Memory recommendation sought for MSI RS480M2-IL

[BPB]

I'm waiting for the arrival of an MSI RS480M2-IL ATi based motherboard. I'm ordering an Athlon 64 3000+ today and would like to order 1GB of memory, but I have no idea what I should get for memory. I'm not looking for top of the line memory, but I'm also not looking for bottom of the line. My plan is to ultimately pop an upper-level ATi PCIe card in there when I have a little more saved, which is why I would like decent memory. I just don't think I can afford top of the line. Shopping around at places like Newegg is a bit overwhelming. I honestly think it'd be easier buying top of the line, the choices are fewer. I would consider 512MB for now if that makes sense, but considering I'll be using some of it for the integrated video I figured 1GB would be the way to go.

 

[crazyeddie]

I just got my MSI RS480M2-IR from New Egg yesterday. I ordered it with a KingMax MPXD42D-2K Dual Channel 1Gb DDR 400 kit (2x512Mb) and it installed beautifully. The KingMax memory kit was quite affordable, $123.41 at NewEgg.

I've still got some work to do with software installation, but I'm looking forward to putting the new board through its paces tonight.

 

[BPB]

Thanks. That's one that caught my eye. I've also considered the Geil Ultra Series Value Dual Channel 184 Pin 1GB at Newegg for about $150 shipped. It's PC3200 too.

 

[crazyeddie]

I haven't had a chance to do any benchmarking yet, but I think you're going to be pleasantly surprised by how good the integrated video is on the motherboard.

I did a pre-order on a Radeon X800XL PCI-E card from the ATI online store, and I'm running the IGP until my card shows up. The driver installation and feature support is quite impressive. There is also a setting in the bios to not only adjust the video memory allocated for the onboard graphics, but to adjust the clock on the GPU as well.

The board defaults to a synchronized clock of 200Mhz, but you can switch to asynchronous and set the IGP for up to 350Mhz operating speed. I'm not expecting a miracle, but I think a lot of games are going to be quite playable with the integrated graphics processor.

 

[BPB]

I'm so glad you posted that info. I've been wondering. I've got 2 NEC 22" monitors and a 3rd on the way. A buddy gets used ones for me really cheap. So I figure once I get a PCI-E card I'll go with the SurroundView, should be nice. Already doing 2 monitor with my 9600 Pro and like it a lot. Wondering if 3 will be any better. I do wish I could afford flat panels, these monsters take up all my desk space.