Noob question

[covert24]

Well i usually study more into the cpu and motherboard side of things when building a system but for my next build im going to build smart.

My question is about DDR2 and DDR3. In the new Intel P35 express chipsets DDR3 is supported, but i want to know if you could also use DDR2 in that slot instead of DDR3. Kind of like future proofing your investment.

 

[CalvinHobbes]

While the P35 can support either DDR2 and DDR3, it has to be either or. I supposed a board maker could have 2 DDR2 slots and 2 DDR3 slots on the board if they wanted to but I'm not sure that's realistic.

 

[covert24]

yup thats the answer i was looking for. so both DDR2 and 3 have the same number of pins and all that?

 

[nullpointerus]

They have the same number of pins (240), but the pins are used for totally different things on DDR2 than they are on DDR3. The DDR2/3 slots and RAM are keyed differently so that you do not fry something in your system. So, no, the sticks are not interchangable.

 

[PCTC2]

The Gigabyte P35C-DS3R has 2x DDR3 slots and 4x DDR2 slots. You can use either DDR2 or DDR3 at one time, not both, but it allows you to run either or upgrade from DDR2 to DDR3 without changing boards.

 

[covert24]

oh wow i didn't even notice the extra slots lol. not doing to well today....