Am i losing my memory?

Yozz76

Yozz76

Yozz76

Associate
Joined
13 Aug 2007
Posts
1,229
Location
Wide Ness
Hi there (apologies for the thread title :) ),

I'm thinking about purchasing new ram to replace the current 2x1gb sticks of Hyundai PC2-4300 that i have:eek:.

I feel i need to replace because besides 'assuming' that they are rubbish sticks, i have recently overclockd my cpu slightly and i think that my mobo has auto adjusted the ram settings in accordance? CPU-Z suggests that max bandwith is 266MHz but my timings are as follows:

Frequency: 300MHz
FSB:DRAM: 1:1
CAS#Latency: 5.0
RAS#to CAS#Delay: 5
RAS# Precharge: 5
Cycle Time (Tras): 31
Bank Cycle Time (Trc): 19

Now i don't actually know what any of the above means but the frequency reads 300MHz, should i be concerned given that the max should be 266?

I am looking at possibly buying either of the following:

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MY-088-CR&groupid=701&catid=8&subcat=144

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MY-034-GL&groupid=701&catid=8&subcat=144

My mobo is an asus P5NSLI and officially supports PC5300 but can i do better than the two options i'm looking at? Also, am i actually limited to the Geil option because i understand my mobo won't go to 2.2v vdimm that the crucial sticks suggest?
 
^ ^ ^

Is slow on here today! Would appreciate any advice guys as i'm looking to order today.

Many thanks.
 
Well it appears that you're overclocking your RAM. Nowt wrong with that if it's stable. Test it with MemTest86 to ensure it really is stable. If so, leave it if you want, or get new RAM if you really want.
 
ByteJuggler said:
Well it appears that you're overclocking your RAM. Nowt wrong with that if it's stable. Test it with MemTest86 to ensure it really is stable. If so, leave it if you want, or get new RAM if you really want.
Click to expand...

Thanks for your reply. If i have overclocked it, i've done so by accident! Has been at those settings for a few days now and although i've not ran memtest i've not noticed any issues with my pc.

However, tell me if i'm wrong, it's not very good quality ram is it? I have decided that i would like to replace it with ram from the top end of the market but am not sure which? I would like to know if my mobo will accept anything above the officially supported PC2 5300? If not, i know i can't go past 2.1v vdimm so which ram would therefore be my best option?
 
From a quick look around the net it appears that the board can run PC6400, providing it doesn't need more than 2.1v.

But PC6400 would be overkill since you won't be able to clock the FSB over ~300mhz.

The Geil PC5300 is pretty much what you need.
 
Yozz76 said:
Thanks for your reply. If i have overclocked it, i've done so by accident! Has been at those settings for a few days now and although i've not ran memtest i've not noticed any issues with my pc.

However, tell me if i'm wrong, it's not very good quality ram is it? I have decided that i would like to replace it with ram from the top end of the market but am not sure which? I would like to know if my mobo will accept anything above the officially supported PC2 5300? If not, i know i can't go past 2.1v vdimm so which ram would therefore be my best option?
Click to expand...

Well, as long as the RAM actually works and keeps working (especially when overclocked) then it might be argued it's at least of sufficient quality for what you're doing. Poor quality RAM tends to die easily and/or don't overclock well. So, if you're not having particular issues with your RAM (e.g. it's slow, giving errors or whatever) then I don't see the point in replacing it with something of "better quality" just for the sake of it. "If it ain't broke then don't fix it" and all that. Anyway, some of the other posters have made suitable suggestions for replacements if you really want to change your RAM. :-)
 
Cob said:
From a quick look around the net it appears that the board can run PC6400, providing it doesn't need more than 2.1v.

But PC6400 would be overkill since you won't be able to clock the FSB over ~300mhz.

The Geil PC5300 is pretty much what you need.
Click to expand...

Thanks. Do you know why it will not clock over 300MHz?
 
It's an nVidia 570 SLi chipset limitation.

You may get a little more than 300mhz, but probably not much.
 
Cob said:
It's an nVidia 570 SLi chipset limitation.

You may get a little more than 300mhz, but probably not much.
Click to expand...

Cheers Cob. I've managed to find the spec for this board and can post some specifics as follows:

CPU Interface: LGA775-based Pentium 4, Pentium 4 XE, Celeron D,
Pentium D, and Core 2 Duo processors.
Chipset: NVIDIA nForce 570SLI - SPP (C19-A3)
NVIDIA nForce 570SLI - MCP (MCP51-A2)
Front Side Bus: 1066 / 800 / 533 MHz
Front Side Bus Speeds: Auto, 533MHz ~ 1600MHz in 1MHz increments
Memory Speeds: Auto, 400MHz ~ 1200MHz in 1MHz increments
Memory Timings: Auto, CAS, tRCD, tRP, tRAS, tRC, Command Rate
PCI Bus Speeds: Fixed
PCI Express Bus Speeds: Default, 100MHz ~ 150MHz in 1MHz increments
Set Processor Multiplier: Auto, (1X step increments for EE or X series)
LDT Multipliers: 1x, 2x, 3x, 3.5x, 4x, 5x
Core Voltage: Auto, 0.8375V to 1.6000V (in 0.0125V increments).
DRAM Voltage: Auto, 1.8V to 2.1V (in 0.1V increments)
SPP Chipset Voltage: 1.4V. 1.5V
CPU Termination: 1.25V, 1.35V
Memory Slots: (4) x DIMM, max. 4GB per DIMM
max. 16GB total system memory
DDR2 667/533, non-ECC, unbuffered memory

I notice that it will support DDR2 667 and 533 and also states memory speeds as 400MHz ~ 1200MHz. From what you suggest, does that mean if i stuck in a 667 stick it would only function at 300MHz? In which case, i've got my memory at 300MHz and may as well stick with that.

Apologies for dragging this on but i consider all this as an education:).
 
You can run the memory faster than the FSB. So even with your maximum ~300mhz FSB you could still in theory set your memory as high as 600mhz (1200mhz). But being restricted to 2.1v means you'll not get much more than 425mhz, maybe 450mhz (850-900mhz) if the memory can handle it.

You would gain a small boost by running the Geil at 333-350mhz (667-700mhz) and its 4-4-4-12 timings. Whether it's worth the money upgrading is questionable. I'd spend the 50 quid on a Core 2 Duo E2160 instead.
 
Cob said:
You can run the memory faster than the FSB. So even with your maximum ~300mhz FSB you could still in theory set your memory as high as 600mhz (1200mhz). But being restricted to 2.1v means you'll not get much more than 425mhz, maybe 450mhz (850-900mhz) if the memory can handle it.

You would gain a small boost by running the Geil at 333-350mhz (667-700mhz) and its 4-4-4-12 timings. Whether it's worth the money upgrading is questionable. I'd spend the 50 quid on a Core 2 Duo E2160 instead.
Click to expand...

Again, thank you. However, i currently have the c2d e6400 clocked to 2.4GHz. Is this not a superior chip compared to the e2160? All things considered, i'm now thinking that an x1950pro gfx card is the obvious upgrade for me at this moment in time.

Appreciation to all that have helped me understand more about these things.

Yozz.
 
Ah I assumed you were running a Pentium ( :rolleyes: @ me).

Any yeah a better card would make a bigger difference than the memory.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom