Hey everyone! I recently built my new PC about a week ago, and I've been experiencing some serious issues while gaming, like freezing, BSODs, and stuttering audio. I have to hard reset my computer, but it doesn't always power back on right away. To investigate the problem, I ran Memtest86 and it showed 198 errors during Test 5, with a few errors in Test 7 as well. I've already ordered new RAM and requested a refund for the faulty one. My question is: are these errors certainly due to the RAM, or could there be other issues at play? I've tried running it with and without XMP/Expo settings, but the errors persist. Here's my build: CPU: Ryzen 7 9800x3d, Motherboard: Gigabyte Aorus x870e elite wifi 7, GPU: RTX 5080, Cooler: Arctic III 360 AIO, RAM: Patriot Viper Venom RGB 32GB DDR5 6000MHz CL30 Dual Channel Kit. I've tested the CPU and GPU under load and they both seem fine. Thanks for your help!
4 Answers
Generally, RAM issues often come from enabling overclocking settings like XMP, so it's a good idea to test the RAM with those options disabled. If you haven’t already, make sure your BIOS is updated, as sometimes those profiles can cause problems too. Just a thought!
You might also want to gather any dump files from the BSODs for a clearer analysis! If you can boot into Windows or Safe Mode, check for any minidump files in C:WindowsMinidump. You can zip those up and share them on a file host to get additional help. Multiple files will be the most useful, so check out how to create a Small Memory Dump if you’re not getting consistent reports.
Don’t forget that sometimes the issue could be a faulty RAM slot. When your new RAM arrives, if the same problems occur, test each stick across both slots. This way, you can figure out if it’s the RAM or a specific slot that’s causing the trouble!
It’s possible that the issue might be with the memory controller on the motherboard, but that’s less common. For AMD, especially, the memory controller has been integrated for a long time, so that's something to keep in mind if your new RAM doesn’t resolve it. Just monitor the new sticks when they arrive!
Yeah, I plan to do that! I ran memtest with each stick in both slots already, and one stick showed errors in both while the other didn't have any errors at all. So it seems like one is definitely bad!