Scott Silva wrote:
I bet the bios of the board is either not honoring the SPD settings of the memory, or the memory just isn't a good match for the board.
or, the SPD data is bogus or overly optimistic, often a issue with offbrand memory.
re: motherboard recommended memory, the taiwanese mobo makers (asus, gigabyte, abit, etc etc) rarely even have any such recommendations published. I usually only find that sort of data on the US brands (Intel, SuperMicro, Tyan, and so forth), and, of course, the major server makers like IBM, HP, Dell, etc. only 'recommend' their own memory, which while expensive, is covered by factory service and warranty, and will almost certainly meet the systems specifications and requirements.
Things like motherboards are sold as OEM components, and it is assumed that the OEM will do the testing and qualification.
That all said, with AMD Athlon 64 and Opteron CPUs, the memory controller is in the CPU chip, not the chipset, so all the motherboard contributes is the board layout and DIMM sockets, and the BIOS configured memory timings... So, going with memory thats been certified by AMD is probably a good idea.
Unluckily, it doesn't appear AMD has much of a memory compatability program.... From their website, http://www.amd.com/us-en/Processors/TechnicalResources/0,,30_182_869_9460%5E...
* AMD Athlon™ 64 Processor Family Memory Guidelines*
In our ongoing efforts to support industry standards, AMD Athlon™ 64 processor-based platforms may be designed to leverage industry standard DDR unbuffered DIMMs. An independent testing company, Computer Memory Test Labs (CMTL), has conducted memory compatibility testing. CMTL is an independent test facility and is able to test RAM modules from different module suppliers. System builders should access the CMTL web site a www.cmtlabs.com http://www.cmtlabs.com and view the recommended memory module list for the specific motherboard manufacturer and motherboard model.
* Note*: The CMTL website is provided for informational purposes only, and AMD recommends that a system builder conduct its own testing and validation to confirm that the memory modules are suitable for its systems.