AthlonXP and RAM help

[Emultra]

What RAM type should I use for a 2600-2800XP? Is 768Mb enough these days or ought I to go with 1Gb?

I also need to get a good fan and paste, any recommendations? I won't be overclocking very much, if at all, so I don't need a power-hungry monster, just something that will do the job reliably and efficiently.

 

[Jolt13]

Windows XP recuires 256mb ram but it is recommended that you have 512. I have 512mb and it is more than enough. Only thing you might need 1gig of fram for is when multitasking and if you multitask youd rather have intel P4 than XP.

Artic Silver 5 is a good choice of paste but since you probably arent gonna oc than Artic Silver 3 will hold. I assume that you have socket A? XP usually run in socket A so I think you got socket A. For HSF I recommend the Zelman all copper silent cooler. Let me see if I can find the name for it.

 

[Fern]

Originally posted by: Emultra
What RAM type should I use for a 2600-2800XP? Is 768Mb enough these days or ought I to go with 1Gb?

I also need to get a good fan and paste, any recommendations? I won't be overclocking very much, if at all, so I don't need a power-hungry monster, just something that will do the job reliably and efficiently.

PC 3200 would be good. You'll only need PC2700 for that cpu, but pc3200 is about the same price.

I see in other posts that you're looking at an nForce2 mobo (like the NF7-S), 2 x 512 MB w/b good as it'll run in DC more efficiently than 1 x 512MB & 1 x 256MB, or 3x 256MB.


Fern

 

[Emultra]

I believe a stick of 512 used to cost like three or four times two 256 ones, but I guess it's cheaper now. Seems like the wise thing to go with.

What is run in DC?

Is there a specific model of nForce2 to get? I don't know much about motherboards but it sounds right. Thanks for your help.

BTW, do I need to think about DDR2 and stuff like that, or is it simply Crucial or Corsair PC3200 or something that I should look at?

 

[Aeridyne]

if you have an nforce 2 board, it can do what is called dual channel for the ram. get a kit of pc 3200 that is two 512 sticks. make sure it says they are dual channel compatible. then when you get your board it will tell you in the manual which banks to put them in to run them in dual channel mode. btw dual channel mode is faster than standard memory mode. do not need to get ddr2 because the nforce 2 boards dont support it. 3200 is the highest it supports w/o overclocking. personally i have the corsair twin x platinum 3200 512x2 set and it is good. as for the board if you arent overclocking or messing with your ram timings them any of them will do. just pick one you like. but use the latest drivers from the manufacturers web site i had a problem with the gigabyte 7n400-l when it first came out with the sound, but after a few months they finally fixed it with the chipset software.

 

[Fern]

Originally posted by: Emultra
I believe a stick of 512 used to cost like three or four times two 256 ones, but I guess it's cheaper now. Seems like the wise thing to go with. Well, if the 2 X 512MB are priced too high in Sweden, go with 256MB, it'll work, but not as efficiently/fast as the 2 x 512MB

What is run in DC? DC = dual channel

Is there a specific model of nForce2 to get? I don't know much about motherboards but it sounds right. Thanks for your help. The NF7-S v.2 (This is different from the NF-S2, similar name different mobo, so be careful) is a good choice. A pretty good budget nForce2 mobo is the Shuttle AN35N-Ultra, it doesn't have the integrated SoundStorm or SATA. No biggie if you don't need it.

BTW, do I need to think about DDR2 and stuff like that, or is it simply Crucial or Corsair PC3200 or something that I should look at? Forget the DDR2 stuff, just simple Crucial or Corsair 184-pin, DDR ram)

Fern

 

[Emultra]

That narrows it down nicely. I have an SB 1024 Player from my older computer (XP1600+, burnt up), so I could go without the mobo sound thing. What's the SATA?

 

[Sonic587]

What kinds of apps will you be running on this machine? A basic windows environment handles very well with 512MB. However, if you intend to be gaming, I'd really contemplate jumping to 1gig.

 

[MasterMorpheus]

It's a faster interface for Hard Disks

 

[Emultra]

I will be gaming. Generals, Doom 3, HL2, Stalker and such.

 

[Shenkoa]

I dont reccomend AS3 or AS5 for long term use. For a basic rig, you want to use Artic Cerimique.

 

[FlameDeer]

2 x 512MB normal PC3200 memory is good choice.