Need help choosing ECC RAM

[edw]

I am planning on getting 16 GB (2x 8 GB) of ECC RAM on this motherboard:

http://www.supermicro.com/xeon_3400/Motherboard/X8SIL.cfm

I'm not going to be overclocking my RAM, and my main criterion is maximum stability. Some of the reviews I've been reading say that this motherboard is a bit picky about the RAM that it works with. The site above has a tested memory list, but it doesn't have a lot of tested options for 8 GM RAM modules.

It looks like my RAM options are these (I've linked the .ca page since I'm buying in Canada):

http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product...eId=1&name=8GB

There's a couple more options here for matched modules though that doesn't matter since I the motherboard doesn't support dual channel RAM:

http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product...2%20x%208GB%29

I have a few questions. Any comments on the relative quality of Kingston, Wintec and Patriot RAM? One of the modules is "parity" RAM, will this still work on the motherboard I've pointed out? Most of the modules I've pointed out are CAS latency 9, but there's one at 7, should I consider that one as well? And in the end, which RAM(s) should I be looking to buy?

Thanks for any help!

 

[bryanl]

DIMM quality is related almost exclusively to chip quality, and high quality chips are always marked with part numbers from their manufacturers, not the DIMM manufacturers. In your links, the Wintec and Kingston DDR3 modules are shown with Samsung (SEC) chips, but there's no guarantee they always have branded chips, so contact the Kingston and Wintec about this. The heat spreaders on those Patriot DIMMs hide the identities of their chips and could indicate the use of unbranded chips. Heat spreaders are of no benefit.

 

[Emulex]

they all work the same. you want two 1Rx4gb UDIMM 1333mhz ECC.

Keep in mind your upgrade path is limited unless you use RDIMM. Registered dimm has some overhead but also provider address ECC protection and of course you can stuff the mobo full of ram.

Stick to the normal brands here. Kingston, Avant, Crucial. the g.skill/wintec - pass.

CL9 is the norm for 1333 and CL7 is more for the slower 1066 speed.

Since i get mad discount on HP branded i just buy that and quite honestly its not constructed any different than kingston/crucial junk.

You do not need heatsinks since it's going into a well ventilated chassis - i've got 18 of these puppies in a 1U server with two X5680's and 8 10K SAS drives - no problems with the sea of sensors.

I just get the OEM HP because it costs the same as crucial/kingston/AVANT because of the support element.

If you have any questions just ask supermicro for the specific parts they support. then if anything goes wrong - no finger pointing. Saving a few bucks on a server is like putting k-mart special tires on a BMW - pointless.