Is dual channel DDR worth it?

[TheMasterofallFPSs]

I'm in the market for a new motherboard, but I need something settled. I guy I know is pushing me to get a board that does dual channel DDR, he says that you can get 30% performance increases with it. That's fine and dandy, but I've read places that dual channel is really only worth it for Athlon 64 or P4 machines, and that the performance hike isn't that big with an Althon XP system, which is what I'll be running.

So, is dual channel really worth the extra money or should I hold out?

 

[BlindBartimaeus]

First off I wouldn't consider anything other than a A64 machine right now but as far as the other goes it will make some difference but not 30 percent. I have 512mb one stick in that I used to have 2 X 512 in dual channel...there is some difference but not that much.

Don't sweat it.

 

[mechBgon]

For AthlonXP:

Assuming you'll use an add-in video card (not onboard video), there isn't a lot of call for dual DDR in its own right for a typical home-enthusiast-gamer person. Look at the chart on this page for a quick glance at where it will, and won't, help. You can see from the numbers in blue that it does find its niche in certain situations, but they don't appear to be the stuff most of us do (unless you work in Pro Engineer and 3DS Max a lot).

Flip side of that: the fancier nForce2 MCP-T southbridge is desirable, and almost always comes paired up with the dual-DDR Ultra400 northbridge, not the basic single-DDR non-Ultra. So if you want the fancy southbridge, you're going to end up with dual DDR at the northbridge anyway. Full list-O-rama of nForce2 boards here (IGP means Integrated Graphics Processor, or onboard video).

I guess I'm guilty of assuming you're looking at nForce2 boards, since they're popular for their flexible overclocking capabilities. Was that on-target, or are you looking at something else?

 

[TheMasterofallFPSs]

Thanks for the replies.

I'm not sure what mobo I'm getting at the moment, just something for Athlon XP. And I don't really have the money to fork over for an Athlon 64 system right now. Maybe next time.

 

[mechBgon]

If you haven't been considering it already, the Shuttle AN35N Ultra is a low-priced nF2 Ultra400 board that has the basic MCP southbridge (so no Firewire, no hardware-accelerated audio, no inherent SATA support). At $55, it's a nice price AND it overclocks pretty well too. Pair that up with a mobile AthlonXP 2400+ or 2500+ and some PC3200 RAM or faster, and a normal-to-good heatsink/fan unit, and you should reach or exceed AthlonXP 3200+ speeds for a good price.

 

[Algere]

See for yourself if dual channel is worth it over single channel.

 

[BlindBartimaeus]

I think that if you read that it really proves what we are saying that it isn't that big of a deal. Is dual better...yes. If you only have a 512 stick of ram and dont want 2 256's to buy...it is not that good.

Depends on what you want.

With an AGP card it won't make as much difference.

 

[TheMasterofallFPSs]

Thanks guys. Well it looks like I'm gonna get a dual channel board anyway, cause I'm liking the look of that Abit NF7-S, and its not too bad in price.