I'm facing a tough time with my new build and I'm about to throw in the towel. Here are my specs: I have a B650 e-e WiFi motherboard, Gflare Flare X5 with two 16GB sticks of RAM, a Ryzen 7 7700X CPU, and an RX 7800 XT GPU. The issue is that the system won't boot at all and it just stays on the DRAM light. I've already checked the RAM and used known working sticks, cleared the CMOS, and tried booting without the M.2 drive. The cooler I'm using is a basic one from Amazon, but I'm not sure if that could be causing the problem. Any suggestions?
4 Answers
I once had a similar problem when I repurposed old parts for a build. It was frustrating! I let it sit for a bit, and on the third reboot, it finally responded. Make sure to check for any BIOS updates or resets too, it could help! You’re definitely not alone in this struggle.
First off, when you boot up for the first time, let it sit for about 30 minutes. I know it sounds like a long time, but AM5 motherboards sometimes have long first boot times, so don't stress just yet!
Are your RAM sticks staggered? If you have four slots but are only using two, make sure they're in the 1st and 3rd or 2nd and 4th slots. This matters for optimal performance, but your machine should still boot validly even if not perfectly staggered.
Honestly, it shouldn't cause a no-boot issue. It might not be optimal, but the system should come up regardless.
Double-check that your RAM sticks are seated correctly. They should be in the 2nd and 4th slots, not forced, but make sure you feel them click in. If that’s good, look up how to clear the CMOS. You'll be shorting some pins on the motherboard to reset the BIOS, and then give it another try.
30 minutes sounds like a super safe bet, haha! You got this!