2010 Polycarbonate MacBook stopped working with replacement RAM

[Kitty_]

Hi.

I've been using 2010 Polycarbonate MacBook as a work computer for a while. I just needed cheap machine with onbard LAN port and macOS since this computer was used only to access some web and configuring network equipment and I really prefer to work on this kind of things in a Mac environment.

I set up this machine around december last year with new 256 GB SATA SSD and additional 4 GB of RAM since originally machine came with 240GB HDD and 4GB of RAM on two 1066MHz DDR3 modules. Additional RAM was SK Hynix 4GB 1600MHz module and it worked fine when one of the original 2GB 1066MHz sticks was present in a system. I know it's connected to CPU and motherboard bus speed.

Yesterday, machine stopped booting with any 1600MHz RAM modules and when I say any modules I mean any modules. I stopped checking them after 4th or 6th memory stick. Tried Crucial, SK and Kingston sticks with no avail. Is there any way to troubleshoot this? Machine just beeps when any 1600MHz stick is present. It boots fine with 2GB of 1066MHz RAM.

 

[theMarble]

1280MHz RAM doesn't exist, are you sure it isn't PC-12800 also known as DDR3 1600, which is not compatible with the White MacBook.

 

[Kitty_]

It is compatible as long as you use one 1066MHz module to clock it down.
I just replaced motherboard and it's now working fine with 10GB of ram (two modules, one of which is 1600MHz 8GB stick)

 

[chrfr]

It is compatible as long as you use one 1066MHz module to clock it down.
I just replaced motherboard and it's now working fine with 10GB of ram (two modules, one of which is 1600MHz 8GB stick)

Those boards can't use 1600MHz RAM on their own– either you need to get the proper 1066MHz from a vendor who knows it's for that model computer (OWC- macsales.com is a vendor) otherwise, you need to keep one 1066 SODIMM in there to slow all the RAM down to a compliant speed.

 

[Kitty_]

Now, the setup looks like this and works flawlessly. It's hilarious I need this one 2GB stick for 8GB to work.

I accidentally upgraded CPU and GPU as well. I don't know if that's a RAM thing but when I've been using this Mac with old mobo it seemed to work much slower. Anyway. This problem is still strange and I suspect that something fried on old motherboard.

 

[Alpha Centauri]

dosdude patch? So activity monitor is showing actively using all this memory?

 

[theMarble]

Now, the setup looks like this and works flawlessly. It's hilarious I need this one 2GB stick for 8GB to work.

So you have a 2GB 1066MHz (PC3-8500) and a 8GB 1600MHz (PC3-12800)? Do you ever get beeps on startup?