Failing RAM??? Not Sure What the Problem is

Captain Kirk

Captain Kirk

Member
Hello!!:cool:

Compaq Evo N610c
I have a laptop.
I think I might have a problem with the RAM.
I am trying to narrow down what the problem could be.

I have been having computer problems for 2 weeks now.
It might possibly be due to Failing RAM.
I'm trying to figure it out.
 
Nice to Meet You! Hello,:good:

The computer won't turn on.
There is no light on the computer.
There is a light on the power supply.
The rechargeable battery is at full power so it is getting juice:
[I pressed the button on the rechargeable battery and its lights lit up all across the indicator]

I took all the major components out and reseated them.
It still won't boot.
I have tried pressing the power button several dozen times.

Diagnostic:
I have no way to run a MemTest, as my computer won't boot.
My other computer won't fit that kind of RAM.

QUESTION:
Is it possible that failing RAM could cause a computer to NOT turn on?

Captain Kirk
USS Enterprise
 
Will a system not power up with bad RAM? Sure, it can happen. However, a system will almost certainly power up without ANY RAM installed. If you're not getting any activity from it (no lights, no beeps, no fans), it's probably a bad motherboard.
 
Thanx.

I just took all of the RAM out and tested it.

So before I throw the computer in the trash, do you think the processor is still salvageable?
Is that anything that I can keep out of the laptop?

Captain Kirk
USS Enterprise
 
Are there parts you can salvage, yes. And do not take this the wrong way, but it would be a futile effort. Assuming this is your laptop.

CPU may or may not be removable. It's value is not worth the effort though.

RAM, if it is still good, is removable, but its value is less than shipping it to someone.

Hard drive is removable, but 44 pin IDE is ages old and quite useless. COuld get yourself a external enclosure for it and use it to store files or backup or whatever you want to.

Battery might be worth a few dollars if it still holds a charge, which is not likely with NiCad batteries of that age.

Otherwise, you might be able to part it out on ebay or the like, but there is likely not a lot of demand for it.
 
Code Red. Code Red. My ship is going down.

WolfeKing,
Hey There!:D

What I meant was, if I was to build a new laptop from scratch, maybe I could use some of these parts.
Or maybe if I could use some of these parts to repair another laptop in the future.

And by the way, it is a brand new CMOS battery -- I just got it 2 months ago!:good:

Actually, you know the WORST thing about this whole situation is?
I admit that I did get this computer used, but then every couple months the computer would go out for one different hardware issue:gun:

My expertise is only in the software department, so I was a little befuddle to figure out exactly what the hardware issue was each time.
It took me a little longer. I don't know about hardware: I am a beginner intermediate in hardware.:o

Anyways, what ended up happening was that I had to replace almost all of major components in the laptop to keep it running:angry:

Here's what I replaced on the laptop over a 1 year period:
1. New RAM
2. New RAM
3. DVD Drive
4. Power Supply
5. Hard Drive
6. CMOS Battery

My laptop kept crashing from a different hardware issue. It was a major pain. However, this WAS my "best" computer, so I wanted to keep it going.
So I eneded up paying twice as much for the laptop. I spent as much in new hardware to keep it running as how much I payed for it.

--And then the board/processor went out!!!
Man, what luck

I paid 200 dollars and the laptop only lasted me for 1 year:mad:
And that's not counting the pain I had to endure from the constant crashing:eek:

Time for new and better computer. And I won't be buying another one from the same person again either!

Alright Wolf King and everyone,
it was nice talking to you. I'll talk to all of you later.

My ship went down.:confused:

Sincerely,

Captain Kirk
USS Enterprise
 
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first, you can not simply build a laptop. You can buy a barebones kit, add RAM, HDD, wireless card, and sometimes CPU and you are off and running.

If the RAM is new, then you should keep that, as well as chargers, and batteries if they hold a charge. The rest of it is too old to ever be of use unless you plan to buy another equal age laptop again.

Also, for what it is worth, you ship did not go down. It just kinda... lost shields. It could be fixed, but it would take a lot to fix it. You win some and you loose some. Seems you lost this one.
 
Buiild from Scratch. ReUse Saved Parts

WolfeKing,
Thanx alot man!

That was the question that I was about to ask next:
Can you build a laptop from scratch.
I know you can build a desktop from scratch, starting with ONLY the case.

But I guess the "laptop kit" means that it STARTS with a bare minimum of the laptop case AND a board.
Though I guess it doesn't really matter much, because from what I hear about building a desktop from scratch is that the specific case will determine what board that you put in it, so I guess this doesn't really matter.

I don't think that the charger [#Volts and the physical plug in shape or it won't fit] and the batteries [the shape of the slot, etc] will do me any good because these are only laptop SPECIFIC -- and, sometimes even the RAM [DDR, DDR2,DDR3, #PINS size, and speed of RAM] is too...

Captain Kirk
USS Enterprise
 
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That is not right at all. Laptop RAM, same as Desktop is an industry standard layout. All DDR3 is 204 pin with the same notch placement. All DDR2 is 200 pin with the same notch. All DDR is 200 pin with a different offset than DDR2. As long as you don't use low CAS or high MHz memory, it will work in any laptop as long as it is teh right spec (DDR1/2/3).

Adapters are not system specific. They will work as long as the pin shape is correct and it has equal or greater watts than it calls for. I use a 90 watt Dell adapter on my 65 watt Acer just fine. It is the same reason why you can buy universal adapters.

Batteries are system specific most times, or design specific to be more correct. For example, all acer Aspire 5*** series laptops use the same battery. All XPS 15*0/17*0 and Precision M90/6300 will accept the same battery. Just check part numbers and ensure that they fit.
 
WolfeKing!!!

Batteries: As far as the batteries go, are you talking about the CMOS or the rechargeable battery, or both?

Adapters: I didn't know that! I thought that a cord with greater wattage would be DANGEROUS to the electronic equipment and could damage them or render them inoperative... I've never heard of a universal adapter. I wasn't even aware that they even "had" such a thing. WOW! That sounds real useful--

RAM: Okay, so that's what the different need of varying pin#'s is -- it only indicates whether it is 1,2,or 3! Huh. Well, that sure makes it a lot easier to figure out now. But something caught my attention that you said:
Laptop RAM, same as Desktop
Click to expand...
So it sounded like laptop RAM was compatible with desktop RAM?
Which means that the RAM 1,2,3's have the same pin#'s between laptop and desktop?
And do desktops ALSO have DDR1/2/3?:confused:

I have never heard of "low CAS"
What is the meaning of this, or the # range MHz?
And what is defined by "high MHz memory", as far as # range MHz, or from ANY other way of indication?

Captain Kirk:cool:
USS Enterprise
 
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Batteries, I am talking about the 12V main battery. The big one that you charge. CMOS is system specific in laptops most times.

universal adapter: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834990455

They are quite useful, especially if you have several laptops you want to move, and not much extra space.
Extra watts will not harm the system. It will only consume as many watts as it needs, no different than desktops. Which is why you can run a Sempron, 790GX board, and 1 hard drive on a 1.5 KW PSU.

Well, not only DDR 1,2, or 3, but also older versions of RAM also, like the difference between them and SODIMM (PC133) RAM. But needless to say, pin count is not system specific. RAM from a Gateway will work in a Dell, and RAM from a Dell will work in an Asus. As long as the version is right. RAM from a D630 will not work in a M6600 though, even though the are both dells. That is because the difference in DDR2 and DDR3.


No, laptop ram is not compatible with desktop RAM. What I was saying is that they both count on pin count and revision (1,2, or 3) for compatibility.

CAS is latency. There are some memories that have tight (lower number) CAS timings that some systems will not function with. That is only a issue if you try to buy high performance RAM for a laptop.
 
"universal adapter"

Hello,

I appreciate the hardware enlightenment:D It is some of these basic things that make it so much easier to see the big picture.

And by the way, it was nice of you to include the link to the "universal adapter". I might seriously consider getting one in the future!!

It's kind of confusing. Do they use the "SODIMM" word to try and confuse you, or are there 2 to 3 different names for each type of RAM?
So "SODIMM" is just ANOTHER word for DDR1 RAM?

I don't know why they have all these other different types of names. Is there some other reason why they have so many names for the same type of RAM?

Captain Kirk
USS Enterprise
 
While DDR is SODIMM, it is generally used to refer to RAM generations made before DDR came out. PC133 is an example.

Each way the name is written has a meaning. Take DDR3-1600 PC12800 SODIMM. That is all saying the same thing, in different ways. 1600 is the MHz speed of the memory. 12,800 is the number of MT (Mega Transfers) that the ram can perform in a second. SODIMM means Small Outline Dual Inline Memory Module, basically Laptop RAM.
 
Hello Wolfe:cool:

That is only a issue if you try to buy high performance RAM for a laptop.
Click to expand...
CAS timings that some systems will not function with.
Click to expand...

Is this correct for being able to determine the different types of RAM?
And there are ONLY 3 types of RAM that all systems [Laptops] use?

DDR: RAM 70-166Mb, SODIMM; CAS = 70-90Mb RAM ; High Performance = 170 Mb
DDR2: RAM 200-266Mb, DIMM ; CAS = 170-190Mb RAM; High Performance = 270 Mb
DDR3: RAM 300-533Mb, SD RAM; CAS = 270-290Mb RAM; High Performance = >432 Mb

[Starfleet Captain]
 
No. You can not limit it 3 types. There are more or less 4 main types of Laptop RAM right now.

144 pin SODIMM @ 66/100/133 MHz CAS 2-4
200 pin DDR @ 133-400 MHz CAS 3-6
200 pin DDR2 @ 400-1066 MHz CAS 4-7 (iirc, both of mine are running at 1066 @ CAS 4 with Hyperx)
204 pin DDR3 @ 1066-2133 MHz CAS 7-12

CAS is not a MB size. You will not fond DDR in 70MB sizes anyway. CAS latency is a timing. It is the register of how far (in cycles) it takes between the memory controller asking for the data and the data being fetched. CAS goes up as MHz speed goes up, but also account that because the speed goes up the latency time is essentially the same. Where 1333 @ CAS 7 would be the same as 1600 CAS 9, but 1600 CAS 7 would be much faster. In this case the memory will cycle 7 times before the data is delivered, but because it cycles 12,800 times a second, it is a matter of 0.032 seconds between the fetch command and delivery.

You have to be wary of low latency RAM (below JEDEC standards) on standard laptops though. If you run Core 2, the PM chipsets generally run low latency better than GM/GSM chips though. Ahead of that, I can't really say as I don't run low CAS DDR3 in laptops (increase in performance is not worth the price)
 
Hi Wolfeking,

4 types of RAM!!! I could have swore there were 3. So that's what SODIMM means. Ahha!:D
So CAS is part of the speed rating?
RAM = amount of memory available. (the speed)Mhz = how "fast" it is able to process the information?

Yea, my computer that died was running DDR2 512Mb. However, I don't know what the speed was. I don't think it was CAS. It seemed like it was the standard type.
Oh wait, hold on. Okay, I just opened up my dead computer:

The speed is a 333MHz. DDR333. I looked on the RAM and saw that it said there was 199 pins and so I was just about to write this down on the page when I looked at what you wrote, and then I thought to myself, "Uh-oh, Wolfe wrote that there is only 200 pin RAM and if I write that my RAM is a 199 pin type then he is going to get mad at me."

And then, after staring at it for a long time in thought as I tried to search the RAM card for all the information that I could glean off of it just by physically looking at it, I finally turned it over. It was then that I saw, on the other side, that it now said 200 pins. Okay, good, you were right. Then I thought, "Whew, that was close," and wiped the sweat off of my forehead. Well, 333 doesn't logically seem to be the type that is a high performance RAM...

It sounds like multicore processors are all around better:cool:...

[Starfleet Captain]
 
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