DDR3 voltage related question

[ithel]

I realize this isn't a tech forum, but I know some of you are hardware specialists, so I thought I might get some help and advice.

 

As you may remember from about 18 months ago, I built my own system, including a steam-punk-ish wooden case. For reasons I can't justify now, I went with 32 gb of ddr3 1600 9 9 9 24 ram (Patriot, 4X8gb). Two of the original sticks failed memtest. So I went with just the 16gb, not realizing that I could return the defective memory until about a month ago. I sent the bad memory back to Patriot and they graciously replaced it. However, the replacement memory has two distinct differences from the other two sticks they replaced. First, these sticks have a tall aluminum heat-shield, which the originals did not have. Second, while the originals are stamped 1.6v, these are stamped 1.5v.

 

As I eagerly began to disassemble my case to put these replacement sticks in, I realized they are physically too tall to avoid touching the frame of the large intake fan I have mounted in the floor of my case. The only way to fit them was to trim a quarter-inch of the aluminum heat-shield from the end. Without giving it much though (obviously) I went ahead and did so. Unfortunately, with those sticks installed, my computer goes into a failed boot cycle, where it tries to turn on but cycles itself off again after about three seconds, then on, off, on, off, etc. This happens under any configuration that uses either of the two replacement sticks, whether solo or in conjunction with the other sticks and regardless of which of the four slots they go in. Hmm...

 

Could be defective memory, of course. But I suspect my trim-job of the heat-shield has pretty much made them impossible to return.

 

So my question is this: could this behavior also be caused by some issue with the voltage of the memory? As I said, my original Patriot memory has 1.6v on the sticker, while these replacements say 1.5v. Every other stat is the same...same timing, same speed, same size. Or did they just replace my memory with the wrong kind and I'm screwed for having modified it?

 

My bios does allow me to change dram voltage. I am a newbie at that and do not understand the theory but can follow directions.

 

Yes, I can get away with not installing these sticks at all. My computer has served me well on the 16gb I have been using all along. But since I paid for them, if I can get them to work, I will be happier.

 

What suggestions can you offer? If this could be a voltage issue, is it possible to make different voltage dram place nice together? Or is that a non-starter? If it can be done, what do I set my dram voltage to? I assume I will have to set the bios with the working ram in place, then put the other ram in to see if it works.

 

Here is my system:

 

Motherboard: MSI Z77MA-G45

Processor: Intel i5 2500k 3.3ghz

Video card: Geforce GTX 560 Ti

OS: Win 7 Pro, 64bit

Memory: Patriot DDR3 1600, 9 9 9 24, running 2 of 4 8gb sticks...the two which don't work also are labelled "Viper" which I do not recall on the originals. The "Viper" also say on the package "Designed for Intell 6/7/8 Series Platforms."

 

Thank you.

[Bikerdude]

Your running the same mobo as I am so I can check settings in my bios etc.

 

Regarding DDR3, the std operating voltage is 1.5 volts, so with all 4 sticks in the above motherboard would try and run them all at 1.5v.

1. it sounds like the bios 'might' be miss-detecting the memory so put the systerm back the way it was before the replacement ram turned up and upon bootup, press the 'del' key and reset the bios
   
2. to diagnose which stick works or is faulty, try booting with one stick at a time in the first memory slot (it will be labeled and is likely the one nearest the cpu socket)
   
3. once your in windows run CPU-Z and make a note of each stick's details and the voltage its being run at, let me/us know what voltage they are being run at.