I am buying a 2.4C since they overclock like nobody's business but all this talk about the RAM being a bottleneck has got me concerned.

I'm planning to buy this.

First, I'd like to OC it to 3.1-3.2ghz. I think that memory will let it (I'm on a P4P800-Deluxe board).

Second, can someone please explain RAM timings and what the FSB/Memory ratio is?

:dead:

The only way to overclock the Intel P4's is by raising the Front Side Bus, or FSB for short. The "Multiplyer" on the P4 2.4C is locked at 13, so to get to 3.2 Ghz you'll need an FSB of 246.

If your RAM is running in Sync w/ the FSB, you'll need RAM than can handle speeds of 492 MhzDDR (246 x 2)

If you're RAM can't handle those speeds, then you can choose to run the RAM at a lower speeds, in a ratio to the FSB, like 5/4, or 3/2, etc. etc...Say your FSB was at 246, and you RAM was running at a 5/4 ratio, the resulting RAM fequency would be 196.8Mhz , or 393 Mhz DDR

The timings on the RAM will have an effect on the RAM as well, generally the lower the number, the faster the RAM, but at tighter timings, the RAM will not be able to hit it's highest frequency..
The same RAM w/ loose timings may hit 450Mhz, but with tighter timings may only do 400Mhz....

Hopefully somone will post a link w/ some good info, there's quite a bit to learn there.

Basically, if you want to clock that Intel up to 3.2 and run the RAM in sync, you're going to need some VERY HIGH QUALITY RAM...you're going to be cutting it very close w/ that PC3200, you may want something that will hit DDR500Mhz.....

I have the same motherboard you have, and I first tried the memory that you mentioned here. I soon switched out to different ram. The Corsair just couldn't handle the higher speeds. I first tried OCZ PC3700 Gold, running 2-3-3-6 timings at 1:1. I could only get to 235 fsb without the 3D artifacting. Then I got the OCZ PC3500 Limited Edition, running 2-3-2-6 at 5:4, and have the system at 270fsb with the 12x multiplier, which is what you'll have.

For me, running the tighter timings with the 5:4 divider worked the best, but every system can be different.

Good luck....

Is there any other program to measure memory bandwidth other than Sandra? My sticks of RAM after I run the test seem to be running slower than I expected @ 200Mhz 2-3-3-7. Compared to the other PC3200s, I seem to be near 2700 speeds.

Memtest86

How's this? http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProductDesc.asp?DEPA=1&sumit=Go&description=20-146-294&searchdepa=1

Yes if I were you SubKamran I'd get some good PC3700.

I'd look for some OCZ or Buffalo ram. Buffalo seems to do the job really well. On newegg you can get 2 sticks of "Buffalo Technology 184 Pin 512MB DDR PC-3700 w/ Micron Module - OEM" for $180. Bargin if you ask me.

http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProductDesc.asp?DEPA=&sumit=Go&description=20-150-541&searchdepa=0

If you want the fancier named OCZ stuff, I'd look into this:

"OCZ Enhanced Latency Series 184 Pin 512MB PC-4000 - Retail". Sells for $156 a stick. With PC4000 I'm sure you could reach the speeds you want, and more importantly, you have much higher odds of it coming out to be stable

http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=20-146-926&catalog=147&depa=1

Im sure the OCZ would be better, but you are paying out the arse for it..

You could do this memory, but for a few dollars more, the Level II Black rated 2-2-2, would be worth it if your serious about OC'ing.

Later....

The Level II got good reviews.

agissi, is it better to buy the sticks seperate or in a Dual pack?

that 200mhz is doubled you know? so its 400mhz which is PC 3200 and with those timings i would think it would be fast?

Yes, I'm aware of that, I'm just saying in Sandra, compared to other chipsets using PC3200 like SiS and VIA, they seem to be outperforming.... I guess that's just the nForce2 chipset's bandwidth limitations.