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kremmit · Dec 26, 2004, 09:00 PM

Hi,

My dad has a Powermac G5 with (2) 256MB modules of ram in it that came from Apple with the machine. He then put some other ram in it from OWC, but the machine does not start with it. I called OWC, and they say their ram can't be used with Apple's ram at the same time.

Does anyone know of some ram that I can buy that will work with the stock Apple ram? I need to get 2 more 256MB (since they are installed in pairs) for a total of 1 GB.

Thanks!

jasonsRX7 · Dec 26, 2004, 10:22 PM

Originally posted by kremmit:
Hi,

My dad has a Powermac G5 with (2) 256MB modules of ram in it that came from Apple with the machine. He then put some other ram in it from OWC, but the machine does not start with it. I called OWC, and they say their ram can't be used with Apple's ram at the same time.

Does anyone know of some ram that I can buy that will work with the stock Apple ram? I need to get 2 more 256MB (since they are installed in pairs) for a total of 1 GB.

Thanks!

I used two Crucial 512mbs along with the stock Apple ram for a while without problems, before replacing the Apple ram with two more Crucial modules. I pretty much only use Crucial.

awcopus · Dec 26, 2004, 11:36 PM

What OWC is telling you is absolutely insane.

Like jasonsRX7 and many others here, I suggest not going cheap when you go for RAM. Crucial.com is extremely reliable. I have also had excellent results with ramjet.com.

OWC has a return policy that I recommend you take advantage of promptly.

E's Lil Theorem · Dec 27, 2004, 01:10 AM

Originally posted by jasonsRX7:
I used two Crucial 512mbs along with the stock Apple ram for a while without problems.... I pretty much only use Crucial.

This is what I did.

As awcopus mentioned, can't say enough about Crucial and their reliability.

robo74 · Dec 27, 2004, 12:58 PM

I however feel differently. For the last several years, I have purchased nothing but OWC ram for my macs. The latest being 2 512 sticks to add to the 256 I had in my new dual 1.8 rev b. I installed the ram and booted it up without any issues. The one thing I would suggest to you is perhaps switching slots. Its worth a try. OWC ram has always been fully compatable with any Apple ram I have ever owned.

Rob

kremmit · Dec 27, 2004, 02:19 PM

OWC had us troubleshoot it and try lots of different things before they admitted it doesn't work with Apple ram. They then refunded us since they told us they didn't disclose that to people.

At the same time, my local Apple store says we should not put their ram into the G5 with theirs, and they refuse to install it for us.

I guess I will give Crucial a shot - anyone have good places to buy crucial for not too much?

Thanks!

UnixMac · Dec 27, 2004, 02:30 PM

I sold my apple 2X256's and replaced it all with Crucial 512X8... Rock solid, and good price.

jasonsRX7 · Dec 27, 2004, 02:38 PM

Originally posted by kremmit:
I guess I will give Crucial a shot - anyone have good places to buy crucial for not too much?

I have purchased Crucial ram from Newegg and Crucial directly, and both were good experiences. If you don't already have an account with Newegg, this is a good chance for you to establish one. Newegg is a fantastic company to deal with. I've ordered tens of thousands of dollars worth from them. They're a prime example of how online stores should be.

kremmit · Dec 27, 2004, 03:54 PM

I have a newegg account. Only problem is I can't change my email address with them! :-(

Big Mac · Dec 28, 2004, 12:40 AM

I always thought OWC was more than incompetent, and if they're giving this kind of advice it confirms that they are crooked as well. As long as you buy the correct RAM for your computer, ANY brand of RAM will work with any other brand of RAM. Shame on OWC if this account is accurate.

Al G · Dec 28, 2004, 02:36 PM

There must be a misunderstanding.

How many people remove Apple RAM when adding third party RAM (on the 8-slot PMs anyway)?

If it were true that OWC RAM doesn't work with Apple RAM then that would mean about 97% of all RAM sold by OWC wouldn't work. I don't think so.

(And just for the record, I have mixed OWC RAM in PowerMac G5s with three different kinds of "Apple" stock RAM. No problems.)

kremmit · Dec 28, 2004, 04:10 PM

There is no misunderstanding. They were very clear to me each of the times I called. If anyone wants to see for themselves, call them, get transferred to tech support, and ask point blank: "Can I use your RAM mixed with Apple's RAM in PM G5?" Afterall, I tried it with 2 different pairs of their RAM, before calling and hearing this for myself. I was just as shocked as all of you.

I decided to just buy Apple RAM, since Crucial prices are close to Apple's prices on newegg.com

Thanks again!

jasonsRX7 · Dec 28, 2004, 05:02 PM

Originally posted by kremmit:
I decided to just buy Apple RAM, since Crucial prices are close to Apple's prices on newegg.com

You might want to double check that. Apple charges $150 for two 256mb modules (a total of 512mb). Newegg has Crucial 256mb modules for $39.23 each, a total of $78.46 for 512mb. That's about half price. You could put a GB of Crucial ram in your G5 for what 512mb of Apple ram would cost.

BTW, the "Apple" ram that came with my G5 is manufactured by Micron, who owns Crucial. All Crucial ram is micron ram.

OWCLarry · Dec 28, 2004, 06:33 PM

This post completely baffles me. Our memory works just fine with existing Apple spec memory. Something has definitely been misunderstood.

Now - if we sell a higher speed memory module, all memory must be of that speed or faster for memory to operate at the speed. It will work with slower memory, but all memory installed operates at the speed of the 'weakest link'.

When it comes to pairs - you can't mix within a pair bank, but there is no issue beyond that, again, as long as Apple spec.

Feel free to e-mail me [email protected] if you have any questions on this. Your posting is not the case and I'd be happy to hear from you and understand how this understanding occured.

Originally posted by kremmit:
Hi,

My dad has a Powermac G5 with (2) 256MB modules of ram in it that came from Apple with the machine. He then put some other ram in it from OWC, but the machine does not start with it. I called OWC, and they say their ram can't be used with Apple's ram at the same time.

Does anyone know of some ram that I can buy that will work with the stock Apple ram? I need to get 2 more 256MB (since they are installed in pairs) for a total of 1 GB.

Thanks!

deedar · Dec 29, 2004, 04:56 PM

Originally posted by jasonsRX7:
You might want to double check that. Apple charges $150 for two 256mb modules (a total of 512mb). Newegg has Crucial 256mb modules for $39.23 each, a total of $78.46 for 512mb. That's about half price. You could put a GB of Crucial ram in your G5 for what 512mb of Apple ram would cost.

BTW, the "Apple" ram that came with my G5 is manufactured by Micron, who owns Crucial. All Crucial ram is micron ram.

Sorry to butt in here, but would I use this RAM on my 1.8DP?:

ram?

It's a different p/n (but cheaper) than the one given by Crucial at their website (Crucial Web Part Number: CT352879, New Egg p/n CT6464Z40B).

jasonsRX7 · Dec 29, 2004, 05:23 PM

Originally posted by deedar:
Sorry to butt in here, but would I use this RAM on my 1.8DP?:

That's what I would buy. I checked the specs on Crucial's site for each part number, and they're the same.

deedar · Dec 29, 2004, 06:57 PM

Originally posted by jasonsRX7:
That's what I would buy. I checked the specs on Crucial's site for each part number, and they're the same.

Thnx.