Hello All, We're thinking about upgrading our 2 sticks of 1GB ram to 2 sticks of 2GB. First, is it better to do one stick of 4GB or 2 of 2? Second, I've done some research on the different types of RAM, but honestly..its really confusing. Where do you start with searching for ram for a specific motherboard, and what do you look for. Any help on this is much appreciated. Here is some information I copied from an info tool for our current config: Motherboard Manufacturer Gigabyte Technology Co., Ltd. Model P35-DS3L Chipset Vendor Intel Chipset Model P35/G33/G31 Chipset Revision A2 Southbridge Vendor Intel Southbridge Model 82801IB (ICH9) Southbridge Revision 02 System Temperature 29 °C BIOS Brand Award Software International, Inc. Version F6 Date 11/05/2007 Voltage CPU CORE 1.008 V DDR 1.856 V +3.3V 3.312 V +5V 4.973 V RAM Memory slots Total memory slots 4 Used memory slots 2 Free memory slots 2 Memory Type DDR2 Size 2048 MBytes Channels # Dual DRAM Frequency 400.0 MHz CAS# Latency (CL) 5 clocks RAS# to CAS# Delay (tRCD) 5 clocks RAS# Precharge (tRP) 5 clocks Cycle Time (tRAS) 12 clocks Command Rate (CR) 2T Physical Memory Memory Usage 58 % Total Physical 1.99 GB Available Physical 740 MB Total Virtual 7.99 TB Available Virtual 7.99 TB If we decide to do this upgrade, I would like to use some memory that 'just works'..if possible. Could anybody recommend any good choices? I looked through the manufacturers recommendations, but I was unable to find any of the 2GB sticks.. Thanks again
Simply put, the choice you make when purchasing RAM (memory) depends on what type of memory your motherboard can support. For example, newer motherboards support the latest memory sticks, namely, DDR3. DDR and DDR2 are older types of memory and are soon becoming obsolete, as DDR4 is under way. Essentially, DDR3 allows for faster data rate transfers (Mbps) at higher frequencies, while the previous two offered lower specs. Still however, DDR2 speeds aren't so slow. So, now that you've hopefully understood an ounce of the fundamentals, let me explain why it would be better to purchase 2 sticks of 2GB rather than 1 stick of 4GB. A cool technology implemented in motherboard memory modules is Dual Channel. Dual Channel allows for increased bandwidth transfer when using two or more memory modules in separate transfer channels (more info here). In Laymen's terms, 2 highways would ease up traffic and provide for a faster ride than would one highway . So 2 sticks of 2GB is your best choice since you'd utilize Dual Channel. One last important thing you need to understand when purchasing memory. Clock speeds. Basically, the higher the faster. It would take too much time for me to explain it, and also, i'm not 100% sure how to! When buying memory you'll see numbers and letters in this form: PC2 8500, PC3 1500... (PC2 is for DDR2, PC3 is for DDR3...). Anyway, these are just letters and numbers which represent data rate, and for which type of memory (DDR2 or 3...). PC2 8500 represents a data rate of 1066 MT/s (megatransfers/second) at a clock speed of 533 MHz, which is the maximum your motherboard can handle (i checked). Currently, you're running memory with clock speeds of 400MHz, which is PC2 6400 with a data rate of 800 MT/s. Table here. I hope that relieved your curiosity. Check out PC2 8500 prices, and PC2 6400. Personally, i like these. $50 after rebate.
Hello, First, Thanks for your answer, it definitely does help me understand a little more about memory. I'm going to save your response for future reference.. As I mentioned before, we were probably just going to replace the old sticks with this new memory, but after looking online, it looks like there's really no chance of getting any money for the old stuff. Would it work at all just to buy two new sticks of 2GB and add them in beside the other two? Thanks.
You can certainly install new memory with older one, but what will happen is the old memory will bottleneck the new memory. You'll be running at 400MHz as opposed to the speeds of your new memory which i assume would be higher. If you buy newer faster memory i suggest taking out the old ones and installing the new ones.
