Out Of Commission...for now...

[elwoodblues1969]

Due to the enormous expansions in my Reason DAW,I have now exceeded the capabilities of the existing RAM in my latest PC,which is only 4GB.
Even though I've been told many times that adding RAM is a painless process & a no brainer,I still dreaded the day when I would need to add RAM memory and as I anticipated,it is a nightmare....at least it is for a bleeding imbecile like me.

For fear of ending up buying the wrong RAM board online and having to wait weeks,dealing with return orders and shipping times,I decided to buy locally and head down to the Staples store.

Being that there are many variables in choosing RAM,I was overwhelmed and was forced to rely on the knowledge of a Staples employee and of course,I got stone-walled by his ignorance,as when I told him what type of PC I have(I wrote down all the necessary info)...he told me that my PC could not be upgraded past 4GB of RAM(but I assured him,that my owner's manual stated that in fact,it was upgradable to 8GB).
He then went on a computer to do some research,in order to figure what type of RAM I needed and he said that DDR3's were out of stock,but that he could order one(provided that I bring in my PC for servicing).

Instead,I chose to browse the store anyway and found a DDR3 board and bought it.I don't know if there is some specific type of DDR3 that I need for my particular PC,but I figured that I'd worry about that when I first figure out how to dissemble my PC,while making certain that I know how to put it back together without blowing it up.

I really don't know what I'm dealing with,when I look at my PC.I mean...aside from the 4 main screws I removed,everything else is either fastened with rivets and all of the other screws appear to be holding together the power supply and other vital areas that I don't think I should be messing with.

The only thing I could ascertain,is that one of the side panels needs to be removed,but I don't know what else I need to disassemble to get the panel off.

I called my brother for help and left a message on his phone,but in the 5 years I've lived at this address,he's been here only once...so I don't know when I'll here from him,if at all.
He lives only 20 minuted away and he's currently off from work and has been so for the last week,but never heard from him.

I hate to be a pest,but if anyone could take a look at these photos and give me some input,I'd really appreciate it.


-Thom

[elwoodblues1969]

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[elwoodblues1969]

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[elwoodblues1969]

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[Oren]

Thom,

Your first shot is of the existing random access memory - two sticks, presumably of 2 gigabytes each, to give the machine its total of 4 gigabytes. This particular computer is equipped with only two RAM slots, so to get more memory installed, you will need to  remove both existing sticks and replace them with with two matching sticks of a higher capacity; typically, two 4 gigabyte sticks of the same specifications as your current RAM.
It looks as if the variety of RAM sticks you need for the job is listed right beside the RAM slots: "DDR3 1800 O.C."

I'm by no means an expert, so I would read the brand and specifications on the sides of the existing RAM sticks, and replace them with exactly the same variety - except double the capacity - two 4 gigabyte sticks to replace your two 2 gigabyte sticks.

That should get you back in the clover, Bro...

[MarioD]

Oren is correct.  To uninstall ram press down on the white tabs at the end of the memory stick.  Take out the ram and see if the numbers match what you have already purchased.  If yes then go back to Staples and purchase another memory stick.  If not take that purchased ram and the ram out of your computer back to the store and have them get you matching ram sticks.  If they give you a hassle get your money back and go to a independent computer store as they are much more knowledgeable and willing to help. Or get me the information on your memory stick and I will look it up on the internet for you.  But be aware that I am leaving this Tuesday morning for a week’s vacation/holiday, it’s our 45th wedding anniversary on July 1st, followed by our big 4th of July party.  So if you don’t give me the data ASAP it will be a couple of weeks before I can look for you.

Good luck.

[elwoodblues1969]

Thom,

Your first shot is of the existing random access memory - two sticks, presumably of 2 gigabytes each, to give the machine its total of 4 gigabytes. This particular computer is equipped with only two RAM slots, so to get more memory installed, you will need to  remove both existing sticks and replace them with with two matching sticks of a higher capacity; typically, two 4 gigabyte sticks of the same specifications as your current RAM.
It looks as if the variety of RAM sticks you need for the job is listed right beside the RAM slots: "DDR3 1800 O.C."

I'm by no means an expert, so I would read the brand and specifications on the sides of the existing RAM sticks, and replace them with exactly the same variety - except double the capacity - two 4 gigabyte sticks to replace your two 2 gigabyte sticks.

That should get you back in the clover, Bro...

Oren,

I didn't realize both sticks had to be replaced simultaneously,as I only bought one and at this time,I don't have enough coin for two.
I'm assuming that 1800 is referring to MHz?If so,what does "O.C." mean?


Thanks,

-Thom

[elwoodblues1969]

Oren is correct.  To uninstall ram press down on the white tabs at the end of the memory stick.  Take out the ram and see if the numbers match what you have already purchased.  If yes then go back to Staples and purchase another memory stick.  If not take that purchased ram and the ram out of your computer back to the store and have them get you matching ram sticks.  If they give you a hassle get your money back and go to a independent computer store as they are much more knowledgeable and willing to help. Or get me the information on your memory stick and I will look it up on the internet for you.  But be aware that I am leaving this Tuesday morning for a week’s vacation/holiday, it’s our 45th wedding anniversary on July 1st, followed by our big 4th of July party.  So if you don’t give me the data ASAP it will be a couple of weeks before I can look for you.

Good luck.

Mario,

Thanks...but I don't need instruction on how to insert the boards(there's instructions on the back of the package anyway).What I need to know,is what I have to dismantle,to get inside the casing.

I know it appears as though I gained access inside my computer,but the photo was taken from outside the computer,with the camera lens pressed up against the clear plastic window on the side of the computer.

I don't know how to disassemble the casing,nor do I know which side to take apart to get into my computer.....for all I know,maybe I have to take apart everything from the rear of the computer and enter through the rear of the casing.

The only useful thing I was told at Staples,was to go to crucial.com and have my computer scanned,to see what DDR boards I need.
I was hoping I could resolve this situation without having to hook everything back up....but clearly,I need to do this.

Since I don't know how to disassemble my PC to get inside to where the RAM is located,I'll just have to let Staples or some other PC store do it & just pay them whatever they want...which means I'll be out of the music game for a while,until I have the money to have my PC serviced.


Thanks,

-Thom

[elwoodblues1969]

Wow...this situation just gets more interesting as I go along....here's the current state of affairs; I ran a scan at crucial.com and they were only able to successfully scan the motherboard in my PC,so I STILL don't know specifically,what RAM boards I need.  

Here's what I have....a Cyberpower Gamer Dragon(Apevia) computer.AMD Phenom(tm)II X6 1055T processor,2.80GHz,4GB of RAM,64 bit OS.I fired off an e-mail to Cyperpower...so apart from that,I don't know what else to do....except to just wait until I get a reply back from Cyberpower's tech support staff.


-Thom

[MarioD]

Your ram information is listed on the Crucial chart, i.e. DDR3-PC3-nnnn.  In fact it looks like you can go up to 16GB in ram so IF you can afford it you should to up to 16GB IMHO.

Can you tell us what computer case you have?  It should be listed on it somewhere.  If not can you take pictures of both sides and the back of it?  Most all cases now have two screws or thumb screws that you take of; they are located on the back edge of the computer case.  After you unscrew them, you only need to do the side that allows access to the motherboard slots, you just slide the side off of the case.  Uninstall you old ram, install the new ram, slide the case’s side back on and replace the screws.

[elwoodblues1969]

Mario,

As I had mentioned earlier,I have it in writing,that my PC is only upgradable to 8GB,therefore,I am not taking a chance on going with 16GB....based on a calculation from a website that was not able to do a complete scan of my PC.

At this point,I need to figure out how to open the side panel(I believe it's the right side,as there is a recessed area on the panel towards the rear),so I imagine that's what I grab to slide the panel open.

If I get in,I'll place an order based on what the existing memory boards say,rather than what a scan tells me.


Thanks,

-Thom

[elwoodblues1969]

I can't seem to remove the panel without fear of damaging something,as the panel won't budge. As indicated in the photos,the 4 main screws on the four corners of the rear,are removed.

Perhaps there is some other screws somewhere I need to take out?Most of the other bits of hardware that fasten everything together,are mostly rivets and the only other screws that I see,are for the power supply and the cooling fan.

[elwoodblues1969]

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[elwoodblues1969]

Spoke with my brother,& he did some research on my PC using www.kahlon.com and as it turns out,I only have a dual core processor!
When I had bought my PC on Walmart's website,they advertised my PC as being a 6-core processor and I paid $629 for the f**king thing!
Every motherf**king time I make an effort to save money,I get royally f**ked over...I will never go near Walmart ever again-PERIOD!

On the brighter side of this whole fiasco,is that my brother found me the RAM I need,and I can get two 4GB boards for $60 with free shipping,from kahlon.com.

-Thom

[MarioD]

The side opposite the fan assembly should just slide out.  If it doesn’t I really can’t tell without looking at it.  If you can determine what case it is then google that case and there will be instructions on how to open it up.  If not google the exact ID of the computer, name and model number, and look for those instructions.  Sorry that I can’t help more.

If you can prove that the computer was advertised as a 6-core but is only a dual core then you can demand your money back.  My son and daughter both work for Walmart and they both said if you have the sales receipt and possibly the shipping instructions you can get your money back.  My son, a T&L manager, said it sounds like may have shipped you the wrong computer.

One last thought, I don’t know about your local computer guys but up here for the same amount of money you spent they could have built you a very good custom music computer with off the shelf high grade products.