whats the difference between regular 512mb ram and 2x512mb dual channel ram

[fakebun]

like the msg title says...

 

[Jotho]

512MB of RAM is just that, 1 stick of 512MB RAM. a 2x512 DC kit contains two matched 512MB sticks that are certified to work in dual channel mode, presuming the motherboard supports it.

 

[The Demon]

DDR400 512MB 184-pin memory module has a max bandwith of 3.2 Gb/s.

DDR400 512MB (2 256MB 184-pin memory modules on one mobo) has a max bandwidth of 6.4 Gb/s.

I'm currently using 512MB DDR400 Dual channel RAM and it is about 10-14% faster than one 512MB DDR400 module.

There's more stats on this stuff but that should give you an idea.

 

[ts3433]

512MB?

Two 512MB sticks of RAM in dual channel amount to 1GB, not 512MB--it doesn't work like RAID1. On systems supporting dual channel, you'll see performance gains by running in dual channel (can be done with any two matched sticks, sold as a DC pair or not, and often two different sticks of the same size). On a P4, this will really make a difference, and it increases performance about 5% on a 939 versus a 754 at the same clock speed. AXPs don't benefit at all unless you're using the NF2 IGP onboard video.