ram for my new rig

[godisknugen]

hi need some advise on ram for my new computer.
mb: asus maximus formula
proc: e8500
graph: sapphire 3870x2

the two ddr2 contenders so far are
"corsair dominator pc8500 with cl5" and
"ocz flexxcl pc9600 with cl5"

the ocz are about 3 time more expensive than the corsair.

or are there any better alternatives? panning to get 4GB of wathever type i choose.

 

[DSF]

I don't see DDR2-1200 being necessary. The dominators ought to be fine, especially if the OCZ is three times the price.

I assume you're planning to overclock? Because if not, even the dominators are more than you need to spend.

 

[n7]

4 GB as in 4x1 GB?

Not something i'd recommend.

Go with 2x2 GB.

I have two of these...i haven't started testing them individually, but i ran all 8 GB in P95 custom overnight @ DDR2-1050 5-5-5-15.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16820146726

The DDR2-1000 version:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16820146755

I don't like the heatspreaders being that tall, but these do extremely well:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16820144120

Another good kit:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16820313043

I also don't recommend that mobo.

Last i checked it has poor options for modifying RAM subtimings like TRFC, which makes for poor clocking with 2x2 GB kits.

There are lots of cheaper or similarly priced alternatives with better options.

DFI's LT P35-T2R is cheaper, or my UT P35-T2R, or the X38 LT.

 

[godisknugen]

why 2x2?

and what about the "Corsair Dominator TWIN2X8500C5DF 4096MB, DDR2, 2x2GB(KIT), DHX, E.P.P, with FAN"

vs. two of the "Corsair Dominator TWIN2X8500C5D 2048MB, DDR2, 2x1GB(KIT), DHX, E.P.P"

 

[n7]

4 dimms is very hard on motherboards, particularly the northbridge.

It makes overclocking more of a hassle in some regards.

Also, running 4x1 GB means no upgrade path, & with DDR2 as cheap as it is, i'd recommend 2x2 GB to basically anyone even for a basic system.

Down the road you can go 8 GB if you desired

That 2x2 Corsair kit looks good as long as your heatsink can fit with those huge hideous hair comb heatspreaders they use (& of course the fan, which is actually useful).

 

[godisknugen]

ok, thanks for the help.

 

[godisknugen]

on the other hand maybe not, 2GB ddr2 sticks do not use the famous micron D9GM ICs, right? doesn´t this make them less capable of OCing than 1GB sticks with the D9GM like the early revision of the corsair 2x1GB kit or this one
"Crucial DDR2 BallistiX TRACER PC8500 1024MB CL5 ,2.2V, 240pin, 1066mhz, LED`s"

 

[n7]

Correct.

If you are looking for the highest clocks possible, then D9GMH/X is certainly the way to go.

I had a 2x1 GB Team Xtreem D9 kit, & wow, they are absolute beasts when it comes to extreme overclocking/tweaking.

I suppose that for XP users who plan to stick with XP for a while, then 2x1 GB is fine, but for someone considering Vista soon or has now, i honestly feel 2x2 GB is the way to go, as 1 GB dimms are certainly limiting in terms of future upgrades, & i just don't consider 4 dimms ideal for extreme OCing, as quite frankly, it's a pain when going for heavy OCing.

 

[chuckm]

Originally posted by: godisknugen
on the other hand maybe not, 2GB ddr2 sticks do not use the famous micron D9GM ICs, right? doesn´t this make them less capable of OCing than 1GB sticks with the D9GM like the early revision of the corsair 2x1GB kit or this one
"Crucial DDR2 BallistiX TRACER PC8500 1024MB CL5 ,2.2V, 240pin, 1066mhz, LED`s"

Just found out, the ddr2 800 2X2 ballistix have been released, they are microns;
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16820148183

 

[godisknugen]

Originally posted by: chuckm

Originally posted by: godisknugen
on the other hand maybe not, 2GB ddr2 sticks do not use the famous micron D9GM ICs, right? doesn´t this make them less capable of OCing than 1GB sticks with the D9GM like the early revision of the corsair 2x1GB kit or this one
"Crucial DDR2 BallistiX TRACER PC8500 1024MB CL5 ,2.2V, 240pin, 1066mhz, LED`s"

Just found out, the ddr2 800 2X2 ballistix have been released, they are microns;
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16820148183

yeah but it´s not the d9 ICs,is it?

the answer im fishing for is which of the two factors that weight heaviest.
# keeping the number of sticks down to ease the load on my mobo (even if its a fresh mobo with x38 chipset) = going with non d9 2GB sticks
# or doing just that , try to find a nice pair of 1GB d9s and fit 4 of those.

im not going for a super extreme OC here, aiming for somewhere around 400-450MHz on the FSB. so running 4 GB of ddr2- 1066 ram, the main issue i guess is the timings. is the difference in timing tweaking between the two enough to make any difference in real usage? (maybe time to mention that i have the 2x2 dominators but thinking of rma and get the cruisers instead)