No monitor..update...one stick of RAM faulty?

[TiredTendencies]

Alright so here's the deal. SOMETIMES when i plug in 2 sticks of RAM (about 1/10 times), the monitor boots up and tells me it recognizes 2 GB of RAM. (both the same kind, corsair XMS.) When I put in one stick of RAM (a particular stick) it always boots (or has so far). When I put in the OTHER stick, it rarely boots up. Am I correct to assume that this stick is faulty somehow? Can anyone elaborate on HOW it's faulty (I like details, i'm a nerd =P )? Or if I'm just being stupid, and should clean it, or something? Is this even a reasonable explanation for my monitor issue? Like..if I install 2 sticks and one works, should it always boot? Thanks in advance

[Panama Red]

Best way to find out if either stick is faulty is to download Memtest86+, make a floppy with it and boot up with the floppy. Let it run for 2 full passes unless you immediately start getting errors.

http://www.memtest.org/

[TiredTendencies]

How do I run memtest on my computer if the computer won't load with the faulty RAM in it?

[Panama Red]

You run Memtest off a floppy not from within Windows. You'll have to make the floppy on another pc. Or you can download The Ultimate Boot Disk and use it to run Memtest86+. Either way this assumes you are at least able to get into the bios.

[TiredTendencies]

I am not able to get into the BIOS with the RAM i suspect is dead. As I said, when that particular stick is plugged into either slot, or just by itself in either slot, the BIOS won't load at all (I get no display on my screen) Anything else I should do, or should I just try for an RMA?

[Cricket]

Originally Posted by TiredTendencies or should I just try for an RMA?

Yes.

Cricket