upgrading my RAM

[WhoZeDuke]

[FONT=verdana, arial, helvetica]I plan on upgrading my RAM soon.
I have an AMD 3800+ X2, 512x2 dual channel DDR 400 mhz, and a 7600gs. I really dont want to spend a lot of money on ram, but I want to make an informed, wise decision. I would like to go a stick of 1gb ddr 400, but I dont know if i should splurge the extra 100 dollars for 1 GBx2 dual channel ddr 400. Any help would be appreciated.[/FONT]

 

[Capt.Marion]

what does your motherboard support?

 

[Zetsumei]

what does your motherboard support?

He probably got a S939 motherboard (if you look at his vidcard )that means that it takes normal DDR memory (not DDRII).

For dual channel running identical memory sticks in both banks would be preferable. But its not like different sticks don't work. you can run 2x512 in 1 bank and 1x1gb in the other bank. But i've been out of the hardware business for too long so i let others answer on that.

 

[Tak]

Dual channel offers a pretty noticable performance gain over the same amount of memory not in dual-channel. I know it's a tad pricey, but I suggest going with two one-gig sticks (if supported, judging by your CPU it probably is). You can buy them in the kit if you'd like, but any two sticks of the same make/model ordered at the same time should have no problems.

Be extra sure to double check what is supported by your mobo. If you have any doubts, post the model number/brand here and someone will be able to help
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[Xendance]

Memory in DC is about 5800 Mb/s fast when single channel is about 3000 Mb/s. [egoboost] Though my ram is 7800 MB/s fast [/egoboost]. I love my 2x1024 MB 520 MHz DDR memory <3

I say go for it and buy those 1GB sticks

 

[SgtH3nry3]

PC-1066 ->overclocked-> PC-1333 ftw.

 

[WhoZeDuke]

should i ADD 2x1gb dual channel or replace what i have with that? Some people have said that 4 sticks is not good for boards.

 

[Xendance]

should i ADD 2x1gb dual channel or replace what i have with that? Some people have said that 4 sticks is not good for boards.

Well you can always try

 

[Tak]

should i ADD 2x1gb dual channel or replace what i have with that? Some people have said that 4 sticks is not good for boards.

That depends on your board and personal preference. Some motherboards have no problems with it, some will give you memory errors and other such jazz. The best thing to do is try it (more memory is nice) and the first time you get an error, remove the odd stick. Most boards however are set up with one or two slots that 'enable' the Dual-channel mode, and their 'twin' stick goes in another slot. This is usually color-coded or stamped on the board. Make sure you put your new stuff in the right slots, and use the other slots for the 'odd man out'.

It won't ruin your system, but keep in mind that using slower ram with faster ram will make ALL of your ram run at the slower speed. Be sure to run a memory test (free utilites available online, don't even think about paying for one Post here if you need pointers) on the new sticks one at a time and then together. It takes some hellacious time, but helps to ensure you won't bump into any sudden problems because of a bad stick.

 

[{YBBS}Sage]

should i ADD 2x1gb dual channel or replace what i have with that? Some people have said that 4 sticks is not good for boards.

Meh, 4 slots = 4 sticks, I say...

I did a similar upgrade on my Dell, started off with 512mb (total) in two slots, popped 2x1gb sticks into the other ones, and didn't bother taking the 512 out.

Been running that way for about 6 months now, no problems at all. Load times got awesomely faster, though.

 

[spraduke]

im runnin a gigabyte k8npro with 4x512mb sticks and it rocks