what ram does my laptop support and what is its maximum capacity?

Basically, I just want to upgrade my RAM from 2GB to 4GB (~3.1GB usable).

My current setup:
-- Acer Aspire 5612ZWMLi
-- Intel Pentium dual-core processor T2060 (1.60GHz, 533 MHz FSB, 1MB L2 cache)
-- 2GB DDR2

{{I can take a laptop apart / put it back together etc, but compatability issues are beyond me lol.. }}


Anyways, so that people don't need to go trawling through all three pages, the current situation (11/Mar/2008) is that I've bought 2x 2GB sticks (details are ~pages 2/3) and I've posted the following 'summary' on page 3:

Regards,
Kwah =]

 

your laptop will take 2GB in each slot for a total of 4GB memory, there's no point in putting in faster than PC5300/DDR2-667mhz. You won't be able to address it all with the chipset you have though. You will have around 3.4GB or so available, regardless of OS.

 

Scan your computer at www.crucial.com to make sure.

 

It uses PC5300/5400 200pin SO-DIMM. It supports up to 4GB's but remember it can not use much more than 3GB's with a 32bit OS. You can mix sizes and use 3GB still getting most of the advantage of Dual Channel.

Edit: Your FSB is 667Mhz not 533Mhz/ no it is not the UK site has it listed wrong so looks like PC4200/4300

 

the label on the outside says that I have a 533MHz FSB - note: I have an LCD screen (I recall that there were a large number of ones with a TFT monitor when I was searching Google earlier...) though I'm not sure how (if) this affects it ..

EDIT: I'm using 32-bit VISTA

and yeah .. the suggested upgrade that crucial.com was for 2x2GB memory ..

I'm still not entirely sure which 'Standard' of RAM that my laptop supports? any?
basically, this is what im seeing: link to eBay listings

am I basically looking for PC2-5300 and that matches the speed of my FSB?

Is there anywhere cheaper than eBay?



Many many thanks for the VERY fast responses - it is greatly appreciated =]

Regards,
Kwah =]

 

I just saw the other thread very similar to this one ..

I might upgrade to 64-bit sometime in the future .. also, the 2x1GB sticks currently in my laptop might get used inside my desktop machine currently only at 512MB memory

regards,
Kwah =]

 

laptop mem wil not work in a desktop

 

ooh okay .. err, guess in that case ill either store it for future use maybe, or sell it on =]

regards,
Kwah=]

 

The information on your computer is wrong on many sites it is 533Mhz FSB as you said and that means PC4200/4300 is what you need PC5300/5400 will work just downclock to 533Mhz. The link you provided looks like the correct type 200pin. CPU-z is a free utility you can download and get info about your CPU and RAM to confirm. Your CPU is likely upgradeable to Core 2 Duo, some on this site have upgraded to 800Mhz FSB C2D's so if you might ever upgrade buy PC5300/5400.

 

yeah ... i took out most of the stuff i figured was irrelevant to keep out the bloat but it looks like it is 533MHz ..

so in laymen's terms, the higher the PC-2 number, the better? but it will probably be bottlenecked elsewhere .. ?

regards,
Kwah =]

 

not the higher, the better, it just means it can run faster but with your motherboard chipset, it doesn't matter, there's no point in going to PC2-6400, just stay with PC2-5300.

 

Sorry for bringing this thread back but in short, I ordered 4GB RAM (2x2GB) from eBay which appears to meet what I've been told here -the listing says "COMPATIBLE With Notebook which uses PC2-5300 DDR2 667 MHz RAM "


Anyways, what happens when I inserted (after shutting down, unplugging, removing the battery etc etc) and switched on is that it whirrs for a few seconds, the HDD activity light stays on for a second or two then goes off - leaving the power light solid (on) and no other signs of activity.

The same applies when using a combination of the 2GB and 1GB sticks.

If, however, I go back to using the old (2x 1GB) sticks, everything works fine - suggesting to me that it is either DOA or otherwise incompatible.


The RAM currently inside my laptop (quoting from the label on it):
PC2-5300$-555-12-F1.1GB 2Rx8 667

I'm not sure anything else on there is relevant, but feel free to ask.


Anyways, any suggestions for what could cause this? (last time I saw this happen is when I didn't plug something in all the way, but I double-checked each of my triple-checks to ensure this wasn't the case)
I've emailed the seller a similar message to this, requesting insructions as to what to do next, so I'm just wondering if you guys could help me out again?


Regards,
Kwah=]

 

Stick your old ram back on, and update your BIOS. This might give better support and compatibility.

You should have purchased a PC2-4200 RAM. You should be looking at your chipsets FSB not your processors FSB

 

I've already placed my old ram back in (im using it to be on here) but yeah, I'll take a look into updating my BIOS...


""You should have purchased a PC2-4200 RAM.""
.. but the ram already in there is PC2-5300 .. after finding this, should it not be best to match what is already in there?

Admittedly, the ones I purchased I did not realise they are only 'PC2-5300'-compatible (ie, not actually PC2-5300), but surely it would be better to get 5300 if only to match what is already in here and for a small amount of future-proofing?

regards,
kwah

 

Download CPU-Z and it will show all the info you need. Just match these up. Just type CPU-Z in google

Nvm about the ram type, ignore my last post i misunderstood this, i thought this was the RAM you bought

Sounds like it just might need a BIOS update for memory support

 

I've already downloaded and run CPU-Z and looked through the dump, but what exactly are you saying that I need to be looking for?

 

Go to the memory TAB and check the memory clock to see if its running 667 or 533.. It should show something around 333mhz or 266mhz.

I suggest you update your BIOS first.

 

I've just updated my BIOS and tried the RAM again - no luck, same results as before.


CPU-Z is reporting a DRAM Frequency of 266.0 MHz but I do not see how this figure is occuring..



The FSB RAM ratio is 1:2 - what does this mean?
At first, I considered that the speed of my FSB is half the speed of the memory - my FSB is ~533MHz, so with two sticks of memory @ 533MHz each, does that total to 1066MHz? Hence the 1:2 ratio?

Or is my FSB actually only 266MHz (when the sticker says 533MHz)?

 

No thats correct. 266x2 DDR (double data rate) = approx 533mhz

I suggest trying a PC-4200 533mhz ram. The PC-5300 667 might somehow be incompatible with your chipset. Oh and with your laptop getting PC-5300 is useless for futureproofing. Unless you buy a new laptop that takes PC-5300.

New laptops soon will be capable PC-6400 800 & ddr3 1000mhz

 

The speed of the RAM is not an issue so ignore all thought of that. If it is not even posting unable to run utility such as Memtest86+, so have to suspect the RAM is bad. Try running with just 1 stick at a time this should address any 2 GB limit your system may have. But once again sounds like bad RAM. Do you have access to another notebook to test in to confirm bad RAM?

 

IMO, if you can't get into the BIOS using the F# option for your laptop, then it's bad ram, if it gets to the loading BIOS section then hangs it's an artificial constraint of the MFR set in the BIOS.

Put the olds sticks back in, pock around the BIOS making sure it's set to show you all the boot information, etc. Turn on Logging, etc. Then reboot and get a feel for the prompts and requirements to enter the BIOS/setup screen.

Then shut down, take battery out, press the on button to discharge, then take out 1 old stick, leaving in a new one, then close up, put battery back in, power up and see what happens, like I said if you can get into BIOS and it see the sticks then it's artificial, if you can't get into the BIOS or it doesn't see the sticks then it's a memory issue.

 

err... it seems that after a bit more testing, it is a problem with my machine - the ram appears to be working fine - when inserted singly, the machine boots up correctly each time ..


Most recently (as I'm typing), I have booted up with 1x2GB inserted, the inserted the 2nd 2GB after logon...
Windows only recognises that there is 2038GB memory according to system properties, but CPU-Z is saying otherwise, that there is 4096MBytes


CPU-Z dump:
with 2x 2GB inserted (one after windows logon)

Code:

Software

Windows Version		Microsoft Windows Vista (6.0) Home Premium Edition   (Build 6000) 
DirectX Version		10.0

Code:

((DIMM #1 and DIMM #2 are reporting identical information, 
so there is no point copying both from the dump))

General
Memory type		DDR2
Module format		SO-DIMM
Manufacturer (ID)	 (0000000000000000)
Size			2048 MBytes
Max bandwidth		PC2-5300 (333 MHz)
Part number		
Serial number		00FFFFFF

Attributes
Number of banks		2
Data width		64 bits
Correction		None
Nominal Voltage		1.80 Volts
EPP			no
XMP			no

Timings table
Frequency (MHz)		200	266	333	
CAS#			3.0	4.0	5.0	
RAS# to CAS# delay	3	4	5	
RAS# Precharge		3	4	5	
TRAS			9	12	15	
TRC			12	16	20

Code:

Processors Information

Processor 1 (ID = 0)
Number of cores		2 (max 2)
Number of threads	2 (max 2)
Name			Intel Pentium T2050
Codename		Yonah
Specification		Genuine Intel(R) CPU           T2060  @ 1.60GHz
Package			Socket 479 mPGA (platform ID = 7h)
CPUID			6.E.C
Extended CPUID		6.E
Core Stepping		D0
Technology		65 nm
Core Speed		1596.2 MHz (12.0 x 133.0 MHz)
Rated Bus speed		532.1 MHz
Stock frequency		1600 MHz
Instructions sets	MMX, SSE, SSE2, SSE3
L1 Data cache		2 x 32 KBytes, 8-way set associative, 64-byte line size
L1 Instruction cache	2 x 32 KBytes, 8-way set associative, 64-byte line size
L2 cache		1024 KBytes, 4-way set associative, 64-byte line size
FID/VID Control		yes
FID range		6.0x - 12.0x
max VID			1.213 V
Features		XD

 

Sorry TGA.. I didn't notice that another page had been made until after I posted ...

On their own, the 2GB sticks appear to work perfectly.

When the 2x 2GB sticks are used together or in conjunction with a 1GB, nothing happens when trying to boot - the screen remains blank and the HDD-busy light remains off and solid.
Nothing loads - not the BIOS, not anything.


With this in mind, I'm not entirely sure what to say in response to your post, other than this, since I cannot access the BIOS with the problem combinations of memory inserted.

 

PC2-5300 (200-pin)
Max=4GB

Try to get the lowest Latency you can. Also, heat spreaders are a waste and not worth it.
I suggest Crucial, but many people say it doesnt matter.

 

Well that's very weird.

I had the same problem, but it let me get into diagnostics, etc, just wouldn't get past the BIOS option no matter what.

An updated BIOS flash with 1 new 1 old stick in place and voila, everything worked.

Not sure about your issue though, it's weird that it won't even get to the BIOS screen, but that it work in offset pairs I'm less inclined to think it's the modules themselves that are the issue for being faulty, so much as the chipset/bios having issues with the memory size or type (some setups have issues with the # of banks per stick).

 

Just to clarify:
* I have updated my BIOS

* 2x 1GB --> WORKS
* 1x 1GB --> WORKS
* 1x 2GB --> WORKS

* 1x 1GB, 1x 2GB --> DOES NOT WORK
* 2x 2GB --> DOES NOT WORK

* during bootup, 1x 2GB, then after logon, 2x 2GB --> ALMOST WORKING
-- WINDOWS BOOTS UP, CPU-Z RECOGNISES THE 4GB, BUT WINDOWS ONLY SHOWS 2GB (System Information + Task Manager)


* I cannot get ANYTHING on screen after switching on when using a non-working combination and the HDD activity light stays solid + off


[I've just added this in the first post also .. ]


Regards,
Kwah=]

 

Hmm, yeah and the fact that it recognizes 1 stick of 2GB on it's own but nothing above 2GB regardless of the combination makes me wonder about that, as it seems like a very artificial ceiling, and obviously doesn't have an issue with recognizing the stick itself because of it's composition.

Definitely different from my situation where it was 512MB and then any other size was fine.

Still sounds like a BIOS/chipset issue, but there may be no answer unfortunately if this is an artificial limit set by the Mfr.

I'm stumped other than that.

 

You didnt insert the second 2gb RAM while the computer was on did you? because that is a bad bad idea.

 

Yeah .. I realised afterwards .. Its the reason its still in there and its no excuse but at the time, I made a conscious effort to make sure it was inserted swiftly and evenly accross all connectors ..

I dont believe any damage has been done since nothing appears to have altered, but I'm not going to do anything like that again =]


Regards,
kwah

 

I guess its your motherboard/bios that cant boot up to 4gb. Its sounds like your motherboard can only handle 2gb MAX

CPU-Z is probably reading it because you inserted it after youve logged on and it updates its hardware info/stats constantly

Windows wont read it because it only saw 2gb on startup. RAM isnt exactly a Hotswap plug n play device

Try giving a different brand RAM a go, only thing i can think off

 

I think you have GL960 chipset which Intel says has a 2GB limitation so that answers that. I would of thought you would of at least got into the BIOS though so I am at a little bit of a loss myself.

 

From the eBay Listing:

Could this be the problem? According to this, the stick is PC2-6400 but compatible with PC2-5300 .. ?


You said that Windows doesn't recognise it because it wasn't there when it loaded? I use the GRUB bootloader (dual-boot with Mepis), so what if I inserted the second stick AFTER the BIOS had loaded and the GRUB screen is there, which is BEFORE Windows has begun to load?

Or should I just completely avoid inserting after I've switched it on? Obviously, it would never be connected to the mains (I'm not that stupid )

Also, how would I find out what chipset I have?


Many thanks,
Kwah=]

 

That RAM isn't PC6400. The CPU-Z timings table lists up to 333MHz. PC6400 should have a 400MHz entry. Furthermore, PC6400 is backwards compatible with slower speeds (as given in the timing table).

I suspect that the 2GB limit is in the BIOS. My Sony G11 has the Intel 945GMS chipset which can only address 2GB RAM, but the G11 now has 2.5GB on board. It boots fine but only uses 2GB.

John

 

According to the Intel site, the Mobile Intel® 945GM Express Chipset supports upto 4GB RAM

Code:

#SO-DIMMs/Max Memory 2 SO-DIMMs / up to 4GB Max System Memory @ 533 MHz 

By the way, its taken me AGES to find it, but this model appears to be my laptop - I would need to confirm it once I get home, but here it is:
http://www.simplyacer.com/product/id/250336/LX.AY30X.049


regards,
Kwah=]

 

From your link you do have the GM965 so not the chipset, I say John is correct with the BIOS suggestion.

 

So is there a workaround to allow more than 2GB?

I upgraded my BIOS from the acer support website which links to this FTP address ..
ftp://ftp.work.acer-euro.com/notebook/aspire_5610/

The problem is that it jumps from aspire_5610 to aspire_5620 (since I have an aspire_5612, I assume that the 5610 version would be better).

I can jump over to the acer forum here if needs be, but are there any other compatible BIOS upgrades that I would be able to do, for example? Or other sources?


Thanks,
kwah

 

bump ..


is there any other source of compatible BIOS upgrades?

 

Just wanted to warn you about messing around with BIOS...

You could literally make your laptop useless and turn it into a paperweight. Only way to fix this is to get a new motherboard

 

Same notebook, same problem.
I have acer aspire 5612ZWLMi with 2x512MB RAM (PC2-5300).
Acer support, manual of laptop, and all website that I have surfed say that this laptop recognize 4GB.
I have bought 2x2GB (PC2-5300) Kingston and laptop don't work, no POST.
I have made same test, but, in difference with you, I see that 1x512MB+1x2GB work BUT only work if 2GB stick is on first slot and 512MB in 2th. Otherwise only 2GB in 2th slot (and first empty)... work.
I have upgraded to new BIOS 3.52, the readme.txt says:

Nothing! No post! No bip! No noise! Nothing! Only light on power-on button.

I haven't solution, please help me!

Excuse me for my bad English, I'm Italian and I haven't study English

 

I would leave the system running with 2.5gb of memory than. If it does not work with 3-4gb of memory, do not fret it, just run it with 2.5gb. I do not think the issue is resolved over the memory addressing problem on that notebook. You better off having 2.5gb of memory allowing your laptop to work, than 4gb forcing the system not to boot.

K-TRON

 

Hey everyone,

I have an Acer Aspire 3050, and I too need some help deciding what Laptop RAM to upgrade with. I'm just nervous that I will get something incompatible, with my system, or pay too much for what I get.

I'm looking to get 2GB, just because these kits are the best value from what I've seen. The laptop is actually upgradeable to 4GB, according to an email I received from Acer.

I downloaded and installed lots of tools, like CPU-z, SiSoftware, Belarc Advisor, etc. I also ran the CRucial Memory Scan. But I'd also like to hear your experience and opinions about what I should get.

Please see below for my system specs from CPU-z, and the RAM suggested by Crucial.

Thanks for your time!!

Processor(s)

Number of processors 1
Number of cores 1 per processor
Number of threads 1 per processor
Name Mobile AMD Sempron 3400+
Code Name Keene
Specification Mobile AMD Sempron(tm) Processor 3400+
Package Socket S1 (638)
Family/Model/Stepping F.C.2
Extended Family/Model F.4C
Brand ID 3
Core Stepping DH-F2
Technology 90 nm
Core Speed 800.0 MHz
Multiplier x Bus speed 4.0 x 200.0 MHz
HT Link speed 800.0 MHz
Stock frequency 1800 MHz
Instruction sets MMX (+), 3DNow! (+), SSE, SSE2, SSE3, x86-64
L1 Data cache (per processor) 64 KBytes, 2-way set associative, 64-byte line size
L1 Instruction cache (per processor) 64 KBytes, 2-way set associative, 64-byte line size
L2 cache (per processor) 256 KBytes, 16-way set associative, 64-byte line size

Chipset & Memory

Northbridge ATI Xpress 200 (RS480) rev. 10
Southbridge ATI SB400 rev. 80
Memory Type DDR2
Memory Size 448 MBytes
Memory Frequency 160.0 MHz (CPU/5)
CAS# Latency (tCL) 5.0 clocks
RAS# to CAS# (tRCD) 5 clocks
RAS# Precharge (tRP) 5 clocks
Cycle Time (tRAS) 15 clocks
Bank Cycle Time (tRC) 21 clocks
Command Rate (CR) 1T

System

System Manufacturer Acer, inc.
System Name Aspire 3050
Mainboard Vendor Acer, Inc.
Mainboard Model Prespa M
BIOS Vendor Acer
BIOS Version v1.3110
BIOS Date 10/30/06


RAM Recommended by Crucial:

2GB kit (1GBx2), 200-pin SODIMM, DDR2 PC2-4200 memory module
CT607404US $53.99
Module Size: 2GB kit (1GBx2)
Package: 200-pin SODIMM
Feature: DDR2 PC2-4200
Specs: DDR2 PC2-4200 • CL=4 • Unbuffered • NON-ECC • DDR2-533 • 1.8V • 128Meg x 64


2GB kit (1GBx2), 200-pin SODIMM, DDR2 PC2-5300 memory module
CT607405US $53.99
Module Size: 2GB kit (1GBx2)
Package: 200-pin SODIMM
Feature: DDR2 PC2-5300
Specs: DDR2 PC2-5300 • CL=5 • Unbuffered • NON-ECC • DDR2-667 • 1.8V • 128Meg x 64

Whatever help you can provide me in making a decision would be really appreciated. Thanks!!!

 

I would go with the 2gb of pc5300 memory for your laptop.

That memory will work with your laptop.

K-TRON

 

Now I have 4 days for make RMA of memory that I bught...
That I do? I send back all 2 stick e I buy 2 new 1 GB stick or I send back only 1 stick?
I don't know if for my system is better 2 GB (1+1) ora 2.5 GB (2+0.5) (for dual channel).
Thanks!

 

lol K-TRON, thanks for pointing out the obvious there [re: the bit i put in bold]


i still have this problem and haven't found a fix as yet.. ive just gone back to the 2 x 1GB sticks and left it since...
i don't have a 512MB stick that i could test with (nor any others that are for laptops) so cant say confirm nadine's 2GB + 512MB as working (or not) on my machine also ...

What I think nadine is asking here is whether it would be better to have 2 x 1GB sticks or 2GB + 512MB.

I'm not sure but I figured I should try to clarify it somewhat =]



Regards,
Kwah

 

On an AMD I think 2X1GB is better. When I run 1 channel on mine same chipset 30% less bandwidth vs 2 channels. Only 1GB will run at the higher bandwidth and 1.5GB will run 30% less in 1X2GB + 1X512GB. This chipset takes much bigger hit running 1 channel than Intel(10%). You can get 1GB sticks from NewEgg for less than $20. And I would get PC5300 as K-T suggested I think it will run at full speed I think.

 

:cry: :cry:
If you will find a solution, please tell us in these 3d! (me too)

Yes, thank you!
Sorry sorry sorry! My English...
I understand (a little) when I read but I don't be able to write!
You understand that I'am desperate if I write in a forum that is not Italian, lol! If you come in Italy I'll buy you a spaghetti + pizza lol!

Thank you, in my chipset (intel), the loss is only 10%? If yes, I can put in 2GB+512MB...

I'm so ungry with Acer!

 

Its okay, well done for being able to read and type as much English as you are doing at the moment - I know my Italian is nowhere near as good!


As for this problem, I just found a thread that sums it up quite well, saying that the 'Z' models (in my case, the 5610Z) support only 2GB, whereas the non-'Z' models can support upto 4GB.

In other words, the Acer Aspire 5610 can support 4GB, but the Aspire 5610Z can only support 2GB.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/archive/index.php/t-209051.html


I'm not sure if they mean that there is a 2.5GB limit because (a number of people have reported being able to do this), but I'm currently doing some investigation on the intel website.


Regards,
kwah

 

Apologies for the double post but I figured it is important enough to warrant its own post =]

If you would like to identify which chipset you have, take a look at Intel's website and download their ""Chipset Identification Utility""

http://support.intel.com/support/chipsets/inf/sb/CS-009266.htm

If you would prefer a direct link to the Vista (32bit) tool, save it to your desktop, right click it and run as an administrator (it must be run with administrator priveliges).
http://downloadmirror.intel.com/15660/eng/ChipUtil.exe



It detected the ""Mobile Intel(R) 945GM/GMS/940GML Express Chipsets or Intel(R) 945GT Express Chipset"" in my Aspire 5610Z and gave me this link, but I'm yet to find details about the memory limits. If I do find something, I'll edit this post.
http://support.intel.com/support/chipsets/sb/CS-022034.htm


Regards,
Kwah

 

the acer aspire 5610z is a budget version of the 5610 which has a i945PM whereas the 5610z has a i943....

the i940 and i943 can support upto a max of 2GB PC2-4200....which wud run at 533MHz max....!!

the i945GM/PM and i965GM/PM and the GL960 wud support a max of 4GB PC2-5300....which wud run at 667MHz....!!

its got nothing to do with the bios....the chipset just cant handle that much....!!
if it wud have been for the bios....acer would have barred it at 2GB but u r lucky to have 2.5gig running in there....u r just pushing the chipset to its limit..!!
The ram speeds can be overclocked in both cases with some laptops....for eg. my acer 3680 has an i940 and i overclocked the fsb from 133 to 166 and the ram started functioning at 667MHz....!! although the inc in performance wasnt very noticeable....!! it just lowered application startup times....

 

Thanks for the reply, K-T.

Do you guys think I should go all out for 4GB, or will 2GB suffice. I don't play games. Just for multitasking and speed boost.

I currently have 512MB RAM installed, factory stuff. I'm running Windows XP, 32-bit.

Will it be better for me to get 1 stick of 2GB, or 2 sticks of 1GB (2x1GB)?


Thanks!