Can 400MHZ mem go on a 400Mhz Dell Board, when Dell Specs a 266Mhz Chip

[dkube]

I look forward to being flamed as this is probably a dumb question, but how do we learn-by the experts! I'm here to help a friend, his wife, a 1yr old, and more, to save them a PC which needed a new power supply (it's in), and want to make it faster. I look to your help.

Here goes: He has a Dell Dimension 2350, Dell says 512MB DDR SDRAM, PC2100/266Mhz, non-parity, unbuffered memory max per slot, but that WAS in 2003!

Board allows 400Mhz. It has on-board graphics(max 64MB shared - no AGP slot), has Celeron 1.7 - 400Mhz externally, but can be upgraded to 2.7(pentium), I will update the BIOS.

So the question is, can I install the 400 Mhz memory, with the same specs, or what would you do, if you had the chance?

You can see the original specs at dell.com, service tag 44SN921, to see the original system configuration.

 

[mechBgon]

The safe bet is to get some Crucial PC2100. Because it's not a dual-channel chipset (i845GL), you could plunk a 512MB module in there along with the 128MB for 640MB total. That ought to make a big difference. http://www.mwave.com/mwave/viewspec.hmx?scriteria=BA08546

Why not a faster module? Voltage is one reason, you could get DDR400 and find that it's not quite content at the 2.5 volts that this motherboard undoubtedly delivers. If you want to just do this once and never have to touch it again, then I'd do the Crucial PC2100.

Good luck

 

[dkube]

Do you think there would be much difference if I drop out the 128 and replace it with another 512? Thanks

 

[mechBgon]

Originally posted by: dkube
Do you think there would be much difference if I drop out the 128 and replace it with another 512? Thanks

If they work the system hard enough to run it out of 640MB, then the extra 512MB would save it from having to fall back on hard-disk storage. Scenarios where I could see that happening would be video editing, photo editing, newer games and simulators, stuff like that.

It's a shame the system can't take an add-in video card, because onboard Intel video is yucky. I guess a guy could slap in a PCI-based video card like a little FX5200, but that's still sort of pathetic.

 

[dkube]

I agree on the video. What stinks is the mother you can actually see the pinouts on the motherboard where an AGP slot would go. They saved about $3, but really it cost them in lost profits on video cards they could have sold to upgraders who are Dell loyalists.
Oh well.

Just a theoretical question. If the voltage was at 2.5, and the memory could work at 2.5v, then what would happen with the higher speed memory. Would it still be subject to the bus speed of the processor and motherboard?

 

[mechBgon]

Just a theoretical question. If the voltage was at 2.5, and the memory could work at 2.5v, then what would happen with the higher speed memory. Would it still be subject to the bus speed of the processor and motherboard?

In a lot of cases, it would work.

I don't necessarily trust voltage ratings, however. I picked up a PC2700 module from a cheaper maker, rated 2.5 volts, and certainly it should work fine at PC2100 speeds. I installed it in a computer at work, and the user began having random errors. Replaced it with genuine Crucial PC2100, problem solved. This was PQI brand, if you're curious. I think it's just looking for more voltage than that motherboard provides, and it's not adjustable on that model.

I also ran across a complete no-go situation where an Intel-brand motherboard (845PEBT2) could not even POST when the faster RAM was installed with a slower-bussed CPU. Turns out it's even in the owner's manual. That's another reason I'd stick with the speed that it came with.

Anyway, I can only imagine how bad it must perform with a 1.7GHz Celeron and 128MB of RAM, some of which is being used by the onboard video. So between the additional RAM and the move to a Pentium4, it ought to please them. If there's any spyware/viruses to remove, that'll help too Good luck with the project!

 

[dkube]

Thanks for the suggestions. I'm going to replace the video and start with the new 512MB chip. 640MB with a dedicated video should please them for what they need. I'm going to see if I can bump the video to a 256MB card. Stay tuned.
David