3 Beep (ie. No Memory Error) w/ working memory after changing timers in BIOS

[CaZeek]

Hello,

As far as specs, I am working with a D955XBK Intel MB and 4 sticks of OCZ Value Select DDR2-667 RAM.

I had the 4 sticks of RAM, recognized by the BIOS, and a functioning computer for the past day. I went into the BIOS to try to optimize the timing on the Memory. I tried the pre-set setting of my BIOS (the latest version) labeled "Manual-Aggressive", which was something like 2-3-4-4. I "Saved and Exited". When the computer restarted, I got 3 Beeps, which according to my manual is "No Memory", or more specifically from the Intel website, 3 beeps - Base 64 K memory failure.

I tried resetting the CMOS by taking the battery out of the MB, as well unplugging the PSU for 5-10 minutes. I started up, and still recieved the error. I tried inserting one stick at a time into each of 2 slots and still got the beeps.

I called OCZ, and they had no idea. They sent me an RMA slip, but we both agreed, it is nearly impossible for 4 sticks to simultaneously go bad. There was no smoke, shock, or anything else.. so there was no sudden surge of power frying the sticks.

The only other thing I could think of is that the Motherboard somehow went bad, but it has been working for over a week without any problems, so it seems odd that this would coincidentally occur at this moment.

Anyone have any ideas? Thanks in advance.

[blue60007]

Do you have another compatible board? I've heard of BIOS's going currupt from a timing adjustment gone bad (if I remember correctly...). Oh, no wonder it didn't work. Value DDR2 667 timings default to like 5-5-5-15, no wonder 2-3-4-4 didn't work - that's defintely "agressive". I wonder if that would've killed the RAM?

[CaZeek]

Yeah, it was extremely aggressive, but I figured it couldn't do anything too bad if Intel had it as a preset. OCZ tech support guys also said that they could not see how that would physically damage the RAM, so if it did get damaged, it would have just been a major major coincidence.

I do not have another compatible board to test no.. As I said, I already cleared the CMOS, is there any other way to fix the bios or whatever the problem might be? The only other option I can think of at this point is RMA.. which is a very annoying thing to do since the entire computer is already installed with the motherboard. At least I have some experience now.

[juppy]

You said you pulled the battery to try clearing the CMOS, but does that motherboard use a jumper to clear the CMOS? Might check your manual and see if there's a jumper that can be used to clear it instead of just trying to use the battery method.

[CaZeek]

The manual does not mention the jumper, but I found it earlier through examination (tiny letters next to 3 pins that say "CMOS Clr"). I tried that as well, with no success. I think the CMOS clear was successful, as the computer turned on as soon as power was supplied to it (without having to press the power button). This occured when I cleared the CMOS earlier as well.

The only things I can think of are that something is wrong with the motherboard, or the CMOS clear is not reverting the memory settings of the BIOS to the default level.

[glc]

The jumper is for forcing it into configuration mode and/or doing a floppy-based bios recovery - not to clear the cmos. Put the jumper in the Configuration position and start the computer. If that doesn't do it, download the recovery bios, put it on a floppy, remove the jumper, and boot it up with the floppy in the drive.

http://www.intel.com/design/motherbd/bk/bk_confg.htm
http://downloadfinder.intel.com/scripts-df-external/Detail_Desc.aspx?agr=N&Inst=Yes&ProductID=2070&DwnldID=9794&strOSs=44&OSFullName=Windows*%20XP%20Professional&lang=eng

I'm going to give you a little unsolicited advice re: Intel motherboards - don't mess with bios timings. Let it take care of itself. Intel boards are not high performance boards - they are STABLE boards. If you want to tweak and play, RMA it and get an Asus.

[CaZeek]

Thanks for the info glc. I realized that shortly after..

With regard to that jumper, I tried all three positions with no luck. There is also another jumper, which I was referring to, that is not shown on the diagrams, but is on the actual board with the lets "CMOS CLR" under it. That was a clear CMOS jumper as best as I can tell. Either way, I've tried both and all possible combinations.

I'd like to try to floppy recovery, but I have no computer with a floppy drive working, so I'll have to figure something out with that.

[MaxRat]

you may need to clear the cmos longer....I have had some stubborn boards take up to and including 18+ hours....

Pull the power cord....remove the battery....move the cmos jumper to clear...also...short the battery pins together for 20secs....try clearing it for a couple hours....You may have to try holding the "Insert" key down while trying to boot....hold it down and hit the power button...dont let go till it boots to the splash screen then hit the bios key and imediately load optimized defaults exit and save....