RAM Upgrade

[mcarlg]

I have 2 questions:

1. I run on XP and have 512 gb ram in my computer now, 2 x 256 and desperately need an upgrade. I found DDR2 PC6400 dual channel ram at both 2 gb (2 x 1024) and 4 gb (2 x 2048) both similarly priced. Is it plausable to max my computer on ram with just the two sticks of 2 gb or do i need to fill all channels with 1 gb?

2. My current ram is just DDR ram and runs and 400 mhz. Is there a compatability issue if I install more DDR2 ram with 800 mhz speeds?

Thanks for the help.

 

[saltynay]

1. Depends on your motherboard + xp doesn't really need more then 2gb by the home user. Vista is again pretty well covered by 2gb but 4gb is generally seen as the optimum but only if gaming.

2. They are physically different it won't got in the slot

Its generally best if you link to products in question so that I can have a little looky and tell you if they are a good brand/ model/ speeds

 

[mcarlg]

The 2 gb ram:
Corsair Dual Channel TWINX 2048MB PC6400 DDR2 800MHz E.P.P. Memory (2 x 1024) TWIN2X2048-6400C4 at TigerDirect.com

The 4 gb ram:
Corsair Dual Channel TWINX 4096MB PC6400 DDR2 800MHz Memory (2 x 2048MB) TWIN2X4096-6400C5 at TigerDirect.com

I do use this computer for gaming, but nothing too demanding. And the only reason I chose these two products is because I dont think I need the high end stuff and also because of the price.

 

[Hefemeister]

What motherboard do you have? does it support ddr2? If you got 4gb win xp would only be able to use 3.25go of them.

 

[mcarlg]

Im not sure of the exact specs of my motherboard, but I ran CrucialScan and it stated I could use DDR2.

 

[Hefemeister]

just to be sure run cpu-z it will tell us everything we need to know CPUID it will tell you your mb model and the current ram you are running.

 

[saltynay]

You can't currently have DDR ram then as it is physically different to DDR2 the pins are in different places so it will never fit in the slot I know of only one board series that supported both ddr2 and ddr at the same time because it had two sets of memory slots. You probably only need 1gb then if you don't game it will be the cpu or hdd or software based that is letting you down if you use more then that on xp. Those are good memory sticks I use them and its quite a nice deal for the 2gb and won't harm anything but your wallet to get 2gb instead of 1gb.

 

[mcarlg]

I ran the CPU-Z. F5 screenshot wont work for some reason, but heres the specs:

Motherboard
Manufacturer: Dell Inc.
Model: 0M3918
Chipset: Intel i915P/i915G
Southbridge: Intel 82801FB (ICH6)

Memory: Slots 1 & 2 (Same for slots 1 & 2 besides the serial number)
Type: DDR2
Module Size: 256 MBytes
Max Bandwidth PC2-3200 (200 MHz)
Manufacturer: Samsung
Part Number: M3 78T3354BG0-CCC


... so yes, my current ram is ddr2... my mistake

The computer is four years old, so it might be time for a totally new computer, not just more RAM.

 

[saltynay]

Not really if your happy with it atm and you obviously aren't craving a huge boost (for gaming or software needs) the extra ram will make everything quite a lot faster in general. just make sure you take out that current ram and throw it away or else your new faster ram will be downclocked to match the 200mhz performance

 

[mcarlg]

Awesome. Thanks for the help.