overclocking question regarding memory

[Jibby]

Hi, I've read up a little bit here and there on overclocking, and while I haven't tried much of it, I'm still confused by one thing. Say I have a 2500+ and a NF7-S rev2, and want to raise the FSB to about 200 and lower the multiplier a little bit... similar to what a lot of people have done to get to 3000+/3200+.

Many people have used great brand RAM like Corsair XMS PC3200. I'm just wondering that, since the overclocking scenario above requires the memory to be stable at DDR 400, why can't one use 'lower' brand PC3200 RAM that should still be guaranteed to hit DDR 400 (shouldn't it?)? The timings are obviously tighter for something like Corsair, but is it really worth the price difference? I'm also aware that with the Corsair, one can raise the FSB above 200, but if we are sticking to 200FSB, then won't a 'lower' brand or model PC3200 work just as well?

Perhaps I'm missing something here, so if someone can clarify any misunderstandings on my part, it'd be greatly appreciated. Cheers!

 

[Canterwood]

As I understand it, the Athlon's perform much better with tighter timings for memory.
(Whereas P4's tend to like more bandwidth)
Ram with more relaxed timings would probably work, but at the price of performance.
Please correct me if I'm way out.

 

[pelikan]

That's what I've noticed. Tight timings make about a 5% difference in gaming performance. I used to have some cheap Samsung pc2700 running at 200FSB, Cas 2.5-3-3-6. When I got better memory that runs tight timings the only difference I noticed at 200FSB was in benchmarks. But the new memory allowed me to run 220FSB at tight timings which was a noticeable improvement.

 

[ticktack]

Originally posted by: pelikan
That's what I've noticed. Tight timings make about a 5% difference in gaming performance. I used to have some cheap Samsung pc2700 running at 200FSB, Cas 2.5-3-3-6. When I got better memory that runs tight timings the only difference I noticed at 200FSB was in benchmarks. But the new memory allowed me to run 220FSB at tight timings which was a noticeable improvement.

hi, noticed that you have a pair of KHX3500 like mine, can you share your views in my postings regarding this KHX stuff. Thank you.

 

[Jibby]

Heheh, didn't even know the Samsung PC2700 can get up to 200FSB... maybe I should move my 2x512MB of it from my room's computer to my gaming rig. It's about time my gaming computer gets a better cpu/mobbo/ram upgrade if it's lagging behind my non-gaming computer (purchased more recently) in those departments.

Hmm... just looking at a few prices and 2x512MB PC3200 Samsung is AUD$141 cheaper than 2x512MB PC3200 (no LL) Corsair TwinX... I'm happy to settle at 200FSB and not push the Samsung beyond what it is rated at, and unless I misinterpreted what Pelikan said, there isn't too much of a difference compared to better RAM, right?

I understand that getting better RAM will allow for a higher FSB and tigter timings, but if I am not pushing the 2500+ any further than 3000+ or 3200+, then is it really worth it to go for Corsair, Kingston, etc over Samsung (can't get buffalo where I live) or other cheaper RAM?

 

[pelikan]

For me its worth it to run tight timings. Sure the performance gain is only 5% at most, but if you can get a little bit of performance from a few different areas it adds up. Running dual channel in an nforce2 board is another example of a similar performance gain. So is optimizing your operating system.

 

[Ticktanium2038]

Im finding Samsung PC-3500 ram to be very price friendly and good. Make sure whomever your buying from is truely selling you Samsung and that their website doesnt say:

SAMSUNG OR MAJOR BRAND. (STAY AWAY)

That Major Brand stuff means they probably arent going to send you the samsung sticks instead they will send you whatever PC-3500 they have lying around that week. What I also find deceiving is they will install RAM sinks for you for free. This seems to be another tip that the ram is somthing other than samsung. Your RAM should not need heat sinks. I find heat sinks are more of visual eye candy than a true cooling method.

Getting PC-3500 ram should allow you to decrease the CAS timings when running at PC-3200 levels.

Just do me a favor and stay away from KINGMAX. I have not seen one person get their ram running properly at rated speeds especially in NFORCE2 Motherboards.

 

[Jibby]

Thanks for the tip, Ticktanium2038. I'll make sure to specifically ask for Samsung, and I'll be able to tell from the sticks themselves anyway. Haven't seen the Samsung PC3500 advertised... I'll make some enquiries.

Pelikan, yep, know about dual channel (I have the Epox 8RGA+ in my non-gaming rig, and helped my friend out with his 8RDA+). What I'm wondering about is the performance gain from the tighter timings alone, since it seems like I'm mostly weighing this up against the price difference. If I can find Samsung PC3500 at no much higher prices than the PC3200, and able to run it at CAS2 at PC3200 (which allows me to get to 200FSB AND have tighter timings), then could well be a steal.

Just in case I can't get my hands on the Samsung PC3500, the tighter timings vs price difference dilemma still presents itself... Heheh, I wouldn't mind graduating sooner and allowing myself a bigger budget for these things.

 

[igotid24]

from my experience tighter timings do make a big enough difference. i've got my barton 2500 overclocked to 11x200, using kingston hyperx pc2700, it can do 215 but my system runs kinda hot there. anyways, as i was overclocking i was benchmarking along the way. when i went past 180 i had to relax the timings, so i set it to 2335, and got up to 200. while their i decided to try some other timings. setting it to 2237 made as much difference in memory bandwith as moving the fsb up 5. now if that little of timing change made that much difference, i could imaging going from 2.5,338 to 2226 making a very significant difference.

 

[high]

Check this out. I'm running Generic 2100 DDR and I'm at 11x200 with a 3:2 Ratio and 5 2 2 2 RAM when it says on the chip 2.5 CL. And it's in Dual Channel. Trying to squeek every last bit of perf out of my memory

 

[shohoku]

Originally posted by: Jibby
Hi, I've read up a little bit here and there on overclocking, and while I haven't tried much of it, I'm still confused by one thing. Say I have a 2500+ and a NF7-S rev2, and want to raise the FSB to about 200 and lower the multiplier a little bit... similar to what a lot of people have done to get to 3000+/3200+.

Many people have used great brand RAM like Corsair XMS PC3200. I'm just wondering that, since the overclocking scenario above requires the memory to be stable at DDR 400, why can't one use 'lower' brand PC3200 RAM that should still be guaranteed to hit DDR 400 (shouldn't it?)? The timings are obviously tighter for something like Corsair, but is it really worth the price difference? I'm also aware that with the Corsair, one can raise the FSB above 200, but if we are sticking to 200FSB, then won't a 'lower' brand or model PC3200 work just as well?

Perhaps I'm missing something here, so if someone can clarify any misunderstandings on my part, it'd be greatly appreciated. Cheers!

I have a similar problem with Epox 8RDA3+. I used to have single stick of OCZ PC 2700 DDR 512MB. While playing Raven Shield, when I turn on night vision, FPS goes down to 10-20, which is ridiculous! I just got OCZ PC 3200 EL DDR 2x256MB dual channel kit and I'm using them with my Radeon 9800pro and AMD Athlon XP Barton 2500+ @ 3200(11x200FSB) but so far I haven't notice any difference.