system memory experts!!!!

[LongCoolMother]

right now i have a 2.4GHz p4 running with 512MB of PC3200. im thinking of picking up another stick of 512 and running dual-channel with it, thus having 1GB PC3200 in dual-ddr. my question is, is it okay if the two sticks are matching in size, but not brand? for example, i see brands selling "paired" memory combinations specifically for the use for dual-channel. i would buy one, but i already have a 512 stick lying around and i dont want to waste it.

if its possible, id like to use two sticks of quality 512MB (for example, kingston+mushkin) together in dual channel mode. is this possible? or will it create problems and force me to buy paired sets?


on a side note, how are samsung sticks? i know they're great chips on radeons and such, but what about system memory? i think dell systems ship with samsung sticks, so they should be good, but i don't know.

 

[mechBgon]

For the motherboard to access the memory in dual-channel mode, the same addressing scheme has to fit both modules. So a single-sided module + a double-sided module = single-channel. If the two modules do have the same logical arrangement then it won't matter if they're the same brand & model or not.

Maybe try your luck with the new module, and if it doesn't work out, buy another of it and sell the third one in FS/T?

EDIT: I guess I should add that I'm assuming an i865/i875 motherboard here. This wouldn't apply to nForce2, before anyone gets that into their heads, and I think some SiS P4 chipsets can also manage DC DDR using non-similar modules.

 

[MDE]

Samsung RAM is good stuff.

 

[LongCoolMother]

Originally posted by: mechBgon
For the motherboard to access the memory in dual-channel mode, the same addressing scheme has to fit both modules. So a single-sided module + a double-sided module = single-channel. If the two modules do have the same logical arrangement then it won't matter if they're the same brand & model or not.

Maybe try your luck with the new module, and if it doesn't work out, buy another of it and sell the third one in FS/T?

EDIT: I guess I should add that I'm assuming an i865/i875 motherboard here. This wouldn't apply to nForce2, before anyone gets that into their heads, and I think some SiS P4 chipsets can also manage DC DDR using non-similar modules.

thanks. thats what i needed to know. im going to try getting ahold of another one of the sticks i already have, but if not, ill just get 2 new ones and sell the existing stick. im on a PT880 (MSI). most 512 sticks are double-sided modules anyhow arent they? i dont recall seing otherwise, of course, im no memory person.