Thread: Help understanding my memory

Hello,

I just installed a trial version of Everest, which inspects all the hardware on a system. I have a basic question concerning my memory modules, as noted in the Summary category of the Computer section and the SPD category of Motherboard section of the software. I'm hoping someone here is familiar with the software.

I have an older computer - Dell Dimension XPS Gen4. I upgraded the memory to what Dell's site said was 800 MHz modules, which are clearly faster than the computer bus. The bus is 266 MHz and the Front Side Bus is 1064 MHz (which I understand is just 266MHz somehow muliplied by 4). Anyhow, Everest clearly identified them in the Summary category as Corsair XMS2 CM2X1024-6400, and next to that it says "1 GB DDR2-800 DDR2 SDRAM", and then it lists what I understand to be a latency rating at 400 MHz and a rating at 270 MHz.

Then in the SPD category, it lists the memory speed as "DDR2-800 (400 MHz).

I realize it's probably overkill for my system, but do I have 800 MHz memory modules as advertised, OR is it 400 MHz? Or could it be just that the max speed I can get out of them is 400 MHz because of some of the outdated hardware in my system?

Thanks!!

Take a look here in the section "Specification standards". The table says it all.

modern PC hardware has the tendency to adjust. So, if you're using similar hardware, but one of it is slower, then the faster parts will adapt to the slower ones (aka bottlenecking in some way, actually).