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Need an opinion from a RAM expert !

M

ManOnFire

Member
I got the following choice to make

GeIL 1GB (2x512MB) PC3200 UltraX-BH5 CAS2 > $183
Corsair 1GB DDR XMS3200XL Platinum TwinX (2x512MB) CAS2 > $256
Crucial 1GB (2x512MB) DDR PC3200 Ballistix Dual Channel Kit > $203
OCZ 1GB (2 x 512MB) PC3200 Dual Channel Gold Series BH5 EL-DDR CAS2.0 > $240

which should I choose?

I am tight in budget, so I'd rather not spend more for nothing


 
Yeah I bought some mushkin 2-2-2 for $150 on newegg and it only increased my 3dmark05 score by about 50 points at stock speeds. (That means little/no perceptible difference). I was previously using Kingston pc2700 to further illustrate the point.

Seems like from what I've read you should get the OCZ fancy-fancy if you want big-time OC.
 
even if you are overclocking, it would still be a good idea to get value ram. what kind of system are you running? a64 systems are affected very little by ram speed/latency. also, new games are going to start requiring 2gb, evident in FEAR. so, you should get 2gb value.
 
list the rest of your specs, it depends on what processor you have or plan on getting, since it depends on what multi you are locked at if you plan to OC. if you dont plan to OC then there is not a great deal of point in expensive RAM, for instance i have OCZ platinum REV 2's, that run at 2-2-2-5 stock, but give me the potential to reach an overclock of 289 Mhz at CAS2.5-4-4-7 (an 89Mhz OC 1:1 at 1T with very low latencies for that speed).

And BH5 is only and i repeat ONLY used for people looking to reach DDR500 "250 - 260Mhz at low latencies of 2-2-2-x", and for this you need either a DFI mobo or a voltage booster from OCZ to be able to reach Vdimm of over 3 volts, as you are looking at anything around 3.5v for that particular RAM to be stable at those timings and speed.

basically what are your purposes and what is the spec of you rig?

The you will be able to get a more definitive response.
 
TBH I don't really know about Ram. I'm gonna get an AMD 64 3500 with an Asus A8N-SLI deluxe mobo and a 6800gt, and all my friends keep bluffing about their high end ram....

I do not wish to overclock, I just want good performance, especially when it comes to gaming.
 
Originally posted by: ManOnFire
TBH I don't really know about Ram. I'm gonna get an AMD 64 3500 with an Asus A8N-SLI deluxe mobo and a 6800gt, and all my friends keep bluffing about their high end ram....

I do not wish to overclock, I just want good performance, especially when it comes to gaming.
Click to expand...


in that case, unless you have money to burn get some good CAS 2.5 dual channel sticks of RAM that will do you fine, or you might want to look into some good priced 2 x 1GB sticks "PC3200".

sticks with CAS 2 @ Pc3200, are only worth the money if you plan to OC them, like i have mine.

either way no OC = No point in expensive RAM especially on the A64 platform.

At the end of the day you can always upgrade to better sticks if you want to OC at a later date.
 
Originally posted by: coomar
a lot of bh5 does 250 at 3.3v
Click to expand...

and list mobos that readly supply that voltage .. that is the point in TCCD where they do not require anything over 3v to hit its peak performance and pretty much all mobos supply ~2.9vDimm, and TCCD RAM ent cheap either, in fact its more expensive than winbouds BH5
 
Originally posted by: RichUK
Originally posted by: ManOnFire
TBH I don't really know about Ram. I'm gonna get an AMD 64 3500 with an Asus A8N-SLI deluxe mobo and a 6800gt, and all my friends keep bluffing about their high end ram....

I do not wish to overclock, I just want good performance, especially when it comes to gaming.
Click to expand...


in that case, unless you have money to burn get some good CAS 2.5 dual channel sticks of RAM that will do you fine, or you might want to look into some good priced 2 x 1GB sticks "PC3200".

sticks with CAS 2 @ Pc3200, are only worth the money if you plan to OC them, like i have mine.

either way no OC = No point in expensive RAM especially on the A64 platform.

At the end of the day you can always upgrade to better sticks if you want to OC at a later date.
Click to expand...


so should I go for this GeIL 1GB (2x512MB) PC3200 UltraX-BH5 CAS2 > $183 ?

its relatively cheap compared to a common 512mb cas 3. Only $42 more than a corsair pc3200 cas 3

ill take ur opinion, u r the expert 🙂





 
Originally posted by: ManOnFire
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/acatalog/GeIL_Golden_Dragon.html

just scroll a little down, its the 2nd one
Click to expand...


well if they can run those timings at "2.55V-2.95V", then i would say that these would be a good choice to go with, it states that the operating voltages are "2.55V-2.95V" which should be supported by your motherboard, im not sure what voltages are picked up off of the SPD, and also what timings .. but i would presume that with BH5 you would have to manually set the timings and voltage in the BIOS, if you feel you are quite capable of doing this then i would say go with them, However i do not have direct experience with this RAM, so i can only presume that SPD is a CAS of 2.
 
Originally posted by: RichUK
Originally posted by: ManOnFire
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/acatalog/GeIL_Golden_Dragon.html

just scroll a little down, its the 2nd one
Click to expand...


well if they can run those timings at "2.55V-2.95V", then i would say that these would be a good choice to go with, it states that the operating voltages are "2.55V-2.95V" which should be supported by your motherboard, im not sure what voltages are picked up off of the SPD, and also what timings .. but i would presume that with BH5 you would have to manually set the timings and voltage in the BIOS, if you feel you are quite capable of doing this then i would say go with them, However i do not have direct performance with this RAM, so i can only presume that SPD is a CAS of 2.
Click to expand...

i don't like doing the timings myself, i know from where, but i don't know even exactly the meaning of the timings, so i better not risk anything.

what do you suggest me to buy then ? a good ram for my needs....

ps. firewolf, i can't buy from newegg im not us citizen
 
Originally posted by: firewolfsm
get this OCZ RAM, it's got good timings and can OC.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820227031

just a little more than value, but much higher quality.
Click to expand...

there you go these are probably a better bet, the CAS timing has the biggest impact on performance, where as the other two timings Trp and Trcd (2-3-3-x) do not have that much at all, so with these you have the potential to OC a little and be able to retain a CAS of 2 at PC3200, the last timing which is Tras does not have really any impact on performance, so as you have a mobo with an Nforce 4 chipset you can set this to a Tras of 7 as this yields the best performance on this particular chipset, this has been documented by Anandtech aswell.

:thumbsup:

EDIT .. look out for this RAM on other websites as it is readly available
 
seriously, you should get 2gb value ram for that price. it looks like 2gb is going to be the standard in a very short time. its disapointing, but true. getting expensive ram will maybe give you one extra frame per second in a game. pretty soon, 1gb will be a huge performance hit in games. get 2gb value!!!
 
i think for now i better buy a 1GB stick rather than 2x512 ...

so that within three months time i will afford to buy another stick, so not to loose dual ddr performance..

am i right ?


 
Originally posted by: RichUK
Originally posted by: firewolfsm
get this OCZ RAM, it's got good timings and can OC.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820227031

just a little more than value, but much higher quality.
Click to expand...

there you go these are probably a better bet, the CAS timing has the biggest impact on performance, where as the other two timings Trp and Trcd (2-3-3-x) do not have that much at all, so with these you have the potential to OC a little and be able to retain a CAS of 2 at PC3200, the last timing which is Tras does not have really any impact on performance, so as you have a mobo with an Nforce 4 chipset you can set this to a Tras of 7 as this yields the best performance on this particular chipset, this has been documented by Anandtech aswell.

:thumbsup:

EDIT .. look out for this RAM on other websites as it is readly available
Click to expand...

You actually have that backwards. TRCD and TRP have more of an impact that CAS latency does.
 
Originally posted by: JohnAn2112
Originally posted by: RichUK
Originally posted by: firewolfsm
get this OCZ RAM, it's got good timings and can OC.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820227031

just a little more than value, but much higher quality.
Click to expand...

there you go these are probably a better bet, the CAS timing has the biggest impact on performance, where as the other two timings Trp and Trcd (2-3-3-x) do not have that much at all, so with these you have the potential to OC a little and be able to retain a CAS of 2 at PC3200, the last timing which is Tras does not have really any impact on performance, so as you have a mobo with an Nforce 4 chipset you can set this to a Tras of 7 as this yields the best performance on this particular chipset, this has been documented by Anandtech aswell.

:thumbsup:

EDIT .. look out for this RAM on other websites as it is readly available
Click to expand...

You actually have that backwards. TRCD and TRP have more of an impact that CAS latency does.
Click to expand...


uhh no it doesnt .. if you would care to explain otheriwse?!?!?! 😕
 
This really is simple.

You dont need high end ram at all. The best value ram you can get is:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820145440

It really is terrific ram for the price.

Oops. Didnt see that you cant buy from Newegg. There are other retailers that have the same ram and should be within $5.00-$8.00 of it.

So you have 2 options for the future:

1. Buy this ram now and enjoy dual channel for 3 months. See if you really need 2x1g. If you do then just sell your Corsair 2x512 on the fs/ft board here for $75.00 shipped. (You will have no trouble getting that) So your cost for using the ram will be $14.00.
2. Buy a 1g stick now. Run single channel for 3 months This ram has been highly rated and often recommended: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820231024 and then buy a matched dimm when your funds materialize.

Just my 2c

Leigh
 
very helpful Leigh6 thanks

but in case of option 2 can i take it since it is pc 4000 ? My mobo is Asus A8N-SLI deluxe, i dont think its supports it
 
get DDR500 (PC4000). you can get 2gb at newegg for 245.00. it is g.skill 2gb 2x 1gb PC4000. the timings make almost no difference since the mem controller is on-die on the A64's. you want more bandwith and DDR500 will give it to you.
 
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