better for 1gb good stuff or 2gb ok stuff?

kmistry · 8 May 2006 at 10:40

hi there, needing new RAM for my new rig next month, not an overclocker especially with RAM, dont know where to start, so would it be better, if i got, 2 x 1gb corsair vaule select, or 2x512 of either crucial ballistix or 2 x 512 corsair xm2 3200 pro.

Bearing in mind that my processor will be probably be a8n/k8n) with an a64 x2 3800 ?

if i do choose the latter RAM, would it really make more difference if i got the OK value select stuff bearing in mind that it was 2gb? will be using the computer for gaming/final year uni work (video editing/photoshop)

MeatLoaf · 8 May 2006 at 11:19

Id get 2gb, as more ram will come in useful for games. Ive got the Geil value, which is a decent set.

hp7909 · 8 May 2006 at 11:28

MeatLoaf said:
Id get 2gb, as more ram will come in useful for games. Ive got the Geil value, which is a decent set.

I agree with above.

TBH's Value RAM is just as good, if your not overclocking the hell out of your system. & CAS3 kits have been known to run fine @ CAS2.5, 1T, etc on A64 systems

kmistry · 8 May 2006 at 11:29

i've just seen the gskill 2x512 stuff, and though i dont know that much about RAM, it comes with good timings 2-3-3-6. Would it be faster to haev 2x512 RAM with good timings, or 2x1gb with not so good (is it 'loose') timings ? - will it really make enough of a difference for me to be able to notice it ?

kmistry · 8 May 2006 at 11:30

hp7909 said:
I agree with above.

TBH's Value RAM is just as good, if your not overclocking the hell out of your system. & CAS3 kits have been known to run fine @ CAS2.5, 1T, etc on A64 systems

hmmm is it quite easy to change the timings from 2t to 1t ? and from cas 3 to cas 2.5 ?

hp7909 · 8 May 2006 at 11:37

kmistry said:
hmmm is it quite easy to change the timings from 2t to 1t ? and from cas 3 to cas 2.5 ?

Yes it is.

Find the 'Memory Configuration' page or tab in the BIOS and change it to MANUAL instead of AUTO. On some motherboards like Asus A8V Deluxe (mine

), I can set, say CAS to 2.5 and leave the rest to AUTO, getting 2.5-3-3-8. 1T command is under an ENABLE/DISABLE menu, therefore I disable it to get 1T, etc.

What I suggest you do is resserach the motherboard you will get, i.e. visit the manufacturer website and download the manual (PDF)

kmistry · 8 May 2006 at 11:41

but then i take it that not all manufacturers allow this (or do they) ?

Plus is it safe to be playing around with this kinda stuff, in case i damage the components and stuff (im only a student

, cant really afford to mess up my hardware !)

hp7909 · 8 May 2006 at 11:59

I can confidently say that all motherboards allow this, thanks to competition/users demanding/& a fail-safe in case a component's not happy with a particular setting/etc. Someone correct me if I’m wrong, but even the G.SKill or 'GOOD-STUFF' RAM you are talking about, you will have to go into the BIOS to change the settings manually. If you just stick them in, the motherboard (BIOS) might just use its own default settings if in AUTO mode.

Most PC components (RAM, processors, etc), shut themselves off or simply restart (returning to default/factory settings) if not happy with a particular setting/etc.

kmistry · 8 May 2006 at 12:22

kool,

thanks a lot for your help! just wanted to make sure like, dont wanna fry my new equipment, moments after i buy it....so it looks like im going to get reading and start on the CPU overclocking, as i read that the x2 3800 clocks nicely with the freezer 64 (though i better read how to do this......)

thanks dudes

Teknodeamon · 8 May 2006 at 22:41

2gb all the way imo

Ladforce · 8 May 2006 at 23:31

i had a good 1gb kit and changed to a 2gb kit after about a month of games stuttering at high texture levels. the 2gb makes games a lot smoother if you run stuff in the background eg. BT, mIRC etc..