I worked on a couple of Compaq's in the past.  I found out that when
upgrading the memory, some Compaq's require a specific RAM in the first
module slot.  I can't remember what the megabyte requirement was, but
for some strange reason I recall it was 4 or 8 meg.  Sounds strange,
because I was wanting to add 16 meg modules, but had to put in something
different in the first slot.  Hope this helps, I just can't remember
what the meg requirement was for the first slot.

Byron Wolter

Joe Byrnes wrote:

> I think I am the person that had the post you are
> referring to. Feel free to e-mail me for any details.
>
> Here is what I found...
> I also had a big problem getting memory to work with my
> COMPAQ Presario 4505. I spent a LOT of time reading
> this forum, and looking for some defining statement
> from COMPAQ on their website/forum.
> >From this, I did learn that there were many other
> COMPAQ Presario owners trying to do the same upgrade
> and facing the same problem, and wasting a lot of time.
> At the time, it appeared that the moderator at COMPAQ
> ("Greg") did not have this type of information in the
> database he uses to try and help users.
>
> I tried two different 32MB PNY SDRAM memory modules.
> Both were recognized by the COMPAQ as only 8
>  MB.
> On some reboots, the COMPAQ did not see any additional memory.
> Like you report, depending on what way you were looking,
> there were different amounts of memory reported.
> My guess is that it was dependent on the timing and
> method that the memory was being looked at.
>
> Here's what worked for me with the Presario 4505:
>
> Crucial Technology
> Item number: CT4M64S4d10
> SKU: CT134305
> Description: 32MB 168-pin DIMM 4Mx64 SDRAM unbuf 10ns
> www.crucial.com
> In February, I bought it on their website (gives you a 10
> percent discount) and paid $41.39 + $5 shipping + sales tax.
> They are a division of Micron. Call them for pre-sales
> support on your model, but I think it is the same.
>
> Technically the PNY memory modules met the specifications
> by COMPAQ, but they just don't work.
> The difference between the memory modules is that
> the Crucial memory is configured differently
> . It uses
> sixteen 2MB chips (8 per side), while the PNY memory used
> just four 8MB chips all on one side.
>
> There may be other manufacturers memory modules that work.
> It is the "density" of the memory is the critical factor.
> - "density" being the number of memory chips that are used
> to make up the 32MB's on the module.
>
> After going thru all of this, I sent this information to
> the COMPAQ forum for posting. The last time I looked, it
> had not been posted. Not sure why.
>
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