Mac G5 Ram Issues PLEASE HELP !

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Enforcer1969

Registered
Hi
First Thing, im new to these forums so Hi ;)
I have a Mac G5 Dual 2.0ghz
Running 3GB Ram 6 x 512 ddr pc 3200 400mhz
i use it for music production, So as you can imagine i need plenty of ram to run some of the high end plugins, So i purchased 2 x 1GB Pc3200 400mhz Ram,
Pushing up my total ram to 5GB, Plenty for what i need.:rolleyes:
So i installed the ram in the 2 outside slots(the only 2 left) the mac booted up but wouldnt recognise the new ram,( thought i would save a few pound and went for the extra value ram:eek:) So i thought i would move the other ram up a slot and put the new ram in the first slot instead of the last one, it still wouldnt recognise the new ram,So i turn it off took out the ram, put the old ram back in its original slots, Turn the mac back on,......Nothing but a white light flashing on the monitor, & the fans going mad !, After trying each set of ram in pairs one at a time i managed to get one set to work in the first slot, 1 gb (2x512) once!:mad: Now i cant get anything to boot this mac up! the ram worked before, so why not now. Ive only been using a mac for about 2 years, and before that i built pcs for a living, & i know my way round pcs fine ,:( but this has really got me.Please Please Please. if someone can help i would be very grateful, i need to get some important work finished.
Best Regards.
 
It sounds like you have the right idea on how the RAM is supposed to be installed in pairs in opposite slots. The best you can do is start with a known good pair and see if you can that pair to work and build it up until it works. But when the logic boards fail on those it exactly the symptoms you are describing so I would not be surprised if the board went out. If all else fails, try pulling the 3.6v battery and reset the SMU once then try a pair of RAM. You might want to check that the battery is reading around 3.6v once you got it out.
 
Thanks for the replie, But how do i check the battery is reading 3.6v when i get it out?
And also how can i check that it is the logic board??, & if it is how much am i looking at to replace it??, sorry for all the questions but like i said i am a novice with Mac:eek:

Many Thanks.
 
Enforcer1969 said:
Ive only been using a mac for about 2 years, and before that i built pcs for a living, & i know my way round pcs fine ,
Click to expand...

Enforcer1969 said:
Thanks for the replie, But how do i check the battery is reading 3.6v when i get it out?
And also how can i check that it is the logic board??, & if it is how much am i looking at to replace it??, sorry for all the questions but like i said i am a novice with Mac:eek:
Click to expand...

If you've built PCs for a living you should have/know what a muti-meter is, right?

If you want to know that it is a logic board for sure you are going to need to strip the machine down to minimal RAM/PSU/processors and see if the machine will POST (You'll get a boot chime, leave sound plugged into board). Otherwise you can try reseating the processors and see if that makes a difference. Some of the G5s will run on one processor so you may want to swap the top processor for the bottom one and see if it starts. If it does start that way, the fans will kick in and stay in high gear due to the fact that the machine hasn't been calibrated that way.

If it needs a logic board, a ruff estimate without knowing exact specs is about $1,000.
 
Many thanks for the quick reply, Done all i can, its now in the Hands of the Mac guy, for a full checkup:( will let you know the outcome, many thanks.
 
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