past I would have done the 1,3,2,4 order but based on the colors on the MB slots it almost seems like It should be 1,2,3,4.

The order and color of the slots are as follows:

1 Blue DIMM_A1
2 Blue DIMM_B1
3 Black DIMM_A2
4 Black DIMM_B2.

As for the cables I can see where they go and the correct pair of pins they go on. Question I had was on which was the ground. Example is for my reset cable I have a blue and a white wire. They plug into the bottom left 2 pins on the MB pannel connector. The manual has pin on the MB #19 as the reset and #20 as the ground. Same holds true for the power switch...have 2 wires blue and white and they go onto pins 16 power and 17 ground. Would the blue or the white be the ground?

Thanks again.

just try and stick the RAM in DIMM A1 and DIMM A2. If it does not work, try something different, it won't break your computer. And it really doesn't matter which is ground, tho I think it would be the white one.

 

[linkin]

Just an FYI: make sure you put the RAM in the same coloured slots, and use the closest ones to the CPU.

So if the first blue slot is closer to the cpu than the first black slot, use both blue slots.

 

[tmccumber]

OK seems I have something bigger of a problem

Thank you all for your input. After getting everything together my computer wont power up. I followed manual and set up 2x to try to make sure i did what it said. I followed the sticky on building and everything seemed good. When I hit the power the fans spin for a fraction of a second and then nothing. There is a green light on the MB which indicates power to the board. The only old part I am using is my hard drive.

 

[linkin]

When you installed the motherboard did you put the gold/brass standoffs in? They are required, not optional. It sounds like you have a short.

 

[Dystopia]

When you installed the motherboard did you put the gold/brass standoffs in? They are required, not optional. It sounds like you have a short.

yes, check that.

or, maybe, like with me, the 4-pin connector is broken..and then it will do that. Happened to me.

 

[tmccumber]

Standoffs

Hmmmm I didnt see any gold or brass standoffs..i will have to look. There are some white plastic pieces that have a threaded end and looks like a 1/4 inch space that came with the case...would those be them?

 

[linkin]

they are spavers, they look this this:

and they usually come preinstalled.

 

[lovely?]

Just an FYI: make sure you put the RAM in the same coloured slots, and use the closest ones to the CPU.

So if the first blue slot is closer to the cpu than the first black slot, use both blue slots.

that's an old rule. my p55 board will not boot unless the slot farthest from the cpu is occupied.

also, ground? really? there are 240 pins i guarantee you quite a few are 'ground' wires. what your looking for is dual channel. odds are, the pc will boot and work fine in any RAM configuration, whether it be A1A2, A1B2, B1B2. but sticking the RAM in slots A1 and A2 will put the RAM into dual channel mode, which essentially doubles the available bandwidth to the memory.

 

[tmccumber]

Standoffs

OK found and installed the standoffs...still no luck. Still get a brief pulse of power than nothing.