Serious problem with my Dual Channel RAMs

[Luciel]

You are right it's with the -E lol :P and the processor is an Athlon 2800+ XP

Ill go check the bio settings right now.

[Luciel]

Ok, Kosmiq, i saw nothing like what you describe, HOWEVEr

I did find out that the processor is running at 166 and that i can set it to 200 however it wont start properly then (no video). The memory was set to equal the cpu, so i put it on manual and put it on 200mhz which is the higuest i could get (shouldnt it be 400?), and now when i start it says 200mhz, what are the implications of making a cpu that by default runs at 166, run at 200?

[DABhand]

Basically your overclocking it a bit, not by much though.

Yep 2.8XP is 166 CPU frequency..

But direct memory accessing from the motherboard is 400mhz, but CPU to RAM will be 166. Less memory and the motherboard actually lets it to be 166.


Is your memory different brands Luciel?

Is one ECC and one non-ECC?

[kosmiq]

I am not sure what Asus A7N8X-E shows during POST (long time since I had my A7N8X) but compare the 200MHz (manually set) and the auto setting and see what they say. It could be so that the Asus m/b shows non-DDR speeds...
I also find it a little strange as you can only set it to 200MHz as maximum, that very little overclocking capability (not that it matters so much in this case, but still).

About your 166vs200 question;
Your CPU's speed is determined by 2 things, FSB and multiplier. The FSB is on the motherboard and the multiplier is CPU. So lets say you have 166MHz FSB and a multiplier that is 11 you take 166*11=1826 (1826MHz on the CPU) and then,
1826*3=5478, 5478/2=2739, 2739-300=2436~2400 and BAM an Athlon XP 2400+. Ehhh not that it had something to really with the question, but still that is how you calculate the "+value" on the old Athlon XP (not Barton).
Now if you raise your FSB from 166 to 200 you get a new calculation,
200x11=2200 and then the "+" calculation it will be 3000+.

What you are doing is overclocking, and when you raise from 166 to 200 it is most likely your CPU that is not able to handle the speed change without getting more voltage or better cooling or both. Also you PCI/APG speeds will get higher and your graphics card fail due to not being able to handle an APG bus higher then standard/little more than standard. There are several more factors, IDE controller crapping out due to higher frequency, SATA controller and so on. You should have the option to lock the PCI bus though. That will keep it at a constant level (so that overclocking will not affect SATA, IDE, APG, PCI).
Advise: Do NOT overclock if you are not aware of the risks and are fully aware of what you are doing.

Hope that answers your question (and brings you a little more knowledge for free ). If not, say so and I will cut it down a bit...

[Luciel]

Both memory sticks are same brand same type same everything :/ bios still has a max of 200mhz though

[kosmiq]

Are you sure the memory thingie is not adjusted by % in the bios?
I took the time to look into a review and it says;

Basic overclocking-related options are also found in the Advanced Chipset Features page:

* CPU External Frequency can change from 100 to 300MHz stepping 1MHz;
* CPU Frequency Multiple – this parameter changes somewhat irregularly. You can set it to 13.0x, 13.5x, 14.0x, 6.5x, 7.0x/15.0x, 7.5x, 8.0x/16.0x, 8.5x/16.5x, 9.0x/17.0x, and from 9.5x to 12.5x stepping 0.5;
* Memory Frequency is set up in percent of the FSB clock rate: 50%, 60%, 66%, 75%, 80%, 83%, 100%, 120%, 125%, 133%, 150%, 166%, 200%;
* CPU Vcore changes from 1.5V to 1.75V stepping 0.025V;
* AGP Frequency can be given the following values: 50MHz, from 66 to 87MHz stepping 1MHz, 90, 93, 95, 97, 100MHz.
* DDR Reference Voltage – 2.6V, 2.7V, 2.8V. That’s rather a scanty choice
* AGP VDDQ Voltage – 1.5V, 1.6V, 1.7V. We can change the voltage on the AGP slot of the mainboard.

Thats from X-bit Labs.

So by reading that I also see that you are to go to the Advanced Chipset settings tab and change what you need...

[Luciel]

yup it is all in the advance settings, doesnt change the fact u cant go more than 200mhz on the memory setting