iMac freezes after memory upgrade

[schatzie]

Hi,

I recently got the 2.4 20" iMac. Since a lot of people recommended Crucial for the memory upgrade. I went ahead and ordered 4GB from Crucial.

I had my iMac for about 1 week before I put in the new memory. I never noticed it freezes on me at all before I put in the memory. After I put in the memory, it intermittently freezes and there's nothing I can do except hold down the I/O button to turn it off. It would freeze for no reason, but I noticed it freezes often when I used Handbrake to rip a DVD or even when I'm in Numbers doing just usual stuff.

Finally today I put back the 1GB that the iMac came with, and so far, Handbrake is going OK.

Could the new Crucial memory be bad? Should I call them up and ask for a replacement or return? Has anyone had this problem?

Thanks for your help.

 

[sushi]

Could the new Crucial memory be bad?

Although rarely, yes, it can happen.

The fact that it worked with your original memory before and after is a strong indication that the Crucial memory is the issue.

Are you sure that the Crucial memory is the correct version for your iMac?

Did it seat correctly in the slots?

If you have two sticks, you could try one and see it if works. You might find out that only one stick is bad.

Crucial is a good company. Give them a call and explain what happened.

 

[futurase]

You have a textbook, classic case of bad memory. It seems that the Crucial memory is not all that great. it is more of a hit or miss. It either works or it doesn't. I am not advocating paying the high price Apple wants for their memory, but all memory is not the same.

Contact Crucial as they have a good record for customer service. More than likely a replacement will solve your problem.

I don't think it is necessarily a case of bad memory chips, but rather a case where it is not as technically compatible as advertised.

Norman Ross Jr.

 

[schatzie]

Thanks for your replies...

Sushi, Yes I believe I have the correct version. I used the memory configurator at Crucial. I also had no problem installing them. They do seat in firmly as the original memory did.

That is a good idea trying one at a time to see which is bad. I didn't think of this. I might give this a try or just send back both.

Futurase, I totally agree with you. I just wish I had the money for the memory from Apple. It is quite expensive. Since a lot of people recommended it, I was hoping Crucial would work. It's good to know they have good customer service. Hopefully it's just a bad stick I got.

Thanks guys!

 

[sushi]

Futurase, I totally agree with you. I just wish I had the money for the memory from Apple. It is quite expensive. Since a lot of people recommended it, I was hoping Crucial would work. It's good to know they have good customer service. Hopefully it's just a bad stick I got.

Unfortunately, Apple charges a lot for memory.

As was stated above, it looks like the Crucial memory is bad. More than likely they will replace it. Granted it is a bit of a hassle but still cheaper than getting Apple RAM.

Good luck!

 

[harry454]

yeah memory is bad or not seated correctly

 

[itommyboy]

** Check Seating - Swapp DIMM Slots **

I to just bought an iMac only a few days ago. I could not wait any longer for the much rumored soon to be released new iMacs so I picked up the 3.06 GHz with 2GB RAM, Nvidia 8800 GS and 500HDD. Holy Beast This Machine Is (yoda seal of approval)!

Nonetheless I always boost RAM on any/all systems I have so I ordered 4GB also from Crucial as I've always had good luck with them in the past - for Windows or Apple machines. Not to mention they are practically giving it away lately.

I to after installation of said RAM had to hard shutdown 3 times in about a matter of 3 to 4 hours of mostly casual use. I also noticed and tested my cable connection at about 1/4 of what my normal download speeds are. I did not have to hard down the last 3 days of me owning this bad boy, nor was anything ever slow from apps to the net.

As far as timing of my crashes one time I was running iTunes, iMovie, Firefox and importing photos from the wife's camera into iPhoto so there was a bit going that time (still not enough to tax this behemoth!). But the next two times it was normal e-mail and surfing the pron I mean newspapers and web lol. Everything would just freeze and often would display some jagged graphics on screen. Talk about nightmarish Windows flashbacks!

I simply pulled the RAM out and swapped dimms/slots. Call me silly but I've found more than once on Macs (with 3rd party RAM) simply switching dimms around can do the trick. It may be poor seating coincidence but this has fixed strange computer behavior after RAM upgrades for me about 4 times now. At the very least worth a test before you return it to Crucial; maybe you will get lucky as I seem to have done ( so far anyway going on about 2 hours now and all smooth as butter) and spare yourself anymore time without your upgrade.

For what it's worth don't worry if you conclude your RAM is in fact faulty as Crucial's customer service is top notch. Just call or email them and they will replace your RAM and ship it same way your original order was shipped. Chances are a new batch will be fine - RAM can indeed be finicky and go bad or circuit out - no matter who makes it. Good luck.

here is where I tell you I have an imac and a macbook pro and some ipdods and some iphones and stuff

 

[schatzie]

I tried checking the seating of the memory. I tried switching the two slots and I don't seem to get any luck.

I called up Crucial. And she told me it looks like their system recommends the PC2-5300. I know in the iMac manual and Crucial's memory configurator suggests PC2-5300. But she said when she checks, her system really recommends the PC2-5300 instead.

Would it be ok if I get the PC2-5300? Won't that be slower? For those of you who got it from Crucial, which one did you guys get?

Thanks!!!!

 

[itommyboy]

I tried checking the seating of the memory. I tried switching the two slots and I don't seem to get any luck.

I called up Crucial. And she told me it looks like their system recommends the PC2-5300. I know in the iMac manual and Crucial's memory configurator suggests PC2-5300. But she said when she checks, her system really recommends the PC2-5300 instead.

Would it be ok if I get the PC2-5300? Won't that be slower? For those of you who got it from Crucial, which one did you guys get?

Thanks!!!!

Hi Schatzie - I don't know who you spoke with but they were and are wrong. You do not want pc2-5300 it is indeed slower than what our generation of iMacs calls for.

The kind of memory you want for that iMac is 200PIN DDR2 SODIMM PC2-6400 - unbuffered even if you can (some companys list unbuffered many do not but most good RAM ie what you usually get from Crucial is in fact unbuffered). Here is a copy from my receipt of the RAM I just got from them (uses same RAM in my 3.06 Ghz 24" model as yours) : I ordered 2-2GB 200PIN DDR2 SODIMM UNBUFF PC2-6400 CL6

If you are buying from Crucial that is what you want right there verbatim.

On a similar note I'm bummed to report that I had to hard reset earlier again today. It was before work and I was simply looking at email and reading an online newspaper. Had me stewed all day long!

This being said I'm home now and putting off going back to my factory 2GBs but feel it is indeed inevitable any hour now. Although I still believe in Crucial I think I'll bend over and crawl back to for the RAM on this bad boy. It's just to much of a beast to not be topped off the way it was meant to be.

Oh how I wish I would have spent the extra dough and hour fiddling at my store while they installed and tested the Apple Certified RAM.

Do you think if I bring my iMac back to the store with factory RAM back in it they will still do the swap out and bump up to 4GB for $150 or do you think I'll have to eat $300?

 

[schatzie]

Hi Schatzie - I don't know who you spoke with but they were and are wrong. You do not want pc2-5300 it is indeed slower than what our generation of iMacs calls for.

The kind of memory you want for that iMac is 200PIN DDR2 SODIMM PC2-6400 - unbuffered even if you can (some companys list unbuffered many do not but most good RAM ie what you usually get from Crucial is in fact unbuffered). Here is a copy from my receipt of the RAM I just got from them (uses same RAM in my 3.06 Ghz 24" model as yours) : I ordered 2-2GB 200PIN DDR2 SODIMM UNBUFF PC2-6400 CL6

If you are buying from Crucial that is what you want right there verbatim.

On a similar note I'm bummed to report that I had to hard reset earlier again today. It was before work and I was simply looking at email and reading an online newspaper. Had me stewed all day long!

This being said I'm home now and putting off going back to my factory 2GBs but feel it is indeed inevitable any hour now. Although I still believe in Crucial I think I'll bend over and crawl back to for the RAM on this bad boy. It's just to much of a beast to not be topped off the way it was meant to be.

Oh how I wish I would have spent the extra dough and hour fiddling at my store while they installed and tested the Apple Certified RAM.

Do you think if I bring my iMac back to the store with factory RAM back in it they will still do the swap out and bump up to 4GB for $150 or do you think I'll have to eat $300?

Yeah I was going to exchange them. But when I heard her said that I told I'll just return them. I was afraid she doesn't know what's talking about and send me the wrong ones. So I got the RMA and sending them back for a refund tomorrow.

It's worth a try at the Apple store. The one close to me is generally pretty nice. I'll try to do the same and see if they'll let me. I did get this as a Valentine present so I wasn't there when it was purchased to know to upgrade it. And my wife who bought it doesn't know much about computers.
Hopefully, they're nice enough to let me do it

Thanks so much for your replies.

 

[schatzie]

iTommyBoy,

Have you looked at this one? The reviews look positive, and it's cheaper than $300.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductReview.aspx?Item=N82E16820134671

 

[itommyboy]

iTommyBoy,

Have you looked at this one? The reviews look positive, and it's cheaper than $300.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductReview.aspx?Item=N82E16820134671

Yes I have looked at that RAM both online and at a local outlet. I have to say although considered by many as "value" RAM I've never had problems with Kingston. Back when I was building "to order" custom pc's they were virtually all I would put in since they are lower priced but still decent. Although I know some techs who would not touch Kingston with a 10 foot pole, I personally would have no problem dropping Kingston into any kind of computer.

However our local Best Buy has the Corsair PC6400 Gaming Memory not only on sale right now but in stock.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage...oduct&id=1200703058546#tabbed-customerreviews

Later today I'm going to head over and pick up 2 x 2GB sticks of that which will set me back just about $150 - comparable to the "in Apple store" swap out of the stock 2 GB to 4 GB. I'm a huge Corsair fanboy and pretty excited to see I don't have to wait out getting this new beast up to "speed" with 4 GB of good RAM any longer. This was the RAM I was going to originally buy and put in but they were out of stock. As for Crucial I'll still count on them if/when needed, but this set is going back for a refund. I'll post late(r) tonight my initial results and thoughts on the Corsair upgrade.

 

[itommyboy]

FYI for any who may care to know. I picked up 2 x 2 GB PC 6400 Corsair Gaming Grade RAM today. I've had it in for about 4 hours or so now and I'm throwing everything I can at this iMac and it's running smooth as silk. Not any freezing or hard shutdowns of any kind. I now see how this 24" 3.06 GHz beast is supposed to run. It's blowing me away all over again.

 

[futurase]

Guys,
What we need to keep in the back of our mind the hundreds and hundreds and thousands and thousands who upgrade the ram in their machine and it just works do not get on here mostly and say, "I just put ***** brand ram in and it works fine." They put it in and never think about it again. it just worked.

We hear about the problem cases.

I wonder what the problem rate is with Crucial Ram as far as problems go. I doubt for every piece they sell 10 out of 100 come back.

I plan on maxing out my machine when I buy the "soon" coming iMac update. I'll probably use Crucial as if there is a problem they do stand behind it.

Just thought I through this out as it is easy to get the blinders on when you frequent the forums a lot.

Norman Ross Jr.

 

[itommyboy]

Guys,
What we need to keep in the back of our mind the hundreds and hundreds and thousands and thousands who upgrade the ram in their machine and it just works do not get on here mostly and say, "I just put ***** brand ram in and it works fine." They put it in and never think about it again. it just worked.

We hear about the problem cases.

I wonder what the problem rate is with Crucial Ram as far as problems go. I doubt for every piece they sell 10 out of 100 come back.

I plan on maxing out my machine when I buy the "soon" coming iMac update. I'll probably use Crucial as if there is a problem they do stand behind it.

Just thought I through this out as it is easy to get the blinders on when you frequent the forums a lot.

Norman Ross Jr.

All very well said Norman and I agree with you 100%. I think I kept or at least tried to keep my posts as brand name neutral as possible. As I mentioned above RAM is like anything - sometimes you just get a lemon - no matter who makes it.

Nonetheless people like to hear what you did to resolve any computer issue you forum posted about, including different manufacturers tried/used to remedy said issue. I've used Crucial many, many times and will use them again in the future. Just so happens this time around I got a bad batch from them, and the best RAM I could find in town today was Corsair (as I did not want to wait any longer to get my baby running full bore). Again thankfully Crucial is a reputable company and I'm sure getting a timely full return/refund from them will not prove to be an issue.

You can thank me now Norman because I swear on the holy grail that since I finally threw down for this 3.06GHz iMac the new units are sure to arrive Tuesday!

 

[futurase]

The only thing that will guarantee that a new iMac comes out on Tuesday is if I go buy a new one Monday. You and I have something in common.

Yes, I agree totally that even though this thread started about about Crucial Ram it shows that Crucial stands behind their product and that is 2/3's of the battle anyway.

Companies that stand behind products are few and far between.

Norman Ross Jr.

 

[Gregintosh]

I just drop in whatever I find on NewEgg.

I myself am a computer tech (A+ certified, MCP, and 3 years of experience) and I have never been able to detect a major performance difference between different types of RAM.

The quantity matters much more than quality -- you'll see a difference between 512MB and 1GB, 1GB and 2GB, and to some (lesser) degree 2GB to 4GB (if you multitask A LOT or work with large files). But you won't really see a difference between 800Mhz, 1067Mhz, etc. in day to day computing.

I think that stuff only matters if you are running benchmarks, it's all academic. In practicality whether something takes 15 seconds to load or 14 seconds (7% difference "technically"), you will not notice the difference (without a stop watch and good reflexes).

Perhaps the only thing that might make a difference to some is head spreaders (whether the RAM has them or not), since that could help with your overall cooling, but I don't think it matters much for an iMac.

Back to the original post, if you put the new RAM in and thats when the problem occurred, chances are its the new RAM. If you can run a few tests (like running one chip at a time, then reverting back to your old RAM) and narrow it down to it being the new RAM, just try a different brand or even get these exchanged for new ones.

RAM can be defective, good RAM can also go bad (I've seen scenarios of both in my professional experience, of RAM being bad out of the box and RAM going bad in computers). Your experience is not uncommon and it doesn't necessarily mean that company sucks or is not compatible with Apple.

The reason you will see many people bash a certain brand is because they've had a bad experience with it, but you will also see many people say good things about the same brand. Remember, no one ever complaints if everything goes well and with the internet being able to zero in on individual complaints, the system is rigged so that EVERY complaint is heard if you search for it.

So no need to freak out, just exchange your sticks if they are defective for new ones (same brand or another brand if it helps you sleep better at night,) and try again.

I wouldn't worry unless the problem was persistent with every type of RAM you put in there, including the original sticks - which would indicate bad RAM slots and thus a bad computer.

 

[schatzie]

FYI for any who may care to know. I picked up 2 x 2 GB PC 6400 Corsair Gaming Grade RAM today. I've had it in for about 4 hours or so now and I'm throwing everything I can at this iMac and it's running smooth as silk. Not any freezing or hard shutdowns of any kind. I now see how this 24" 3.06 GHz beast is supposed to run. It's blowing me away all over again.

Thanks for the info I might give that a try.