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Motherboard giving Qcode 53 - memory initialization problem

juraj_matus
Level 7
Hello everyone.

I'm building my first PC now, but I have a problem with boot.

My components are:
Motherboard: ASUS Z87-PRO/ Intel Z87/ LGA1150/ 4xDDR3 1600MHz/ VGA/ ATX
Memory: DDR 3.... 16GB . 1600MHz. CL10 Hyper X Black Kingston (2x8GB)
CPU: INTEL Core i7-4770 3,4 GHz, 8MB, socket 1150, BOX

Memory is listed in motherboard manual as supported. I put it into A2 and B2 slots as recommended. Yet at boot I get error 53 - memory initialization problem.

DRAM_LED is lighting of course. I tried MemOK button as recommended in manual, it rebooted and began blinking, but even after several minutes have passed, nothing is working and still code 53 is on display.

I also tried to remove and put them into place again, but that hasn't helped too.

Any advice will be appreciated.

Thanks in advance,

Juraj
41,967 Views
10 REPLIES 10

Arne_Saknussemm
Level 40
Hey juraj 🙂

Have you tried only one stick at a time in B2? Maybe try one stick in a1 or b1...just as an experiment...

If that still fails maybe remove CPU and carefully inspect pins in socket.

Zka17
Level 16
One stick in every DIMM slot will show you if the mobo is OK...

Also, try reseating the CPU and pay extra attention to the cooler mounting - unequal pressure can cause bent pins which in turn can result in such errors... and check the socket pins of course...

Thanks for replies.

So I started to try changing positions, and suddenly it started working.

But I got A2 error, and on screen there was something with CPU fan, so I also removed and inserted CPU and its cooler again and the same with CPU fan connection.

But now I get error 55 - memory not installed. I tried MemOK button, but it still persists.

Maybe I inserted CPU suboptimally, but it seats well, so I would be thankful if you could point me to some detailed guide how exactly I should do it.

Zka17
Level 16
A2 is not an error - is the normal code when the OS is taking over the control...

When you're reseating the CPU, you will inspect it's socket for bent pins... you can take high res images of the socket from multiple angles and post them here... also inspect the bottom of the CPU, all those pads should look like the same - the point is to have all those pins aligned and in the same height...

When mounting the cooler, make sure that you have cleaned the previous TIM from both CPU and cooler (you can use isopropyl alcohol for it), apply fresh TIM (one blobb in the middle of the CPU) and tighten the cooler's screws equally in all for corners in an X manner...

Is the step of removing TIM so important? Because I have neither isopropyl alcohol nor TIM bought, so that would really delay me.

Arne_Saknussemm
Level 40
Hmm pretty important to be honest...especially if you want optimal cooling but I guess you can leave it on the cpu and heatsink once...just make sure you gently move the cooler around to bed it down and try to get air pockets eliminated.....if it boots up check temps. Not ideal.

Inseting the CPU should be as simple as following the manual...no great trick to it. As Zka says make sure cooler is tightened evenly and not over tightly.

Zka17
Level 16
For troubleshooting may be OK to remount cooler with old TIM, but for regular use I would change it...

juraj_matus
Level 7
So after some trying and examining I found out the worst possible option - I bent som pins in motherboard CPU socket.
So I played with it a little and fortunately, instead of destroying it even more, now it works, so thank you all for support.
But still I get CPU fan error at startup - on screen. What does it mean and what can I do about it if I can ask?
It doesn't stop the PC from working, yet I don't want some hidden issue which will later cause problems.

Zka17
Level 16
Sweet, so the initial issue is resolved! :cool:

Now, for the CPU fan go to the BIOS monitoring section and double-check the CPU fan settings... it may happen that the min rpm of the fan is too low compared to the BIOS settings - then just lower that value... If it's still making trouble, you can set it to 'ignore'...