E627 RAM Slot 2 Not Working

rcbanni
rcbanni Member Posts: 11 New User
edited November 2023 in 2018 Archives
I tried to install a second 2 gb RAM card in slot 2. The BIOS & Windows does NOT recognize the added RAM. Tried cleaning & re-seating the card as well as swapping it out to Slot 1...it's good RAM, but NOT recognized. Also went into MSCONFIG and unchecked the Maximum Memory box in the advanced boot options...still no good. Has anybody run into this and found a remedy? Or, should I accept defeat that the RAM slot is bad? I also tried backing up to a previous BIOS (1.09) from the current (1.11).  

Answers

  • IVAN_PC
    IVAN_PC ACE Posts: 7,488 Pathfinder
    Hi.

    Can you indicate the specific model?

    Regards.

    ☑️ 𝑺𝒊 𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒂 𝒆𝒔 "𝒍𝒂 𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒑𝒖𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒂", 𝒉𝒂𝒛 𝒄𝒍𝒊𝒄 𝒆𝒏 "𝑨𝒄𝒆𝒑𝒕𝒂𝒓 𝒍𝒂 𝒔𝒐𝒍𝒖𝒄𝒊ó𝒏" 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒂 𝒂𝒚𝒖𝒅𝒂𝒓 𝒂 𝒐𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒔 𝒂 𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒓𝒍𝒂.
    ☑️ 𝑬𝒍 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒐 𝑨𝑪𝑬𝑹 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒖𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝒕𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒆 𝒖𝒏 𝒂𝒎𝒃𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒆 𝒂𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒅𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒅𝒐𝒏𝒅𝒆 𝒕𝒐𝒅𝒐 𝒆𝒍 𝒎𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒐 𝒆𝒔 𝒃𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒗𝒆𝒏𝒊𝒅𝒐.
  • rcbanni
    rcbanni Member Posts: 11 New User
    It is an eMachines E627 Laptop. It is the lesser of the E627 family and has NO webcam. It came with Windows 7 Ultimate 32 bit installed  with 2 gb of RAM in Slot 1 and expandable to 4 gb RAM total by another 2 gb RAM card in Slot 2.  
  • JackE
    JackE ACE Posts: 44,330 Trailblazer
    First let's test the new 2GB module. Remove old 2GB RAM from slot 1. Then insert new 2GB RAM in slot 1.  Nothing in slot 2 yet. Does the machine work OK with new 2GB RAM in slot 1? Jack E/NJ

    Jack E/NJ

  • rcbanni
    rcbanni Member Posts: 11 New User
    I have 3 separate and identical 2 gb cards. ALL work alone in Slot 1, so they are all good. Add a second in Slot 2, NOT recognized. Tried re-seating into Slot 2, cleaned, compressed air...nothing. Slot 2 appears to be DOA.
  • JackE
    JackE ACE Posts: 44,330 Trailblazer
    Now does Slot2 work by itself, meaning Slot1 is empty?  Jack E/NJ

    Jack E/NJ

  • rcbanni
    rcbanni Member Posts: 11 New User
    No, will not even boot.
  • JackE
    JackE ACE Posts: 44,330 Trailblazer
    OK. Install modules in both slots. Boot the machine. Does Device Manager manager show any red or yellow warnings? If none, open the computer folder. Right click on the 32 or 64-bit PC entry. Scan for hardware changes. Report back with results. Jack E/NJ

    Jack E/NJ

  • rcbanni
    rcbanni Member Posts: 11 New User
    Nothing in the Device Manager. Did a Scan For Hardware Changes...still nothing.
  • JackE
    JackE ACE Posts: 44,330 Trailblazer
    OK. Shut the machine down again. Boot it back up with both modules and enter the BIOS menu again. Can you take a screenshot of the Info tab? Then press F9 to load system defaults. Then F10 to save settings and exit. Jack E/NJ

    Jack E/NJ

  • rcbanni
    rcbanni Member Posts: 11 New User
    Here ya go......


  • JackE
    JackE ACE Posts: 44,330 Trailblazer
    Go to crucial dot com with both modules installed. Run their scanner tool on your system. What does it find? Jack E/NJ

    Jack E/NJ

  • rcbanni
    rcbanni Member Posts: 11 New User
    edited November 2018
    Here ya go.... Both 2gb RAM cards ARE Crucial cards as well.
  • JackE
    JackE ACE Posts: 44,330 Trailblazer
    Yeah, looking more like a dead slot. At this point, the only other possible software/firmware fix is a bit risky. But if you're adventuresome you may want to try to set and save a BIOS supervisor password. Then go back into the BIOS menu to disable secure boot. Then go back into the BIOS again to see if the 2nd module is finally recognized. Beware though, the M and K keys on some keyboards have reportedly not registered in the BIOS menu password entry for some reason but work fine outside the BIOS menu.  So you could get locked out of the BIOS menu unless the M & K keys are not used. Jack E/NJ

    Jack E/NJ

  • rcbanni
    rcbanni Member Posts: 11 New User
    I've been pretty savvy with computers for years along with building & upgrading over the years. I have NEVER seen this little anomaly other than the empty slot was dirty and required a light cleaning. But a dead slot...this is a first. Is it worth the effort to replace the motherboard in the E627 for $40-$60? Is the CPU upgradable from the installed AMD TL-20 1.6ghz that the current BIOS will recognize? If I'm gonna replace the board, might as well go big and give the old girl a boost in performance with a little faster CPU and the memory boost to 4gb.
  • JackE
    JackE ACE Posts: 44,330 Trailblazer
    Well, if you're contemplating that, you might want to first try a solder reflow. Put the mainboard on a cookie sheet and bake it for 15mins in a toaster oven preheated to 425*F.

    The CPU in there now is a 15watter. There are faster CPUs that'll fit the socket but draw more power that could fry the mainboard due to higher current draw. Probably not worth getting anything more than a plain vanilla mainboard with the standard CPU if the solder reflow doesn't pan out.

     Jack E/NJ

    Jack E/NJ

  • rcbanni
    rcbanni Member Posts: 11 New User
    Fair enough and thanks for the help.  ;)
  • JackE
    JackE ACE Posts: 44,330 Trailblazer
    Not sure if your slot1 is double-sided. But it *might* accept and recognize a single 4GB DDR2L sodimm.

    However, if you just wanna give that old machine more zip as is, replacing the even olderToshiba HDD with an SSD will definitely give you the biggest bang for the buck. 2.5" SSD prices have dropped considerably in the past year. More bang from them than adding 2GB more RAM or a faster CPU. Jack E/NJ   

    Jack E/NJ