AMD 2400XP and SDRAM 133mhz

[rookie523]

Hi,

Will the AMD 2400 XP+ chip work on an ECS K7s5a Pro motherboard with 512MB PC133mhz Ram?
Or does the ram have to be DDR?

How much more performance(percentage wise) will I get by moving to an ASUS A7V8X-X and 2x 256MB DDR 333mhz ram?

Thanks

 

[Harvey]

The info for on ECS' site says all rev's support both DDR RAM or SD-RAM, but not both at once. Choose your revision at the link for more info.

 

[myocardia]

Well, I've heard it said that using DDR only gives a 5-10% performance boost, but that seems a bit ludicrous to me, since you've got twice the speed with PC2100. You'd have a much better motherboard if you got yourself an Asus A7V8X-X, and with PC2700, you'd be able to OC the chip a little.

 

[rookie523]

Ahh I think I was unsure of the Bus speed and its effect on the CPU speed.

I was thinking that the AMD 2400 XP runs at 266 bus speed.. and that the ram should run at the same speed...


Thanks for replying.

 

[myocardia]

Well, my XP2400 has a 266mhz bus. That's why I said that with PC2700 (333mhz) ram, you'd be able to overclock it a bit. If you bought PC2100 (266mhz), you wouldn't be able to OC. Plus, I've had absolutely horrible experience with ECS boards, and good luck with Asus and Epox.

 

[Harvey]

Originally posted by: rookie523
Ahh I think I was unsure of the Bus speed and its effect on the CPU speed.

I was thinking that the AMD 2400 XP runs at 266 bus speed.. and that the ram should run at the same speed...

In newer boards, the FSB for the chip and the RAM are independent. From my personal experience, I'll take a board with an nVidia or VIA chipset over an SIS chipset, anytime.

As much as I like the feature set on the nVidias, my experiences with VIA's has been easier, overall, for compatibility, and there isn't that much difference in speed.

 

[rookie523]

Thanks for the replies.

The thing is I already have 512MB PC133mhz Ram and I got AMD 2400+ cpu ordered...

But I don't want to spend $200CDN to get the 2400+ working at full speed..
An ECS k7s5a board costs about $56CDN in Toronto and it'll save me a bundle using my existing RAM...

This is computer is for my wife and probably won't be upgraded further than that.

Currently her computer has AMD 1.33ghz Thunderbird and Abit motherboard (doesn't support 133mhz bus speed.)

 

[buckmasterson]

I've used this board on 7 or 8 builds and it works with either DDR or SDRAM just fine. The processor is so much better you won't won't even be thinking about the RAM. The nice thing about this board is the memory choice. When you get the money the DDR is going to be cheaper and you can buy more...

Beware, this can be problem board. Some are outstanding, others are junk. They are a little picky with the RAM type also. Don't hesitate to RMA it if it acts weird.

 

[myocardia]

Dang, you didn't tell us it was for your wife! PC133 is plenty fast enough for e-mail!

 

[rookie523]

LOL...

I'd laugh harder if my wife wasn't into gaming.
But for now, she just wants to make sure that her computer runs Everquest 2 fine.
I'll be upgrading her video card to ATI 9600XT (friend works there and gets 40% discount)...

 

[Harvey]

Considering that new PC133 RAM sells for almost twice the price of PC2100 DDR, you may be able to sell your used RAM to someone who needs it for enough to cover most of the difference. If you have Office Max in Canada, they occasionally have 256 MB sticksl of Kingston PC2100 for $9.99 US after rebate. Don't know if they do the same in Canadian prices. < Update > Here it is on line, and it's in this week's U.S. flyers, too.

OTOH, I don't know if your wife will even realize any improved speed over a good 1.33 GHz T-bird. That's not a shabby machine if you don't need a heavy gaming system. If your wife has any serious data (business, etc) that really matters, and you really want to give her something useful, give her a second hard drive, a mobile rack (slide in tray for an IDE drive), and Norton Ghost (included with System Works Pro). That will let her clone her drive so if her main drive fails, she has a working backup with no work. If you understand the importance of backup, Ghost is your friend.

 

[AkumaX]

your 2400+ will run w/ k7s5a pro and 512mb pc133

since you're a rookie P) there are some things you should know

there is a lot of confusion with the naming specifications in our computer world today

the 2400+ runs on 266mhz fsb

the 2400+ is actualy 2.0ghz (15 x 133) but it is rated as a "2.4ghz" cpu

the bus is 266mhz, however it is double rated, meaning that it actually runs at 133mhz

your pc133 will run with the 2400+ at its rated speed, you wont have any performance loss

pc2100 is something along the lines of: "your memory will move data at a speed of 2.1gb (pc2100), which is roughly equivalent to 133mhz)

therefore pc2100 ~ pc133 in terms of speed

but performance is not...

 

[robcy]

Go for it. I might be the last ECS fan in the world. Yea, I admit it. the K7S5A boards are great. Not many bells, but I have had no problems with them. I ran a 2600+ on my V1.0 w/o any problems. 2400+/ECS/PC133 will about the same as a 2200+/ECS/DDR2100 not a big difference if you already have the PC133, you can always upgrade to cheap DDR2100 up the road. NF2/VIA chipsets are only slightly faster, but do have the ability to accept a wider range of XP and DDR speeds. Your selected system is both economical, and plenty fast. Enjoy