Questions about RAM.

[wyrd]

I've been told several times, that even though I'm building a budget system, I shouldn't cheap out on the RAM and PSU, because those are what cause crashes the most. Not a problem, makes sense - don't cheap out! The problem here is I don't know anything about RAM. I know 3200 is better than 2700, but then of course things get confusing from there.

For example, Corsair Value Select 512MB DDR PC3200 is ~$80. It has Cas Latency 2.5 (no idea what this means, but I do know it's important some how). Then I come across Corsair XMS Extreme Memory Speed Series 512MB DDR PC3200 for around ~$115 with Cas Latency of 2-3-3-6 1T. This sounds cool and all, but how much better is it from the Value Select? I have no idea, but obviously the Cas Latency somehow makes it better. But this isn't too hard to understand, even for my newbness. HOWEVER, this is where it becomes confusing. Kingston HyperX Series 512MB DDR PC2700 with Cas Latency 2-2-2-5-1T. This costs ~$100. Is the Kingston HyperX PC2700 better than the Corsair Value Select PC3200? It costs more, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's better. Obviously the clue is hidden within the Cas Latency, but since I have no idea what it means, I can't be sure which is better!

Of course, confusion is only half the problem. I'm on a budget, I'm already over my budget (after including price of any RAM at this point), and I'm trying to find some good quality RAM for ~$100. I've also read that if I have less of uber quality RAM (say 256MB of RAM) compared to more RAM that's cheap, I'd be better off. So do I spend ~$100 on 256MB of RAM?

Another issue that comes into play, is that do I sacrifice my Athlon 64 3000+ (socket 754) for a 2800+ to save $15, and spend it on RAM instead? Is RAM *that* important?

I thank you for all of your help!

 

[NTB]

what sort of system are you building? Intel P4? AMD Athlon XP? Athlon 64?

from what I've read, improved latency (the CAS #'s that you referred to - lower is better) only gives a marginal performance gain on any system. On an A64 system, some people say that latencies don't seem to matter at all.

As for the amount of RAM, I would say go for 512MB as a minimum. Stick with companies like Crucial, Corsair, Kingston, and Mushkin, and you should be good, even if you buy their "value" line stuff. Just don't expect to be able to overclock anything much, if at all.

You also want to match the speed of the memory to the speed of the processor's Front Side Bus, which is the path from the CPU to the memory:

PC2100 runs at 133MHz x 2, so if your mainboard and processor say either 133MHz or 266MHz FSB, this will work.

PC2700 runs at 166MHz x2 so the FSB should be labeled either 166 or 333

PC3200 (the fastest "official" spec, I believe) runs at 200MHz x 2, so the FSB should be labeled either 200 or 400 (or possibly 800, on P4s)

it is certainly possible to use faster memory on a slower bus (PC3200 on a 166MHz bus, for example); it will just run at a slower-than-spec speed unless you run the CPU and memory out of sync, or try to overclock the processor by changing the front-side bus speed. Just don't try putting slower memory into a system designed for faster stuff - the system will likely still work, but it will be slower than it should be because of the restricted bandwidth between the CPU and RAM.

Nate

 

[wyrd]

Interesting. I plan on getting an Athlon 64 3000+ w/ Asus K8N motherboard (no, NOT deluxe). Right now I have Corsair Value Select in my shopping cart, but it's not listed in the motherboard manual as tested RAM. The more expensive Corsair XMS Extreme however, is ($35 difference, which is quite a bit for the budget I'm on). So I wonder if it's a big deal if I use the Corsair Value Select?

 

[CaptainWafflos]

Four rules of thumb for buying RAM:

1. Don't go for anything lower than PC3200 unless your motherboard can't support it. (all socket 754s can support it)

2. Don't go for anything higher than PC3200 unless you plan on overclocking.

3. Buy 2.5 latency RAM unless you have a lot of money to spend. The performance difference between CAS 2 and CAS 2.5 RAM is negligible.

4. Don't buy generic RAM. The best makers of value RAM are Corsair, Mushkin, Kingston, etc.

You will want more than 256MB of RAM, especially if you plan on running Windows XP. 512MB is a minimum, and 1024MB is preferred if you plan on gaming or doing video editing.

 

[wyrd]

I'll be using Wi2k Pro (which I'm using now w/ 256mb of RAM and this system ran Counter-Strike, Warcraft3, etc fine.. time for an upgrade though). I'll go ahead with the Corsair Value Select 512MB DDR PC3200, unless for some reason it doesn't agree with the Asus K8N motherboard. Shouldn't be a problem?

Thanks for the advice.

 

[El rey loco]

I'm also confused about something regarding RAM. I currently have a 512MB stick of PC2700 Ram and would like to add another 512MB stick. Why is it that for some RAM manufacturers the PC3200 Ram is cheaper than the PC2700 counterpart? They both have the same latency settings. So, I would get more value buying the PC3200 Ram, right?

 

[Zinn2b]

I have and a pair of corsair PC 3200 Bh-5 it is the best of the best but you can't get it any more I also have Crucial Performance ram it runs @ 2-5-2-2 it is great ram and is fairly priced buy it, it works great with AMD 64