RAM - Timings/Speeds etc

Timans

I am currently choosing some RAM for my first build in July.

I was originally recommended buy someone to go for 1066mhz 2GB's Mushkin for €145 which I thought, ok as it's the best about.

But then, I read around and have since learned that the performance increase from 800mhz to 1066mhz isn't at all noticable and isn't worth the extra €'s.

I have since been looking at getting some CL4 800mhz instead, would I be better of getting CL4 800mhz than CL5 1066mhz? Also, does the manufacturer matter? If so, who is best? I've heard OCZ.

I could get 2GB CL4 RAM for €100 which would save €40.

One more thing, could some explain RAM timings for me? What is good? 4-4-3-8 is very good apparently, what does it mean though?

Thanks,

8T8

Yes in short CL4 800Mhz would be better than CL5 1066Mhz, note that DDR-2 tops out at 800Mhz officially anything else is overclockers RAM or DDR-3.

As for brands personally I'd go with Corsair or Crucial low latency.

The 4-4-3-8 are the timings used download CPU-Z or look at screenshots of other systems and you will see the values labelled in the memory tab. It's not really necessary to understand them just to know the lower means faster and higher means slower.

Though you should not try and run RAM at lower latencies then it is specified for in it's SPD unless other wise stated (the SPD being sort of a table in the RAM that hold the timings and speeds the RAM is rated for so the computer know what speed to run it at).

DirkVoodoo

Yeah, I have CL4 DDR2-800 from corsair, the xms2 stuff (even tho it has been shown that at stock the xms performs little better than the value kits) and its been fantastic.

I believe they have very long warranties too...possibly lifetime:eek:

Timans

Thanks for the replies.

http://www2.hardwareversand.de/7VqqXajJbQ_wgL/2/articledetail.jsp?aid=10254&agid=599

What about that RAM? Brand isn't great but timings/speed/price are.

Anti

Timans wrote:

Thanks for the replies.

http://www2.hardwareversand.de/7VqqXajJbQ_wgL/2/articledetail.jsp?aid=10254&agid=599

What about that RAM? Brand isn't great but timings/speed/price are.

Dont think because its a brand you have not heard much from means it crpa ram. Most of the ram chips come from the same factorys. If you dont plan on overclocking you should just go with the cheapest low latency ram you can find. Even the value range ram is fine for what you need if not overlcocking. If you are overlcocking that ram you picked will be fine. Just dont expect it to let you run a huge fsb.

papu

mushkin ram has lifetime warrenty btw

and with the new p35 boards if you run a 1333 fsb thats wuadpumped to 1333/4= 333fsb

so if you get a 6600 and run 333 X9 you get 3ghz which is a nice overclock

and p35 boards are designed to be 1333 1066 (for penryn)

so run a 1333fsb (or above) and 1066 (or above) ram to get best preformance

Slutmonkey57b

Buy the 800 ram, and remember if you're using XP or 32-bit Vista you're limited to 3.12GB of ram no matter what you put in the machine.

http://www.codinghorror.com/blog/archives/000811.html

Have a look at the diagram from Intel.

Genius, eh? Even a 64-bit OS doesn't *solve* this, it just moves the memory hole further up. Brilliant solution as always.

Oh and remember that your Video Card memory will also reserve itself space in your RAM - so all those geniuses with SLI GTX are actually robbing themselves of 1.5GB of ram. Clever bunnies!

papu

Buy the 800 ram, and remember if you're using XP or 32-bit Vista you're limited to 3.12GB of ram no matter what you put in the machine.
.

yer know that vista can see up to 4 gigs on a 32 and 64 bit system right?

The amount of RAM on the GPU has no bearing on 32-bit Windows as long as you are not going over 2GB of RAM otherwise if you put in 3-4GB address mapping will kick in and you will lose 1GB RAM & be back down to 2GB or roughly higher with some jiggery pokery you might get it to 3GB.

quoteded from 8t8

dosen't apply to vista btw

Slutmonkey57b

Eh read the articles.

Vista can "see" the ram. But it can't "use" the ram, because it's locked in a reserved space, and on top of that your motherboard has to support 4+ gigs of ram.