Mac Pro Memory

[Jephph]

Hello. My wife has a Mac Pro. Don't flame me, I'm not a Mac fan at all, but these things happen. Anyway, a few questions.

First off, what's a good site for cheap Mac Pro RAM? The cheapest I see on Newegg is like 40.99 for a 2GB stick, which is enticing, but I really don't want to spend that much. I was told when I bought the Mac Pro that it works best when 4 or 8 of the RAM slots are filled, because it's like quad-channel or something. So he convinced me to get 4x512MB of RAM (the most I was willing to spend on RAM at the Apple Store). Now, it's time for an upgrade, but I don't really need 8GB of RAM. It's just that 2GB is the cheapest stick on Newegg. Even the 1GB sticks cost more.

So my question is, is it really that necessary to have 4 or 8 of the RAM slots filled, or could I just go with a couple of the 2GB sticks, and have 6 of the slots filled? If not, is there a site with cheaper RAM, maybe in smaller sticks that I could get 4 sticks pretty cheaply?

Thanks.

 

[Denithor]

Originally posted by: Jephph
I was told when I bought the Mac Pro that it works best when 4 or 8 of the RAM slots are filled, because it's like quad-channel or something. So he convinced me to get 4x512MB of RAM (the most I was willing to spend on RAM at the Apple Store).

I think they just hosed you to get a bigger sale. Go for a pair of 2GB sticks and have 6 slots filled.

You are running a 64-bit operating system, right? Otherwise you will be limited to 4GB or less...

 

[Jephph]

I would assume it would have shipped with a 64bit OS. It's a "Quad" (Dual Dual-core) Xeon 2.66 Mac Pro with 8 RAM slots. Also, the RAM sticks don't have to be a dual-channel kit do they? Because the 2GB stick on Newegg for $40 is just a single stick. I'll be all right just buying two of those right?

 

[Jephph]

It's OS X 10.4.

 

[DSF]

Yes, you'll be fine just buying two identical sticks.