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NinjaStar64

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Sep 17, 2018
8
0
Ireland
I have 8x8gb sticks that are the same brand and 4x8gb sticks that are different brand. I can mix them in a config of 8 dimms but not 12. 12 gives me the orange blinking light. Ive tried changing ram around in various slots. Am i missing something?
1648506387412.png
 

andrewv69

macrumors member
Aug 25, 2021
36
15
Outer Space
i seem to remember hearing that ram sticks have to all match to work, i don't know if that's true for windows pcs but that seems to be the case here
 

flowrider

macrumors 604
Nov 23, 2012
7,321
3,003
I have all twelve slots filled with 8GB dimms. Eleven are Hynix brand and one is Micron (in slot 1). Working fine.

Looks to be the same two brands you are struggling with.

My guess - One stick is bad.
TinyGrab Screen Shot 4-3-22, 11.55.24 AM.png


Lou
 
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NinjaStar64

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Sep 17, 2018
8
0
Ireland
I have all twelve slots filled with 8GB dimms. Eleven are Hynix brand and one is Micron (in slot 1). Working fine.

Looks to be the same two brands you are struggling with.

My guess - One stick is bad.
View attachment 1985941

Lou
I'm wondering is there some special channel combination to get the 12 to work. All 12 work in any 8 combination. This rules out any possible bad sticks?
 

NinjaStar64

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Sep 17, 2018
8
0
Ireland
So strange..I tried getting 6 sticks to work and i cant, in any combo. Even with 6 that are the same brand. All are 8gb sticks. I am wondering if its the CPU upgrade. I upgraded to a Xeon w-3245 QS CPU 16 core.
 

flowrider

macrumors 604
Nov 23, 2012
7,321
3,003
^^^^I also replaced my CPU with a W-3245 last September. No issues with mine. But your issue could be CPU related. Is it always the same channels that are at fault. I upgraded the CPUs in my old 5,1 cMP and one of them had a bad RAM channel.

Lou
 
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cobra521

macrumors 6502
Dec 14, 2016
393
136
FL
Ninja,

Here's a thread dealing with ES & QS CPU chips: https://www.reddit.com/r/homelab/comments/5jgru3
Not necessarily gospel, but it is in line with some of the other comments I've noticed on the web about non-tray chips. I hope you haven't got a defective chip, but there seems to be a possibility that it may be the CPU that's causing the behavior you describe.

Tom
 
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NinjaStar64

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Sep 17, 2018
8
0
Ireland
Ninja,

Here's a thread dealing with ES & QS CPU chips: https://www.reddit.com/r/homelab/comments/5jgru3
Not necessarily gospel, but it is in line with some of the other comments I've noticed on the web about non-tray chips. I hope you haven't got a defective chip, but there seems to be a possibility that it may be the CPU that's causing the behavior you describe.

Tom
Good info. Thank you. It looks like the CPU could be the culprit.
 

NinjaStar64

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Sep 17, 2018
8
0
Ireland
Ninja,

One way to tell would be to put the original CPU back in. A real pain, I know, but could be illuminating.

Tom
I'm thinking about it..everything seems to be OK apart from the ram situation. I have 64gb working which is loads for me. Wondering if I'd be better off with the 8 core cpu with 96gb or 112gb (I have 2x16gb 2666) or stay with what I have until I get a "proper" cpu.
 

NinjaStar64

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Sep 17, 2018
8
0
Ireland
So I managed to snag an official apple xeon 16 core cpu. Installed it and now the machine sees the 96gb of ram. Happy out :) the qs cpu was the issue.
 

jarkempp

macrumors newbie
Mar 29, 2023
2
0
I found this thread after trying to install 16-core QS, and ran into orange blinking light. I was ready to give up with QS but as I switched back to original 8-core, light was still blinking. After sitting a while without power, machine booted ok. Just to freeze after few minutes and back to orange blinking.

I removed the processor and it turned out there was a small fragment of dried thermal paste in the socket. Cleaned it with IPA and super soft toothbrush. And cleaned the QS with IPA as well. Reseated the processor and now it is running flawlessly. Make sure your contacts are clean!
 
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