Unstable system after changing mobo and adding more RAM

Question

On my AMD system, I used to have an ASUS F2A85M_LE board with 2x8 GB Corsair CMZ16GX3M2A1866C9 RAM in it. Since it´s got only 2 RAM slots, and I wanted to add more memory, I upgraded to an A88XM-PLUS board, and added 2x4 GB Kingston KHX1600C903/4GX modules to it.

As the names tell, these are modules with different speeds. Also, the Corsair is dual, whereas the Kingston is single rank.

After a few days I had a blue screen, then after a few days again a random reset. The bluescreen told me "MEMORY MANAGEMENT" so I´d say there´s a high chance that this combination of modules could be the reason. FYI, the temperatures of the system are much lower now (I vaccuumcleaned the case when I changed the mobo) and the rest of the hardware is the exact same. What I did after having a bluescreen was updating the BIOS, and also - in the BIOS as well - forcing the RAM speed to that of the slowest modules, just in case and to see if it´d help. It didn´t. My other computer has an Intel CPU, and runs two kinds of memory with no issues at all: 4x4GB Corsair CMX8GX3M2A2000C9, which is the same name for all 4 modules in CPUID, but with two different speeds PC3-8500F and PC3-10700. Really strange, but that´s not my point - that comes here:

Is there anything you could advise me to do to fix the instability issues, apart from spending 144 EUR on another set of the same 2x8 GB Corsair memory, like maybe try shuffling the 4GB modules from the Intel machine in case these really are different modules and therefore maybe 2 of them could work fine over in the AMD machine, from which I´d then take the Kingstons and put over in the Intel Machine? I also thought about the old rule of not just throwing a mobo with a new chipset in a machine and keep running the same windows installation, but as far as I know this is less critical with Win 10, and doesn´t the Memory Management bluescreen say it all?

Thanks in advance!

Answer 1

1. Check that your ram is compatible with that MOBO. Often times specific RAM will error on some models. Kingston has a good checking tool:

http://www.ec.kingston.com/ecom/configurator_new/mfrmod.asp

2. Many BIOS have a RAM checking feature, so be sure to check that regardless of your OS.

3. Otherwise when using Windows create a Ubuntu live USB created with UUI: https://www.pendrivelinux.com/universal-usb-installer-easy-as-1-2-3/ then use the RAM checking feature on boot up from the USB.