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Mac Mini G4 RAM upgrade issue

2

2784155

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Apr 8, 2017
11
2
Recently, I bought a 1 GB standard DDR ram stick for my old Mac mini G4, looking to re-purpose it. Everything seemed to be going fine when I began to install it, until I restarted the mac to find that only half of it (512 MB) is working. I found this very strange, considering the previous RAM stick was 512 MB by itself, and it worked just fine. I looked up a video guide to compare my results to, and it seems that I did everything in the installation process like I should have. I also re-installed 10.5.8 just to be sure it wasn't a software issue, but it didn't help.

Is my new RAM stick defective? Did I not install it correctly? Maybe I skipped a step?

What can I do to fix this issue? All responses are appericiated.
 
amagichnich said:
Your should at least tell us the specs of the RAM bar (written on the stickers). Does it have ECC? Is it registered RAM?
Click to expand...

Looking at the sticker, it says it's non ECC and LD Unbuffered, if that helps at all.
 
ziggy29 said:
You have one, 1 GB stick, and half of it is working? Just trying to make sure I understand.
Click to expand...
It certainly seems that way, but my 512 stick works just fine. Both sticks allow me 512 MB of ram even though one should give me double that.
 
Yes, you may have installed it incorrectly (not completely seated), or the memory could be defective, or could just be the wrong type.
Can you tell us what is on the memory stick's label:
Brand, memory type, exactly as is showing on that label. The most relevant would be the speed, which should be PC-2700 DDR333. PC-3200 would work, but would clock down to 333 MHz.
 
DeltaMac said:
Yes, you may have installed it incorrectly (not completely seated), or the memory could be defective, or could just be the wrong type.
Can you tell us what is on the memory stick's label:
Brand, memory type, exactly as is showing on that label. The most relevant would be the speed, which should be PC-2700 DDR333. PC-3200 would work, but would clock down to 333 MHz.
Click to expand...

All right, here's everything on the label:

Brand is Computer Bay
Memory type is PC3200, DDR 400MHz
Non-ECC
LD Unbuffered

Hopefully some of this helps clear things up
 
I guess you mean "KomputerBay" (Not that I am being pedantic about spelling, but... )

Appears to be right, and should work.
Reseat the RAM in the slot, do that a couple of times.
Reset PRAM. Do THAT a couple of times, too.

If you still have the original restore DVD (grey disk) that came with your mini, it would have the Hardware Test listed on the disk label. You can boot to that (insert the DVD, restart holding the letter D), and see what happens with an extended test.

Finally, if you only see 512MB (and the mini seems to work without problems), and the label says that it is 1GB size, then I suspect that the label is wrong. (KomputerBay might not be the most detail-oriented company in the world)
Call the KomputerBay support number, or the shop that sold you that RAM. You should be able to return it, no probs.
 
DeltaMac said:
I guess you mean "KomputerBay" (Not that I am being pedantic about spelling, but... )

Appears to be right, and should work.
Reseat the RAM in the slot, do that a couple of times.
Reset PRAM. Do THAT a couple of times, too.

Finally, if you only see 512MB (and the mini seems to work without problems), and the label says that it is 1GB size, then I suspect that the label is wrong. (KomputerBay might not be the most detail-oriented company in the world)
Call the KomputerBay support number, or the shop that sold you that RAM. You should be able to return it, no probs.
Click to expand...
All right, I'll see if doing those two will help this. Although, I haven't ever needed to reset a RAM slot on a Mac before. Is there a guide or set of instructions here or elsewhere on how do to that? PRAM, however, I'll be able to do myself just fine.
 
Not reset - reseat!
All that I mean by that is popping the stick out of the slot, and re-inserting. The RAM slot contacts are designed to be self-cleaning on each insertion, so that's why I would suggest doing that reseat a couple of times. Just takes a couple of seconds to do (other than the "fun" of getting the case open so you can get at the slot :D )
(Notice that I edited my last post, adding some info about the Hardware test, if you have that original DVD)
 
DeltaMac said:
Not reset - reseat!
All that I mean by that is popping the stick out of the slot, and re-inserting. The RAM slot contacts are designed to be self-cleaning on each insertion, so that's why I would suggest doing that reseat a couple of times. Just takes a couple of seconds to do (other than the "fun" of getting the case open so you can get at the slot :D )
(Notice that I edited my last post, adding some info about the Hardware test, if you have that original DVD)
Click to expand...

I tried reseating and resetting the PRAM several times, but nothing has changed so far. As far as I know, the reset DVD has also been gone for ages. Is it possible that a burnable ISO of it is on the Apple support website?
 
2784155 said:
I tried reseating and resetting the PRAM several times, but nothing has changed so far. As far as I know, the reset DVD has also been gone for ages. Is it possible that a burnable ISO of it is on the Apple support website?
Click to expand...
This is a hardware problem, so reinstalling the OS wouldn't help.

Have you noticed a performance difference with the new RAM? Sometimes the computer can use all of the RAM but it registers as lower.

The only other possibility (besides not seated correctly or incorrect RAM, both of which we have ruled out above) is that the RAM is simply bad. If nobody has any other suggestions, try new RAM.
 
HFTaylor12 said:
This is a hardware problem, so reinstalling the OS wouldn't help.

Have you noticed a performance difference with the new RAM? Sometimes the computer can use all of the RAM but it registers as lower.

The only other possibility (besides not seated correctly or incorrect RAM, both of which we have ruled out above) is that the RAM is simply bad. If nobody has any other suggestions, try new RAM.
Click to expand...
If there was a performance boost, it's a very slight one. Regardless, I'll see if I can get my hands on some new RAM and see if that helps. Thanks for responding
 
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2784155 said:
If there was a performance boost, it's a very slight one. Regardless, I'll see if I can get my hands on some new RAM and see if that helps. Thanks for responding
Click to expand...
You won't notice a difference unless you are doing stuff like web browsing. So try using the machine for a little bit.

Also, where does your username come from? :D
 
HFTaylor12 said:
You won't notice a difference unless you are doing stuff like web browsing. So try using the machine for a little bit.

Also, where does your username come from? :D
Click to expand...
To be honest, I just typed in a bunch of numbers at random, no real significance in them!
Also, I'm still curious about that restore DVD idea from earlier. Are there any copies of those on Apple's websites somewhere?
 
I looked for the Hardware Test for your G4 mini

I think this link will give you what you want. The image should be burned to a CD-R.
 
DeltaMac said:
I looked for the Hardware Test for your G4 mini

I think this link will give you what you want. The image should be burned to a CD-R.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the link, the new CD works just fine.
Now, when I went to go test with it, it came back with errors in the RAM. The error code it gave me was

"2STF/8/3:ATA-100 ata-6 - Master post/0/2048"

It also seems to recognize that my RAM stick is 1028 MB, and also recognizes that only 512 MB is useable. What should I do here?
 
2784155 said:
Thanks for the link, the new CD works just fine.
Now, when I went to go test with it, it came back with errors in the RAM. The error code it gave me was

"2STF/8/3:ATA-100 ata-6 - Master post/0/2048"

It also seems to recognize that my RAM stick is 1028 MB, and also recognizes that only 512 MB is useable. What should I do here?
Click to expand...
Try the test with your old stick of RAM, and if there's no errors, then the RAM you bought is bad. If there are errors with the old RAM, then it's probably a problem with the mini.
 
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HFTaylor12 said:
Try the test with your old stick of RAM, and if there's no errors, then the RAM you bought is bad. If there are errors with the old RAM, then it's probably a problem with the mini.
Click to expand...
I'm afraid you were right, the RAM was defective. I'm returning it, and buying a new stick. Thanks for all the help
 
2784155 said:
I'm afraid you were right, the RAM was defective. I'm returning it, and buying a new stick. Thanks for all the help
Click to expand...
Don't be afraid, be glad! Far better a defective RAM stick than a problem on the Mini's logic board itself. Apart from solving the problem and getting it to work entirely, this is the next best outcome!
 
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ziggy29 said:
Don't be afraid, be glad! Far better a defective RAM stick than a problem on the Mini's logic board itself. Apart from solving the problem and getting it to work entirely, this is the next best outcome!
Click to expand...
Out of curiousity, what would the symptoms of a bad logic board be? I don't think I have any, but I'd like to know just for future reference
 
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Just for info, I have purchased several different types of 'KomputerBay' RAM memory sticks frm Amazon. Often one associates cheap with 'nasty', but I've never found this to be the case with that brand of memory. Quite the opposite, they've always performed to spec, and I've been very satisfied. Never used with a Mac Mini, but with G4 iMacs that brand generally require to be 'paired' in the user accessible and so-called 'factory accessible' (innermost) slots.
 
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