Extra memory might be leading to issues.
Extra memory might be leading to issues.
Hey there, so I had 16 gigabytes of Thermaltake RAM installed in my PC. It was placed correctly in the slots. Then today another 16 gigabytes arrived—exactly the same setup, same speeds and capacity—bringing the total to 32 gigabytes. Now everything keeps crashing, whether it's games or other programs. For example, Red Dead Redemption 2, Forza Horizon 5, F1 2020, and even Blender and Substance Painter are all affected. The system itself stays stable when I run just 16 gigabytes. What should I do? My current specs are an AMD Ryzen 5 3600, Gigabyte B450M DS3H, and the new RAM is Thermaltake Toughram Z One 3200Mhz CL16. I've tried a few things: setting the frequency to 2800 or 3000 MHz, but changing it manually stops the PC from starting. I also moved my old sticks to one side and the new ones to the other, following the usual order, which seemed to help. Games are now stable, but Blender and Substance Painter still crash on startup. What should I do next? TL;DR—32 gigabytes is fine, but 16 gigabytes is what's causing all the issues. Need some help!
RAM kits are designed to operate at the advertised speed using the standard setup with two sticks. Adding another pair can sometimes trigger issues, though it often resolves on its own. It’s important to figure out if the problem lies with a faulty stick in the new set or if errors arise from combining both kits and utilizing all four DIMM slots. Since errors persist even with default settings, a likely cause is defective RAM sticks. Other possibilities include damaged DIMM slots, incorrect CPU mounting, or a failing CPU. The best first step is to download memtest86 and create a bootable USB drive. Install only the new RAM in slots 1 and 3, letting memtest86 complete all four passes. If errors appear, it confirms a bad RAM stick. You can also run a test on your existing kit for verification.
The RAM I currently have consists of the ones the seller tested—those before were faulty, so they replaced them and now the new ones are functioning properly. I performed a Windows Memory Diagnostic on all four sticks, which detected a hardware issue. After installing the two new sticks, no errors appeared. Running the old sticks again showed no problems. Updating the BIOS and installing chipset drivers on my motherboard finally resolved the issue, allowing it to run at 2666MHz. However, apps and games still crash. I am now using memtest86.
They differ significantly since they aren't packaged as a set of four, so matching isn't guaranteed. Ryzen tends to be particular about RAM compatibility. It's better to return the defective kit to the seller, sell your existing RAM, and purchase a new 2x16GB unit.