Utility for testing sound card memory?

As Mary G. said without computer model or OS flavor it's difficult to be specific. Have you removed the sound card - using only onboard sound - to see if the problem persists? Have you added/subtracted/changed any hardware? Software?

Sound is a very low priority. It's possible that you have  an IRQ conflict. Can you move the card to a different slot on the motherboard?

Jeff :emotion-22:

Sound cards do not have memory. Parity errors are usually bad or incorrect memory (ram) and is most likely related to the new memory you installed. It might be incompatible with the original memory or your model computer or it might not be installed correctly. Dells are very picky about memory. Remove the new memory chips and use just the original chips and see if the problem clears up. You should buy memory from Crucial since they guarantee it will work with your Dell Computer. You need to match the memory that is already in the computer for best performance.

If you have to post again, include your model computer and your operating system. You should always include those when you post.

@ both respondents: try to read my sig next time—it's there for a reason! :-)  You're not the first to somehow ignore it—does it not show up or something? Perhaps in this case I should have indicated which of the two OSes I was referring to—it's the XP install.  On the other hand, given that this is a hardware error, can I be excused partially for not thinking it necessary to state? ;-)

@Mary: Before I go about removing the new RAM, could you explain why my 10-hour MemTest86+ loop didn't throw up a BSOD, or any error whatsoever, if it's incompatible with my Dell?  That seems counter-indicative, but I'm willing to be convinced otherwise.  

Also, it's all very well telling me to buy from Crucial, but when you're on a budget, brand-new RAM is a bit of a luxury for me where I live. My RAM may not be a matched pair, but they are both by the same company, share the same specs and were bought together.  If the worst comes to the worst, I have a 1-year warranty on this second-hand RAM and can return it if it is genuinely deemed to be at fault in my system—even in this case.  They'll swap it for RAM to the same value.  Getting a particular brand is not an option, though.  I just have to take what's available.

@Jeff: I did wonder if it might be an IRQ conflict.  I was going to do something about it, but I read differing reports when researching how to manually assign them—something I'm fairly sure my BIOS doesn't allow—so I rejected this avenue for the time-being.  However, if you can indicate a reliable website that can walk me through manually adjusting my IRQ settings in software, I'll undertake that task.  

As for moving the sound card—I suppose I could give that a go.  I'd forgotten I may now have a spare PCI slot available since I swapped out the stock 7950GX2.  I know that the card was problematic in the first slot I chose (I think it was being reported as a PCI Bridge in the BIOS, and there were software issues too I think), but on the whole it seemed better now.

I'd like to try the IRQ avenue first, because I recall seeing recently that several of my main devices do share IRQs, though I forget where I saw this reported.  Failing that, I'll move it to a different slot.

I'd like to add that the sound gradually degraded in World of Warcraft earlier today, culminating in it becoming mostly static, even when no sounds were noticeably playing.  Took about an hour or more.  So, there's definitely something up with the sound hardware, though whether it's related to my BSODs is anyone's guess, right?  And whether it's hardware or software…

Anyway, thanks for responding.  Appreciated. :-)

S.

Aha, I'll look out for that mark you refer to in Device Manager the next time my sound gets glitchy.  Thanks.  And as for the IRQs: I guess that if I can't configure it in BIOS, I probably can't configure it at all.  Oh well.

And, yes, my games would run fine without the discrete sound card, though without EAX (positional and reverb) effects, and it would add a small load to the CPU, I believe.  However, now that it seems clearer that the sound card is at fault, I'll re-enable the onboard sound, disable the Sound Blaster, and see what happens.  I'll also try switching slots.

Thanks, I'll post back with results either way.

S.

If it is an IRQ problem you should/might have the yellow "Ooops" in device manager. Have you checked there WHILE the problem is at it's worst or at least getting to that point? Since it's been about a hundred years (in computer years) since we had DIP switches to change IRQs I don't know how to adjust them manually. They are assigned automatically by the BIOS/POST with plug and play cards.

My bad for not reading your sig. Sorry. You didn't indicate if you had tried removing the sound card altogether to try to isolate the problem. I am not a gamer but wouldn't they run, for a bit, with the onboard sound?

If I had to guess at this point I would say that it's the sound card. Either a conflict or a failing card. Do you have or can you borrow another? As high tech as everything is now days sometimes the best way to problem solve is by process of elimination.

Jeff :emotion-22:

A comment on memory.  Dell's have a history of incompatibility with some brands/types of memory.  There is no definite pattern, a particular brand will work in one Dell and not in another.  For that reason we suggest Crucial as it is guaranteed to work in Dell's.  

Mary G, I owe you an apology—it seems Crucial's RAM is not as expensive as I thought.  It turns out that for just £5.24 more I could have had free delivery on their 2GB RAM, with their compatibility guarantee.  So, it looks like I'll be returning this RAM, getting a credit note (perfectly happy with this) and ordering the Crucial RAM.  I think I've a good enough case to give the shop that they'll accept without a fuss.

On that note, there are two choices: CT550465 & CT765861.  The only difference (apart from the speed) appears to be the CAS, and I'm not sure how much of a difference that makes.  Which should I go for?  If it helps, the PQI RAM I have installed just now (and will be returning) is PC6400.

Hopefully the new RAM will fix things. Failing that, I'll start moving the sound card around and trying it in different slots.

Thank you for all the advice.  I'll post back with my results as they come in! :emotion-1:

S.

Hi,

It's not the RAM that's to blame.  I removed the 2 GB of PQI RAM yesterday evening, and moments ago I had the same NMI Parity Error crash as before.  I'll put the RAM back in, and try moving the sound card to a new slot instead.

S.