Motherboard/processor/memory matching questions

[rivan]

So, say a system board supports multiple memory speeds - say DDR400 and DDR2-533.

It also supports a wide range of processors, including pentium Ds and Core2s.

Will any mix & match of processor & memory speed work, or would the older processors need to be matched to the older memory speeds, and newer processors to newer memory?

Essentially, will I be able to upgrade the processor and memory independently of each other?

 

[Roguestar]

As long as it supports the memory and it supports the CPU that you're thinking of adding to it, it should deal with them fine together. Are you looking at the ASROCK Dual-VSTA 775? Sounds kinda like you're stepping up an upgrade to Core 2 Duo and DDR2?

 

[rivan]

Originally posted by: Roguestar
As long as it supports the memory and it supports the CPU that you're thinking of adding to it, it should deal with them fine together. Are you looking at the ASROCK Dual-VSTA 775? Sounds kinda like you're stepping up an upgrade to Core 2 Duo and DDR2?

Yes, I'm stepping up, but have to do it very slowly (daycare>upgrades) - I'll actually likely move to a Pentium D first, then a C2D once prices drop. The board I'm getting will support my agp x850XT PE, so I'm going to ride that as long as I can - and when I'm finally ready to jump to pci-e, I'll replace the motherboard again, since this one's dirt cheap.

 

[Pwnbroker]

What you really need to look for is will the board support the memory speed, will the processor support the memory speed. The processor can limit the memory if it doesn't support it. It'll work, but you will be wasting money on memory if the processor runs at a slower clock than the memory. Best way to buy these products is to figure out what processor you want, find out what the bus speed is of the processor, then find the memory that will run at your processors bus speed, and finally, find a motherboard that will run at that speed that supports that processor slot type, and the memory that you want.

 

[Roguestar]

Originally posted by: rivan

Originally posted by: Roguestar
As long as it supports the memory and it supports the CPU that you're thinking of adding to it, it should deal with them fine together. Are you looking at the ASROCK Dual-VSTA 775? Sounds kinda like you're stepping up an upgrade to Core 2 Duo and DDR2?

Yes, I'm stepping up, but have to do it very slowly (daycare>upgrades) - I'll actually likely move to a Pentium D first, then a C2D once prices drop. The board I'm getting will support my agp x850XT PE, so I'm going to ride that as long as I can - and when I'm finally ready to jump to pci-e, I'll replace the motherboard again, since this one's dirt cheap.

Yup. My suggestions would be actually to skip the pentium D and get a Core 2 Duo E6300 when you can afford it, skipping the D will save you cash even if it takes a bit longer to save for the E6300, then buy some DDR2 after than. Then, a PCI-E graphics card and after that you can upgrade the motherboard.

 

[rivan]

Originally posted by: Roguestar

Originally posted by: rivan

Originally posted by: Roguestar
As long as it supports the memory and it supports the CPU that you're thinking of adding to it, it should deal with them fine together. Are you looking at the ASROCK Dual-VSTA 775? Sounds kinda like you're stepping up an upgrade to Core 2 Duo and DDR2?

Yes, I'm stepping up, but have to do it very slowly (daycare>upgrades) - I'll actually likely move to a Pentium D first, then a C2D once prices drop. The board I'm getting will support my agp x850XT PE, so I'm going to ride that as long as I can - and when I'm finally ready to jump to pci-e, I'll replace the motherboard again, since this one's dirt cheap.

Yup. My suggestions would be actually to skip the pentium D and get a Core 2 Duo E6300 when you can afford it, skipping the D will save you cash even if it takes a bit longer to save for the E6300, then buy some DDR2 after than. Then, a PCI-E graphics card and after that you can upgrade the motherboard.

Took your advice and just pulled the trigger on a 6300 =) Thanks.