Seriously confused over memory...

[ProUser]

Ok. I've been out of the loop a long time now and trying to get ready to build a new computer come September/October.

Currently I'm thinking an 800mhz P4C chip, with a quality Canterwood motherboard. I want to build a computer that is going to be super fast, and hopefully have as much longevity in it as possible, while not breaking the bank. This seems to be the best combination since AMD is great value for performance now but probably won't last as long, whereas Intel is slightly more epensive - but will probably last longer before it's time for another upgrade. Currently thinking either a 2.4c or 2.6c then over clock it hopefully to a 3.0.

Now comes the tough part. The memory. I've read almost every thread on this board, numerous articles all over the place - but I still can't decide what would be best. I know I want 1 gig, dual channel memory. But the part that is confusing me is, should I go for a higher frequency, or a lower cas setting? First I was looking at the OCZ 3700 but the cas is 3, then I was looking at some 3200 and 3500 stuff with a cas of 2. Some articles say it's all about the lower cas timing, others say go for the higher frequency.

Can anyone provide any help? Knowing I'm probably going to get a 2.4/2.6C and Canterwood motherboard... is there a general consensus for bet performing memory with that combination?

 

[LED]

here's the facts on OCZ3700 and a lot of the the Higher Frequency does higher Cas cause the good Lower Frequency, Lower Cas stuff does Higher Frequency @ Higher Cas...

 

[ProUser]

Originally posted by: LED
here's the facts on OCZ3700 and a lot of the the Higher Frequency does higher Cas cause the good Lower Frequency, Lower Cas stuff does Higher Frequency @ Higher Cas...

Ok, I follow what you are saying there. Lower cas does higher freq at higher cas, and vice versa. But which is better? I don't want to shell out $300 for memory and end up getting the wrong stuff, or to later find out I could have gotten 99.9% of the same performance for half the cost. 🙂

 

[ProUser]

Apparently I'm not the only one confused, or am I the only one who is on the market for a 800mhz P4 and memory? 🙂

 

[Sideswipe001]

I always heard that the jump from CAS2 to 2.5, or 2.5 to 3 is equivalent to about 75 Mhz processor speed.

So I guess what matters most here is how far you plan to overclock. If you buy RAM and run it at 3200 (which is where you'd be at an 800 fsb) then CAS rating is all that matters. If you are running it at 3500 then it doesn't matter if it's lower CAS and won't post that high.

I'd pick a target FSB speed you want your RAM to hit for sure, and get the lowest CAS stuff you can find at that speed. I'm happy running at 11x200 on my overclock - so the CAS2 3200 stuff I got is perfect for me. Maybe it would overclock higher if I downed the CAS, but I'd have to get almost another 100 mhz to make it even out.