RAM help please!
- Thread starter domyue
- Start date
- Status
yes, probibly, but as ivew heard it will only run as your lowest spped (pc2100)) but it should make it fast, where do you live, If USA, shop at www.newegg.com ,and post your system specs
hmmm I was more wondering about getting PC2700 instead of the current PC2100 i have. Just asking how big (or small) the speed/performance increase would be?
PS: and why would it run at PC2100 max even though my board can take PC2700?? (reference to what a previous reply said)
PS: and why would it run at PC2100 max even though my board can take PC2700?? (reference to what a previous reply said)
well i heard that the ram only runs at the lowest speed ram that you have, it was on another post i saw once. it depends if you are gamming, you will probibly see an ok increce, what are your system specs.domyue said:
I have a
P4 1.6
256mb ram
ATI redion 9600
and i play games like half-life 1 (counterstrike) fine, so it depends what you do with your computer
p.s can someone back me up on the ram runs on lowest speed you have
oh you were going to replace the precous sticks you have or just add on to other slots
C0d3Warr10r
Posts: 33 +0
Affirmation
Swker98, you are correct, if Domyue is going to upgrade the RAM to PC2700, then all PC2100 modules need to be removed. The PC2700 will downclock itself to the speed of the slowest RAM installed. Domyue, you will also want to run a program called MEMtest on the new RAM as soon as you get it because if there are any defective components, you only have a finite period of time to return/exchange the item (Generally 10-14 days depending on the vendor) 3DMark2003 will give you an indication as to how much faster your computer is, run the bench prior to installing the RAM, then again afterwards. (Make sure DirectX 9.0c is installed prior to installing 3DMark2003)
C0d3Warr10r
Big Blue:
Asus P4P800 I865PE
P4 2.8GHz 800MHz
2048 KingMax PC-3200 CAS 2.5
Maxtor DiamondMax 9 /160GB /7200RPM /8MB Cache
ATI Radeon X800 Pro
Enermax 420W PSU
Aspire X-Dreamer II
Lite-On 12X DVD+/-RW
Sony 48X CD-RW
Samsung SyncMaster 997DF 19" CRT
3DMark03 Score: 10,035
Swker98, you are correct, if Domyue is going to upgrade the RAM to PC2700, then all PC2100 modules need to be removed. The PC2700 will downclock itself to the speed of the slowest RAM installed. Domyue, you will also want to run a program called MEMtest on the new RAM as soon as you get it because if there are any defective components, you only have a finite period of time to return/exchange the item (Generally 10-14 days depending on the vendor) 3DMark2003 will give you an indication as to how much faster your computer is, run the bench prior to installing the RAM, then again afterwards. (Make sure DirectX 9.0c is installed prior to installing 3DMark2003)
C0d3Warr10r
Big Blue:
Asus P4P800 I865PE
P4 2.8GHz 800MHz
2048 KingMax PC-3200 CAS 2.5
Maxtor DiamondMax 9 /160GB /7200RPM /8MB Cache
ATI Radeon X800 Pro
Enermax 420W PSU
Aspire X-Dreamer II
Lite-On 12X DVD+/-RW
Sony 48X CD-RW
Samsung SyncMaster 997DF 19" CRT
3DMark03 Score: 10,035
dgower2
Posts: 232 +0
Always Better to Match DIMMs
You will only see a performance increase due to more RAM. If anything, having unmatched DIMMs will result in less system stability. The fact that you put PC2700 in will not increase performance, in fact, I wouldn't be surprised if there was overhead (extra CPU cycles) needed to "clock-down" the PC2700 to match the PC2100. IMHO, save money and system stability and get memory that's IDENTICAL to what's in your system now.
I have run systems with unmatched memory without a problem. I just think it's more conducive to both performance and stability when all memory is matched.
The ONE advantage you will gain by getting PC2700 is you might be able to use it in a future system that requires PC2700+.
You will only see a performance increase due to more RAM. If anything, having unmatched DIMMs will result in less system stability. The fact that you put PC2700 in will not increase performance, in fact, I wouldn't be surprised if there was overhead (extra CPU cycles) needed to "clock-down" the PC2700 to match the PC2100. IMHO, save money and system stability and get memory that's IDENTICAL to what's in your system now.
I have run systems with unmatched memory without a problem. I just think it's more conducive to both performance and stability when all memory is matched.
The ONE advantage you will gain by getting PC2700 is you might be able to use it in a future system that requires PC2700+.
Vigilante
Posts: 1,634 +0
Technically you'd be "upgrading" from 512MB to 512MB. And that won't exactly help much there.
However, putting memory in your system which is the full capacity of the board you have, should help. And if it were mine, I'd buy just a single 512MB chip, rather than 2 * 256. Surely it's cheaper that way, and better, leaves more room for upgrade later, etc.
Someone also mentioned running 3DMark before and after. Benchmarking is a good way to tell if it speeds you up. Though I would use PCMark, not 3DMark. Only because 3DMark is very much video oriented. And being that you have the same video card, your score may not go anywhere, or will be marginal. I know, I just did the very same thing on my box.
I tested with 3DMark on my old Athlon 2400+ (266mhz) and 40GB IDE drive. I upgraded to a Athlon 3200+ (400mhz) and a SATA 120gb 8mb cache. Also did a completely fresh reload. And my 3DMark score pretty much went nowhere. Cause I'm on the same video card. Though I know for a fact, because now my CPU and RAM are matched on the 400 speed, that I was able to turn on 400mhz to my board which sped up my RAM. And I know (because of a different benchmark) that my new SATA drive was THREE times faster than the IDE. And still my 3DMark didn't change.
Anyways, I said all that to say, try a diff benchmark. One that is more specific to "system" speed, not video speed. Try PCMark03 maybe. Or both.
And make sure you post your benchmark scores back here when you're done!
However, putting memory in your system which is the full capacity of the board you have, should help. And if it were mine, I'd buy just a single 512MB chip, rather than 2 * 256. Surely it's cheaper that way, and better, leaves more room for upgrade later, etc.
Someone also mentioned running 3DMark before and after. Benchmarking is a good way to tell if it speeds you up. Though I would use PCMark, not 3DMark. Only because 3DMark is very much video oriented. And being that you have the same video card, your score may not go anywhere, or will be marginal. I know, I just did the very same thing on my box.
I tested with 3DMark on my old Athlon 2400+ (266mhz) and 40GB IDE drive. I upgraded to a Athlon 3200+ (400mhz) and a SATA 120gb 8mb cache. Also did a completely fresh reload. And my 3DMark score pretty much went nowhere. Cause I'm on the same video card. Though I know for a fact, because now my CPU and RAM are matched on the 400 speed, that I was able to turn on 400mhz to my board which sped up my RAM. And I know (because of a different benchmark) that my new SATA drive was THREE times faster than the IDE. And still my 3DMark didn't change.
Anyways, I said all that to say, try a diff benchmark. One that is more specific to "system" speed, not video speed. Try PCMark03 maybe. Or both.
And make sure you post your benchmark scores back here when you're done!
hey, can u tell me where to get those benchmark things, links for them. and i just relized that he was going 512-512 i say go for a gig if you have the mony or get 1 stick oh 512.
p.s i have a nobie question, when you post a quick replydoes ever one see it or just the person you are replying to
p.s i have a nobie question, when you post a quick replydoes ever one see it or just the person you are replying to
(everyone can see the quick replies)
If I have a P4 2.4, is it even worth upgrading to 1gb of PC2700 RAM??
I mean my PC runs pretty fine now, I've tweaked it quite a bit and it runs fast. But occasionally takes some time to startup, shutdown and open programs (i've tweaked all I can in these 3 areas)
If I have a P4 2.4, is it even worth upgrading to 1gb of PC2700 RAM??
I mean my PC runs pretty fine now, I've tweaked it quite a bit and it runs fast. But occasionally takes some time to startup, shutdown and open programs (i've tweaked all I can in these 3 areas)
Vigilante
Posts: 1,634 +0
That's a tricky thing. Because really, having MORE RAM, doesn't speed up startup or program "loading". Because the bottleneck is not the ammount of RAM you have, but the speed at which programs can be loaded INTO RAM. Your hard drive will only pump data into RAM as fast as it can, ammount of RAM won't change that. To speed up startup and program loading, you would need a faster hard drive with better access times and transfer rates.
What more RAM does is allows Windows to cram more of your open programs into memory, thus allowing them to run at RAM speeds. Versus swap file speeds, which is millions of times slower than RAM.
A P4 2.4 isn't terrible, even for gaming. The biggest parts, in my own oppinion, for gaming, are in this order of importance:
1. Video card. It drives everything.
2. RAM. Allows your whole game to open in RAM.
3. CPU. Allows quicker number crunching.
4. Hard drive. Faster access speeds helps when loading new maps, loading games etc...
There's no point in having a gig of RAM and a 3000 P4 if you have a Radeon 9200. Games will still run like crap and look like crap. No point having a 3000+ and the fasted hard drive if you have 256 of RAM. You get the idea.
Hope that helps.
The particular benchmarks we're talking about can be found at http://www.futuremark.com/
I believe they have demos but some tests and functionality may be disabled.
cheers
What more RAM does is allows Windows to cram more of your open programs into memory, thus allowing them to run at RAM speeds. Versus swap file speeds, which is millions of times slower than RAM.
A P4 2.4 isn't terrible, even for gaming. The biggest parts, in my own oppinion, for gaming, are in this order of importance:
1. Video card. It drives everything.
2. RAM. Allows your whole game to open in RAM.
3. CPU. Allows quicker number crunching.
4. Hard drive. Faster access speeds helps when loading new maps, loading games etc...
There's no point in having a gig of RAM and a 3000 P4 if you have a Radeon 9200. Games will still run like crap and look like crap. No point having a 3000+ and the fasted hard drive if you have 256 of RAM. You get the idea.
Hope that helps.
The particular benchmarks we're talking about can be found at http://www.futuremark.com/
I believe they have demos but some tests and functionality may be disabled.
cheers
- Status
