6gb 533 mhz vs 4gb 800mhz

[HDD123]

Hi, apparently according to my mobo specs it only supports 2 gbs of DDR2. I bought 2 x 2gb 800mhz ram without realizing that. The new mobo im getting has 4 slots for ram and i still have my old 2 gigs 533mhz ram. So what whould be the better option for gameing for games like crysis, gta 4, farcry 2, and fallout 3. I also have 64 bit windows 7 beta btw

Oh and there will be 2 sticks of the g skill memory and 2 sticks of the old memory. Will it be able to duel channel?

 

[Rage_3K_Moiz]

Usually it is better not to mix and match RAM. Still, you can use your old RAM but dual-channel will not be possible IMO.

The performance benefit from dual-channel will not be noticeable though, so just put in all the RAM and see if the system boots. If it does and is stable while gaming, just continue and do not bother about dual-channel. If it does not boot or boots but is unstable while gaming, remove your old 533MHz stick, and make sure to put the 800MHz sticks in the correct slots (refer to the mobo manual for this) to enable dual-channel.

 

[LinkedKube]

put the 4 gig sticks in you'll be fine. Would be nominally better than the 6 gb because of the speed i imagine.

 

[captaincranky]

Sometimes.......Good Things Happen.....Or Do They?

Dual channel operation is sometimes possible with RAM running at different speeds. But, it does depend on the chipset and board combination, in conjunction with the type of RAM involved.
All of the DIMMs would need to be "generic" types, in other words, conform to basic established standards, which in the case of DDR2, is 1.8V and at or about 5-5-5-15 timings.
This goes only to the ability to have it work. I have one desktop, (which I'm using at the moment), that a one point had RAM of 3 different brands, running at 2 different speeds, yet still returned system information of "dual channel operation".

Disclaimer, this is DDR I'm speaking of, and the speed of operation was the slower of the 2 speeds involved. (The faster DIMMs are always clocked down to the speed of the slowest sticks).

As to whether 6GB is better than 4GB, I have no opinion. I hold the odd belief that adding more RAM doesn't always obtain the desired, (or fantasized about), results. There are other things that keep popping into my head such as, "don't you, at some point, run out of CPU clock cycles"? But, when I was younger my father told me I think too much, so that could be what's happening here.