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Nassifer · Apr 23, 2012, 08:15 AM

Hello all, I have a question about memory upgrade on my 13" MacBook. I currently have 4 GB of memory, I did an upgrade to 8 GB and the system went crazy, I had more lockups, freezes "Black Screens of Death" than I EVER did before, so I removed the memory and put back in the original 4 GB and now seems fine, then I started looking around and I found out that the MacBook (Late 2009) model only supported a max of 4 GB memory, now I was told by the Geeks at Apple Store I was fine, and that all would be good. Has anyone else had this problem or can shed some light on my experience. I went to Crucial memory website which I found out is the recommended memory for mac and they say that I should have 8 GB for best performance, what is your experience please advise.

Thanks

P · Apr 23, 2012, 09:43 AM

Sounds like you got a bad stick of RAM. That is unfortunately something that happens on occasion, and the right response is to run a RAM tester to confirm, but I would try just getting an RMA from your supplier to get replacement RAM.

angelmb · Apr 23, 2012, 09:57 AM

Couldn't you troubleshot the RAM mixing the 2 GB and 4 GB sticks? Wondering about it, not sure if the RAM sticks should be identical or not.

Which version of OS X are you running there.?

There was a firmware released on December 2009 which brought 8 GB RAM support to the Late'08 MacBook and MacBook Pros. I understand it DOESN'T NOT apply here. Your Macbook, being a MacBook 6,1 (the model identifier for a Late 2009 MacBook), should not need such an update in order to support 8 GB RAM but it did wonders to my MBP Late2008.

Needless to say, make sure your RAM is not faulty before dealing with firmware updates.

racgordon · Apr 23, 2012, 10:41 AM

I would google your machine model number. The 13" Macbook Pro is (in my experience) a bit finicky. ANd it is important to know what you have. Some Core2 motherboards do take 8MB and some do not, and that is a factor of the chipset.

The cheap and dirty way to find out is to see if it will work with one of the new 4GB DIMMS and one of the Old 2GB DIMMS. If it does you have one bad DIMM, off it does not then you can surmise that your machine does not support over 4MB memory.

The other painful thing is that Macbook Pro's are finicky with memory, so you need to check that your memory is verified to work with your model Macbook.

The easy, but slightly more expensive route is to deal with OWC. You pay a premium for their stuff (not a large premium) and in exchange you can be sure that it will work and they give a lifetime warranty on memory.

I have no connection with them apart from being a satisfies customer.

OWC aside when it comes to memory my personal opinion (if it is someone else's machine) is that Kingston is the Gold Standard in memory. There are plenty of other very good makes, but I have had more success with Kingston over more years on more platforms (Mac/PC/xxIX) than anything else)

Waragainstsleep · Apr 23, 2012, 03:02 PM

Kingston is pretty good. I always go for it when I can.

chipchen · Apr 25, 2012, 12:19 PM

Yea, sounds more like a problem with the RAM. From time to time, you can get bad RAM.

OR, you might have accidentally gotten RAM that is slightly incompatible. That has happened to me before.

chabig · Apr 25, 2012, 06:13 PM

Originally Posted by Nassifer

I went to Crucial memory website which I found out is the recommended memory for mac...

Memory is made to standards. Your choice of reseller should be made on their reputation for customer service.

SierraDragon · Apr 25, 2012, 06:43 PM

Yes 8 GB RAM is generally appropriate if the box will take it.

Call OWC Performance Upgrades; FireWire USB SATA Storage; Memory, more at OWC regarding what memory will go in that box. I have used them for decades because they have the best support around.

HTH

-Allen