is PC3200 RAM worth the hype ?

[tufreeh]

Comparing the pc3200 and the pc2700 ram, is there any significant increase in performance issues as such .. i had originally planned of gettin corsair twin xms platinum 3200s but heard from somewhere that they aren't worth the extra dough and am better off with the pc2700 series .. thoughts ppl ? .....

 

[Inaris]

I tend to think that if you pair the components with the correct Mobo it's worth it. But in the end, it comes down to the bottom line. If you don't have the cash, get what you can afford, and don't worry about it.

 

[kboy]

I was wondering with my setup if I went from 512 pc2100 to 512 pc2700 would there be a noticable difference. I had 1g of pc2100 but recently the 512 stick died so now I have 2 256 sticks of pc2100. Just curious if it was worth the upgrade. My mobo will support 400 fsb but the Cpu will only support 333, Bummer

 

[ekÆsine]

i think i read somewhere that in real world testing pc3200 has a performance increase of 7-15% over pc2700. i would get whatever is cheaper unless they both cost about the same, in that case get pc3200.

what CPU is it? you may be able to set that 333fsb cpu to 400fsb and just decrese the multiplier. cpu and mobo fsb should be the same to maximize performance.

for example with XP2500 which run at 333 you can easily overclock them by setting fsb from 333 to 400 using the retail version which come with a heatsink/fan. you would end up with an XP3200.

or if you didn't want to overclock it but wanted to increase front side bus to 400 than set the multiplier, from i beleive, 11.5 or 11 to 9. you would end up with an XP2500 still but fsb would be now 400.

lots of people who bought the XP2500 barton ($92 retail version) have confirmed this. it may be possible to do that with other XP 333fsb CPU's

http://secure.newegg.com/app/CustratingReview.asp?item=19-103-379

 

[g5orbust]

well, the numbers really dont try and lie to you. PC3200(400Mhz) is indeed speedier than PC2700(333MHz). The difference between the two isnt jaw droppingly large, but you will notice a difference, especially if your mobo is dual channel.

 

[kboy]

So ya think it would be worth laying out 90 bucks for a stick of 512mb PC2700 to replace the PC2100? I also use Kingston ram or should I switch to Corsair?

 

[ekÆsine]

probably not unless you have less than 256MB of PC2100. kingston and corsair are both good brands, but if you are happy with the memory you have now don't switch to another brand.

the price for the performance difference isn't going to knock your socks off. and if you mix the two speeds they will both run at the lowest speed, their wouln't be much point in upgrading like that.

i would hold off until you buy another system to get the memory. when that time comes it would make more sense to decide which to buy. IMO if you don't overclock your sysem go for the cheaper kingston

 

[g5orbust]

well, if your mobo and proc support PC2700 RAM on a 333Mhz bus then get it.

If not (if it runs a 266MHz bus) PC2700 wont do you any help, nor will pc3200, as both would just underclock themselves to meet your system bus speed.

 

[Alexander]

Hey kboy,

This is of the memory topic, but....

I am assuming that you have version 1.6 of the Asus mobo. I don't know if you know this or not, but there is a bios update that will jump that board to support 400 fsb. I just got version 2.0 of the same board and the old difference between mine and yours is that mine comes with the newer bios already flashed.

It's available for download at the Asus website.

Alexander

 

[kboy]

According to my ASUS update utility it says A7N8X2.0 deluxe ACPI BIOS Rev 1003. I thought I had checked the version on the Mobo itself and saw the 2.0 ver.