[RESOLVED] Build problem: RMA the RAM or the MB?

OK, so I finally got all the parts together for my new build:

(relevant parts)
Gigabyte GA-P35C-DS3R
2 sticks 1GB Crucial Ballistix 12864AA1065 DDR2 1066mHz
Core 2 Quad 6600 2.4G

The problem I've run into is that I can't get into the BIOS menu. I can run the memory test off of the Ubuntu install disk, and it reports errors with both sticks of RAM both as singles and paired. So at this point it would seem like a memory issue, although the chances of getting a matched pair of bad sticks seems kind of low.

But it seems odd that I wouldn't be able to get into the BIOS at all, even when I stuck in an old stick of Kingston 667. The machine will attempt a boot (Ubuntu installer gives about 20 consecutive seg faults) no matter what RAM I have installed. I know that the Ballistix should run at a higher voltage than the MB default and that may stabilize them, but I have no idea how to tweak it if I can't get into the d@@n BIOS. That makes me think it might be a bad BIOS chip or memory controller.

Sooooo... something is going back to NewEgg. What do you think? The RAM or the MB or both?

did you read the manual? It might have a non-standard way of entering the bios. del key or ctrl-f1 or some such. also consider whether or not your keyboard is USB. You may need to go into the bios and turn on legacy usb support before you can actually use a usb device to enter the bios! A vicious circle i know. But if the system actually gets to where it starts to boot then there is probably no issue with the motherboard. And since you already tried the 1066 ram in it, it might have auto-programmed the bios to settings your 2nd ram chip doesn't support. Put the spare stick back in it, and reset the bios then try booting again.

Yes, I read the manual (I've also been building PCs for 15 years). :)

The keyboard is PS2 and works fine. The motherboard's splash screen comes up, and I can access a couple other functions like "select boot device" and "show verbose POST". The only thing that doesn't work is the BIOS setup function ([DEL] BTW). Hitting [DEL] on post hangs the system. I also reset the CMOS a couple of times switching back and forth between the 667 and 1066 sticks.

Did you try booting without any memory at all? You should be able to enter the BIOS without any memory on the MB. If you are still unable to get to the BIOS I would just return both, with neweggs return policy it makes it easy :)

X

if it hangs going into the bios at default settings, it must be a mb issue

i second that

Yep, it's the MB. I just reran the memory tests and noticed that all 3 sticks fail at the same offset. Coincidence? I think not.

Thanks for the input.

if possible I would actually return both the MB and RAM

as you've been in the business for 15 years, you probably know that when a MB has some defect it sometimes can create short circuits or something else, which could damage the components.

to rule this out you might try the Kingston 667 on another PC (if possible)

i second THAT. I bought an open-box motherboard once and it turns out it was a rebuilt rma'd board but they didnt tell me that. It fried two ram chips and two video cards. when it didn't post the first time, i tried a different video card. Then i noticed a burning smell. Burnt pins.