1600mhz ram in 2009 mac mini not working

[thefriendshipmachine]

hi friends

I have extra ram that is 204 pins but 1600mhz

http://www.crucial.com/usa/en/imac-(retina-5k,-27-inch,-late-2014)-imac15,1/CT6313741

this ram works in my imac

I always thought you could use faster ram in slower machines. So I put 2 sticks of this into my late 2009 mac mini but when I boot it up it goes "beep beeeeeeep" and does not boot. I read that this means the ram is bad or seated badly but the ram works in my imac and also I believe is seated correct. The ram that came with my mini works.

I know you need firmware 1.2 but I downloaded this and when I try to install it says I already have it

 

[treekram]

It might by the CAS latency (CL). The memory in the link is CL=11, the Mini wants CL=7.

 

[DeltaMac]

The idea that faster ram works in slower machines is one that "sometimes" works.
One level faster is 1333 MHz. That will usually clock down.
Two levels faster is your 1600 MHz, which should clock down to the 1066 MHz, but in real life does not always support that.
And, the chipsets that Apple has used in the past, with memory bus speed designed for the 1066 speed, is often quite finicky about higher speeds, even those that seem to work OK in other Macs.
Particularly for those using PC3-8500, get upgrade RAM that matches spec, and get it from a company known to support Macs.

 

[thefriendshipmachine]

hi I have found out that if I stick 1 original module and 1 1600mhz module then it boots!

I have found out here: https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/how-to-get-1600mhz-ram-to-work-on-2009-mbp.1879955/

that the problem is I need to flash my ram to be slower. Sadly in the tool they say to use, the ram shows in SPD to be HWP which I think means its write protected. So I think I should buy 1 stick of 1066 ram and keep 1 stick of 1600mhz ram and I will be ok.

 

[ryguy92000]

Use ram that is needed for the machine. Ive had horrible luck in my shop getting Mini's to cooperate with off-speed ram.

 

[EmlynDewar]

That nvidia chipset was a PITA for faster memory.

 

[California]

hi I have found out that if I stick 1 original module and 1 1600mhz module then it boots!

I have found out here: https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/how-to-get-1600mhz-ram-to-work-on-2009-mbp.1879955/

that the problem is I need to flash my ram to be slower. Sadly in the tool they say to use, the ram shows in SPD to be HWP which I think means its write protected. So I think I should buy 1 stick of 1066 ram and keep 1 stick of 1600mhz ram and I will be ok.

Just try to find cheaper 1067 DDR3 ram, with a matched pair. Will run faster.

 

[Celerondon]

[doublepost=1495003027][/doublepost]

Just try to find cheaper 1067 DDR3 ram, with a matched pair. Will run faster.

Yes indeed! Mismatched memory is nasty.


Seriously though, it sometimes works but why bother? You may find accounts where users managed to get similar combinations working but this is still not a guaranteed path to nirvana.