3 Stick of RAM disables dual channel?

[Biggie578]

I have 2 sticks of RAM running at dual channel and if i get a third stick of ram of a different capacity does this disable the dual channel?

Can i have 4x512 running at 2 dual channel?

Can i have 2 different sets of dual channel ram will they both work on dual channel.

 

[SHAWN]

You need pairs of the same size to run dual channel of the same type of memory.

 

[Biggie578]

can i have 2 pairs of differnet memory (different capacitys/same), each running dual channel?

 

[Nubius]

you're completely misunderstanding dual channel dude. RAM in itself is not dual channel. The act of having two identicle sticks allows your motherboard to utilize dual channel with those two sticks.

You can't have one pair "running dual channel" and then a completely seperate pair "running dual channel", it doesn't work that way. Listen to the name of it.....DUAL channel, it means 2......two channels, ALWAYS, 2 pairs of channels would no longer be two channels.

can i have 2 pairs of differnet memory (different capacitys/same), each running dual channel?

no

Can i have 4x512 running at 2 dual channel?

it wouldn't be '2 dual channel' it'd simply be 'dual channel'.......some motherboards would allow you to do that if you used 4x512mb, but it's not guaranteed. Some motherboards will even downclock PC3200 RAM to PC2700 when all 4 banks are filled up depending on if it's double sided memory or not.

Dual channel is a single thing. It's either running, or it's not. You can't have "more than one dual channel" going, that doesn't even make sense.

 

[Nitestick]

Nubius has pretty much summed things up. also by adding a third stick you would most likely not be able to run dual channel (although i was told the other day it is possible)

 

[Nubius]

although i was told the other day it is possible

yeah that was me, but I believe that may be limited to the socket A boards that only had 3 slots. And even then it wasn't completely guaranteed, BUT there were a few occasions where if you had 2x256 and 1x512 that were the same make and model, it would recognize it as 1gb running in dual channel. Wasn't very frequent though

 

[john3]

weird :S

 

[Trifid]

Just to add, you can have 2 pairs of sticks different sizes in dual channel. e.g. 2x 256 and 2x 512 in dual channel.

 

[Biggie578]

Nubius:
You can't have one pair "running dual channel" and then a completely seperate pair "running dual channel"

Either it sounds like you are contracticting each other, or im misunderstanding

 

[dreaming<>demon]

I have a gigabyte 754pin mobo it has three slots for RAM, so I would be best to just use two slots, and not three? I'm new to this, so please be patient.