Q9450 Memory Question

[Brett]

Hi Guys,

I'm looking into getting a Q9450 and using DDR2 in the system. What memory speeds should I use?

DDR2-1066: 5x533 (5-5-5-12 Timings)
DDR2-800: 7x380 (4-4-4-12 Timings)

Any other suggestions?

Thanks,
Brett

 

[geoffry]

Are you planning on overclocking the CPU?

If no, stick with the 800, if you are the 1066 will definitely not hold you back as 450ish fsb seems to be around the limit for quads.....the 800 might even get there for ya however.

Whats the price difference?

 

[geoffry]

Lol, I just realized you meant what settings for the ram you currently have...

The advantage for intel systems for having the lower multiplier and higher fsb for more bandwidth is very small, many members have done tests. It also produces more heat and I'm unsure about the stability of a quad at 533 mhz.

 

[ShadowFlareX]

+1, running high FSB only creates more heat and strain on the North Bridge. Plus, does the multipler for Q9450 can really go lower than 6x?

 

[bryanW1995]

get a set of 2x1 or 2x2 pc 6400 4-4-4-12 sticks. the 2x1 were around $30 AR last time I checked and about $65 for 2x2, so it's incredibly cheap right now. get the highest OC you can get on the 8x multi, then try to fit your memory timings around that. I have ddr2 1066 ballistix in my x3350 rig running at 8x450. I have it at a 5:6 multiplier so the memory runs at 5-5-5-18 1080. My Q9450 is only at 8x425, however, with 4-4-4-12 ddr2 800 memory, but it runs fine at 4-4-4-12 with 1:1 (850).

 

[JAG87]

First of all, why are you concerned with this when you aren't even overclocking the cpu? 333 fsb will do just fine you know.

Second of all, the lowest multiplier you can select is 6. Third of all, you will never get 533 fsb stable on a quad.

Fourth of all, if you are already overclocking the fsb, why not get some free performance and go for 400 x 8 = 3.2 ghz + linked and synced RAM.

That can be had on stock voltage you know.