Mac Pro Lockup Causes Found.. Bad APPLE Ram!!!

[GotPro]

Well, guys... if you recall a thread I started trying to get help on why the Mac Pro was crashing... I finally narrowed it down.

After speaking to about 4 different people at apple.... they had me run the Apple Hardware Test off the boot CD.

I took out EVERYTHING except the 2nd DVD burner (Apple Branded Superdrive from my old 2.5 Dual G5)... and ran the test.

The Hardware Test ACTUALLY FROZE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE RAM TEST.

I thought I had bad aftermarket ram... as it wasn't playing nice with the Apple ram when I added them together.

Looks like I had fine aftermarket ram... the Apple ram was bad.

I REPLACED the Apple Ram with the Aftermarket Ram... and the Hardware Test completed fine.

So, now I'm going to be calling them again in the morning and letting them know what happened. I wonder if they'll just let me RMA the bad ram, or if I'm going to have to lug this dang thing down to an apple store.

I WONT BE HAPPY IF I HAVE TO DO THAT.

We'll see!

Oh, and no more lockups since switching out the ram... and all the other quirks (not able to burn CDs in Windows, sloooow Internet page draws, etc...) are all but gone now.

Wild how a little thing like crapping out RAM can hose a system.

 

[edesignuk]

Wild how a little thing like crapping out RAM can hose a system.

Not really, it's an essential component, any problems with it and you'll certainly know about it.

This thread does serve as a good example to those that pay premium for Apple memory over and above stock config in the delusional thinking that Apple RAM is somehow "better". It's not. It's RAM, RAM that Apple don't even make, occasionally, just as with anyone else, it will be faulty.

Glad you got to the bottom of it though and can now start to enjoy your machine.

 

[stomer]

Wild how a little thing like crapping out RAM can hose a system.

I'm surprised that Apple supply machines with dodgy ram. I'm absolutely not surprised that RAM can hose a system. I only ever buy branded RAM, personally I chose Micron/Crucial. I've never ever had a problem with their RAM.

 

[orpheus1120]

I have had good experience with Crucial ram for my Imac. If price is not an issue, I'll definitely get their rams for the Mac Pro. However realistically I have better alternative because Crucial's ram for the current Mac pro come with a premium. But no doubt, they have fast shipping and good products. I highly recommend them to those who don't mind paying a slight premium.

 

[Gonk42]

I have had good experience with Crucial ram for my Imac. If price is not an issue, ...... I highly recommend them to those who don't mind paying a slight premium.

I too have been happy with Crucial as a supplier int the past. Unfortunately their current premium is much more than slight, it is around two and a half times the cost of somewhere like OWC. Though, of course, it is still only about half the price Apple charges.

 

[Arkillion]

I bought a white 24" iMac which was locking up the day I bought it. I found the apple ram to be bad and the aftermarket ram I bought ahead of time to be working just fine.

I brought the ram down to the apple store thinking they could look at the ram, know they use that company on the computer I bought which they could look up in their system as I bought it just a few days before I came down.

Well after waiting about an hour for an available mac genius, he looked at me like I was insane. He refused to even talk to me unless I had a full computer with me.

I never did bring it in because I had a perfect 24" display with not a single dead pixel that I was not going to risk. In the end I ended up eating the cost and buying a new stick of ram elsewhere.

 

[Firefly2002]

For the record, except in the case of serious magnetic interference/physical external/static damage, RAM almost never "craps out"; it's either good from the second it's made, or bad. There's a reason they give out lifetime guarantees on memory all the time. =]

And yeah. RAM is kind of an essential part. If the computer asks for a bit of code, and a couple bits are flipped.... well, who knows? Maybe it runs infinite loops, maybe it just gets an unrecoverable error.. or a message it can't make sense of. I dunno. Anyway, it stands to reason it can hose your system.

 

[GotPro]

I bought a white 24" iMac which was locking up the day I bought it. I found the apple ram to be bad and the aftermarket ram I bought ahead of time to be working just fine.

I brought the ram down to the apple store thinking they could look at the ram, know they use that company on the computer I bought which they could look up in their system as I bought it just a few days before I came down.

Well after waiting about an hour for an available mac genius, he looked at me like I was insane. He refused to even talk to me unless I had a full computer with me.

I never did bring it in because I had a perfect 24" display with not a single dead pixel that I was not going to risk. In the end I ended up eating the cost and buying a new stick of ram elsewhere.

Yes... This is what I'm currently facing as well. :-(

Honestly, I'm none too happy about it... But for $119... I think I'll just buy 2 more gig from transintl and call it a day. You couldnt pay me $119 to undo my pristine system, disconnect all my hard drives, put the old ram back in, lug the BEAST down to the apple store, lug it back up stairs, re-install the hdds and addl memory, and set it back up.

Its just not worth the $119 to do that ... Right well pisses me off... If I've got a senior apple tech confirming I need new ram, AND an associated case number... I shouls bloody well be able to walk into the APPLE STORE ans get just the memory exchanged..

 

[Kosh66]

I'm surprised that Apple supply machines with dodgy ram. .

Why? They buy any third-party RAM from any vendor. It can go bad just like any other RAM, and they don't test every machine they send out from the factory.