Looking to O/C a Phenom II (550 or 720) what DDR2 or DDR3?

[alkemyst]

Looking for 2x2GB

This caught my eye at $65 AR
CORSAIR DOMINATOR 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TWIN2X4096-8500C5D

At $54:
The G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F2-8500CL5D-4GBPK - Retail

If I push G.SKill to $64 + shipping:
F2-8800CL5D-4GBPI at DDR2 1100, PC2 8800 speeds.

EDIT: DDR3 is an option too...the two motherboards I am looking at are
GIGABYTE GA-MA790X-UD4P
GIGABYTE GA-MA790XT-UD4P

 

[z1ggy]

Ive got that g skill memory and it OC's decent..got ddr2800 up to like 950ish speeds.

 

[alkemyst]

I didn't post about DDR2 800 sticks.

 

[Sylvanas]

Originally posted by: alkemyst
I didn't post about DDR2 800 sticks.

The point he made was that Gskill overclocked well, meaning in relation to your post the Gskill might also overclock well. :roll:

I'd get whatever is cheaper, both will be good. I have found in my testing at 800mhz 1t 5-5-5-15 is faster than 1066 2t 5-5-5-15 anyway. YMMV

 

[alkemyst]

Originally posted by: Sylvanas

Originally posted by: alkemyst
I didn't post about DDR2 800 sticks.

The point he made was that Gskill overclocked well, meaning in relation to your post the Gskill might also overclock well. :roll:

I'd get whatever is cheaper, both will be good. I have found in my testing at 800mhz 1t 5-5-5-15 is faster than 1066 2t 5-5-5-15 anyway. YMMV

sorry brah

I posted about two types above so I was wondering which works best.

what did you test?

 

[Sylvanas]

Originally posted by: alkemyst

Originally posted by: Sylvanas

Originally posted by: alkemyst
I didn't post about DDR2 800 sticks.

The point he made was that Gskill overclocked well, meaning in relation to your post the Gskill might also overclock well. :roll:

I'd get whatever is cheaper, both will be good. I have found in my testing at 800mhz 1t 5-5-5-15 is faster than 1066 2t 5-5-5-15 anyway. YMMV

sorry brah

I posted about two types above so I was wondering which works best.

what did you test?

Synthetic benches like Sisoft Sandra and Everest. Ram is not a big deal really, you'll be more focused on overclocking the CPU core frequency and Northbridge as they make a huge difference in comparison to memory frequency.

 

[alkemyst]

right. now back to my original reply...which works best. :roll: I am looking to BUY something not just use something I have lying around.

 

[Sylvanas]

Originally posted by: alkemyst
right. now back to my original reply...which works best. :roll: I am looking to BUY something not just use something I have lying around.

What I said in my first post:

I'd get whatever is cheaper, both will be good.

Of the two you listed they will both OC about the same and both are from reputable manufacturers so QA should be not an issue- there is really no difference between them so asking which to get comes down to personal preference.

 

[18 Is Number 1]

Since they both have the same Powerchip ICs, buy the cheaper of the two.
However, AMD processors typically run better with lower latency over higher speed. I think you would be better served with 900 MHz 4-4-4-12: http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16820231211

 

[alkemyst]

That lower latency goes out the door once the FSB is raised. Having a guaranteed 5-5-5-15 at 1066 is why many are going 1066 ram.

I really like the G.Skill ram, never had a problem with it. Reports just showed that more success was with the Dominator. Could be just people lying about testing both and just advocating what they own.

Going to order it up tonight.

 

[18 Is Number 1]

How high will your FSB go?
The hottest 1066 on the maket are Low Voltage Blade by OCZ (see my sig).

 

[alkemyst]

Originally posted by: 18 Is Number 1
How high will your FSB go?
The hottest 1066 on the maket are Low Voltage Blade by OCZ (see my sig).

not sure...many are running the 1600 DDR3 in that board.

The blade ram is rated at 5-5-5-18 vs the 5-5-5-15 I was looking at in the 1066 category

 

[18 Is Number 1]

Look at my sig again.
By the way, some of them have gotten 4-4-4 1000 MHz out of them (although mine won't go past 900 at cas4).

 

[n7]

Originally posted by: alkemyst
That lower latency goes out the door once the FSB is raised. Having a guaranteed 5-5-5-15 at 1066 is why many are going 1066 ram.

You don't have FSB with AMD.

Also, as there are a number of different RAM dividers you can use, you could get away with DDR2-800, or slower just fine while still overclocking your CPU/HTT.

DDR2-1066 is in no way required...

That said, the G.Skill DDR2-1066 is a good deal.

The OCZ Blades 18 mentioned is the best DDR2-1066 out there.

 

[alkemyst]

is the 1150/1200 blade worth it?

I need to figure if I want to invest in DDR2 or go to DDR3 off the bat. The motherboard for DDR3 is $10 more.

 

[n7]

If you love RAM overclocking, sure; the low voltage Blades/Platinums are great kits.

But for price/performance, not at all.

 

[alkemyst]

Would you go DD3 right now or go for better bang for buck and pick DDR2? I am looking at two gigabyte motherboards within $10 of each other. The are the same except one takes DDR2, the other DDR3

 

[n7]

Yeah, in that case i'd likely go DDR3.

There are lots of decent DDR3 kits that aren't too much more than DDR2.

 

[Sylvanas]

As I said earlier, Ram speed is not important with AMD systems, it's latency. That is why DDR2 800 5-5-515 1t is faster than same timings 1066mhz 2t. If you are going to get DDR3 there is no need to go above 1333mhz as Tony demonstrates here get a decent low latency kit whether it's DDR2 or 3.

 

[18 Is Number 1]

Originally posted by: Sylvanas
As I said earlier, Ram speed is not important with AMD systems, it's latency. That is why DDR2 800 5-5-515 1t .

Or 4-4-4 1t

 

[alkemyst]

Final build:

I went with:

AMD Phenom II X3 720 2.8GHz Socket AM3 95W Triple-Core Black Processor Model HDZ720WFGIBOX - Retail

XTRAC PADS X-Trac Pro Mouse Pad - Retail

OCZ Platinum AMD Edition 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Low Voltage Desktop Memory Model OCZ3P1600LVAM4GK - Retail

GIGABYTE GA-MA790XT-UD4P AM3 DDR3 AMD 790X ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail

Pioneer DVR-216D 20X SATA DVD Burner/Beige /OEM

 

[alkemyst]

added a MSI 4890. Selling my BFG 8800GTX OC 768MB

 

[n7]

Sounds nice. :thumbsup:

I went from an 8800 GTX to a GTX 280 (& 260 for a while), & now to a 4890...you won't be unhappy.