PC3500 RAM for P4C800 Deluxe - 1GB for $240?

[shleepy]

Hi there, folks. It looks like I'm gonna RMA the WinBond PC3500 CH-5 RAM I have on my Asus P4C800 Deluxe; the timings it's getting are pathetic. What would be a good bet for 1GB of PC3500 RAM for about $240 or less for the P4C800 Deluxe? Should I:
1) Try to exchange the CH5 RAM for BH5 RAM from the site where I ordered it... or
2) return the RAM and get memory from a different company

If you answered "2", what would be a good model to buy? I want high-quality RAM only, so no more than CAS 2.0, and at least 2-3-3-7 timings. I believe Kingston HyperX PC3500 should be a good bet, am I correct in that assumption? Anyway, your recommendations are greatly appreciated! Thanks a lot!

 

[shleepy]

Don't make me bump >8*o

Oh wait, too late

 

[shleepy]

Anyone? So far, my only choices are WinBond PC3500 BH-5, and Kingston HyperX PC3500. Can someone at least gimme an opinion on one of those? For Kingston, buying a pair (1GB) in one package is a bit expensive... should there be any difference if I just buy 2 512MB sticks of KHX3500 (performance-wise)?

 

[N14]

Kingston is having a sale right now and you can get a pair of HyperX PC3500 for 240$ with free shipping.

I just learned hower (after i had already bought it sigh) that this memory has some issue with overclocking, albeit i see mixed opinions as a lot of users are having good results at very high setting.

I'm building my setup on a P4C800-E as we speak, as soon as my CPU gets here i'll let you know how it goes with the memory...

 

[shleepy]

Hmmm... I heard that Kingston now occasionally makes their RAM with CH-5, which is bad news for me....

Anyone know if GEil RAM should work well with P4C800's, and which models are the good ones?

 

[billyjak]

I run my Kingston Hyper X pc 3500 at 2522 on my Gigabyte 8KNXP motherbard with no problems.
Good ram if you ask me.

 

[yunvme]

What 3500 memory did you buy? Who makes it?

 

[shleepy]

WinBond PC3500 CH-5.... made by WinBond. U can check it out @ http://www.hardcorecooling.us/product.asp?0=200&1=201&3=407

The BH-5 RAM they have is here: http://www.hardcorecooling.us/product.asp?0=0&1=0&3=546

 

[Lyfer]

Just how reliable is Harcorecooling and how good is there RMA process?

 

[shleepy]

OMG, never EVER buy from hardcorecooling.com, if you're thinking about it. I dunno if it's just me, but I had SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO many problems with them, it's crazy. First off, when I ordered it, the RAM cost $98 per stick + shipping = ~ $203. It said everything was alright: RAM = in stock, etc. After getting no package from them after 2 weeks, I sent them an email, and they replied saying something like, "We dunno if you received this email before but here it is again. WinBond has raised the price on their CH5 RAM, and due to how much they raised it, we are forced to go no lower than $119 per stick of RAM. We understand if you wish to cancel your order and we will refund it. Otherwise, please state that you will pay the price difference". Well, pissed as I was, since the RAM WAS IN STOCK AND COST$98 WHEN I ORDERED IT, I bargained with em, but all I got was free 2-day shipping. However, instead of charging me $37, they charged $43!!!! So, they shipped it, and it came, nicely packaged and all... only problem was the presence of heat-spreaders. When I ordered, I chose no heat-spreaders, since you had to pay extra back them for them. There was nothing indicating that it was CH5 chips, either, just WinBond PC3500 with CAS 2.0. Since they had another model, a cheaper/worse one, of WinBond PC3500, I was worried (they had no BH5 back then). I sent them an email explaining this, but they replied assuring me that it was the proper RAM. A couple weeks later, after finishing my comp and testing the RAM, I sent another email, explaining in more more technical terms why I still think this is the wrong RAM. Well, guess what they replied??? "If you received the RAM with heat-spreaders and 'WinBond PC3500 CAS 2' stickers, you received the wrong RAM". They gave me an RMA # to put on the box for returning, and I shipped it back. I received free 2-day shipping again, and received CH5 RAM. Now, it turns out that the CH5 RAM isn't at all as good as they made it out to be.... GRRRRRRRRRRRRRR..... I dunno if that's just a rare experience, but I personally hate harcorecooling.

However, they support replies are fast, about 1 day. Also, at least they gave me free 2-day shipping.

Now, I sent them another angry email, saying I either want a refund or exchange for BH5 RAM (which costs a bit more). I said I don't want the heat-spreaders for the BH5 RAM (which are free), though, and mentioned that they charged me an extra $6 before, when they changed the CH5 price. Hopefully, they'll agree to this, considering I just read hteir return policy, and it says that they charge like 11% if you are returning RAM. Is this a good idea, or should I bargain with em, get a low or no interest refund, and buy RAM from a different company? WinBond BH5 should at least work better with 875P boards, or so they say...

 

[RalfHutter]

No matter what else you decide to do, you should tell them to shove their misrepresentations and shady business practices where the sun don't shine and buy your RAM from someone else.

You might want to take a look at Mushkin's BH-5 "Promo- build" RAM. 512MB sticks of BH-5's for $139! It's linked on the home page. Do some searches over at Asusboards forums for the people who have been using this RAM, most have had very good luck with it. Ya gotta jump on it though, it's a very limited-time thing.

 

[oldfart]

Newegg sells Buffalo PC3700 for $99. It is supposed to be BH5. I've never tried it, and don't know how good or bad it is.

 

[shleepy]

I'm not gonna spend $139 for each stick, cuz that adds up to a $40 difference to what I want to spend, not to mention shipping and tax. Plus, it's only pc3200, not even pc3500

About the Buffalo RAM, it says CAS 3, so I doubt it can do CAS 2.0 @ 217MHz FSB.

 

[RalfHutter]

Originally posted by: CannibalisticH0b0
I'm not gonna spend $139 for each stick, cuz that adds up to a $40 difference to what I want to spend, not to mention shipping and tax. Plus, it's only pc3200, not even pc3500

About the Buffalo RAM, it says CAS 3, so I doubt it can do CAS 2.0 @ 217MHz FSB.

Well then you're probably stuck. BH-5 chips are very hard to come by since they're out of production and the manufacturers aren't going to sell the stuff for less than the going rate. That's how it works with RAM pricing. That's what makes the Buffalo PC3700 and the Mushkin Promo stuff such a great deal, you get a chance to get RAM with the best chips for a whole lot less $$ than the going rate. If you don't like the timings you'll have to by RAM with the timings you want and pay the going rate for it. You can't get blood from a stone.

 

[shleepy]

I'm still talking with the hardcorecooling.com support. The guy says that I might have gotten bad RAM or something cuz they tested CH-5 RAM themselves on IC7-G and gotten even better results than what they said on the site, and have gotten very good feedback from ppl using other boards... I dunno if it'll necessarily work well on my board, so I'm gonna try to get an exchange for the BH-5 RAM on their site. I asked what BIOS settings they used, too, so I'll see if they'll say anything about that. Whenever I asked anyone about more specific BIOS options to use, no-one answered, hehe.

I tried the Asus P4C800 board, but no-one answers there.... I'll post there again a but later, once I'm 100% sure I'm returning the RAM.... I noticed that GEil RAM is pretty cheap, and I believe they're recommending some models, so I'll have to check that out.

 

[shleepy]

Looks like hardcorecooling.com has a heart, after all, lol. They'll exchange my CH-5 RAM for the BH-5 RAM they have, which costs a bit more than the CH-5 RAM

 

[AgaBoogaBoo]

Do you OC? If not, get some Corsair XMS PC3200...

 

[shleepy]

Why yes, I do. 217MHz FSB. I might do higher if the BH-5 RAM performs up to expectations, and once I get the time to slightly mod my case for better airflow.

 

[shleepy]

NM, looks like they don't have a heart after all, lol. I misinterpreted them, and if I would like to exchange for the BH-5 RAM, I'd have to pay the price difference after all.

Thus, I am open to more suggestions. Anyone know if GeIL RAM works well with P4C800 Deluxe, and which models are the ones that work well? Also, other suggestions, other than the above-listed ones, or same ones but with cheaper links, are welcome. Thanks a lot!