How much difference does memory make?

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Dik1985
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How much difference does memory make?

Post by Dik1985 » Thu Feb 01, 2007 2:08 am

Hi,

I'm planning a new build to upgrade my main PC.

Important specs are:
Mobo - Gigabyte GA-965P-DS3 - Seems a popular choice
CPU - E6300 - Taken out of HTPC which will be replaced by E4300
GFX - Asus 7300LE Passive - All I really need for dual display

Im having trouble deciding on memory though. I know I want 2x 1GB sticks, but no idea what speed to go for. I know that on a standard rig, 533MHz would be better as it would run synchronus with the fsb(?).

But I have been giving some thought about trying to OC - adding the option of going to 800MHz RAM. But would I still be able to OC 'OK' with 533 or would that just be stupid and not worth it?

Choices so far are Corair Value Select 533 or Corsair XMS2 800. Price difference of £50... which would be nice to save, but if it turns out its worth it I wouldnt mind spending the cash.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

SebRad
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Post by SebRad » Thu Feb 01, 2007 4:27 am

Hi, I think that the settings in the BIOS should alow you to run the memory and CPU at whatever speeds (with in reason) you like. Certainly 266FSB:DDR800 is possible but I would think, for example, 333FSB:DDR533 would also be a possibilty along with many other ratios.
I would go for DDR800 as higher memory speed gives some (but not a lot) extra performance and DDR800 isn't really much more expensive and may help more when overclocking.
Overclockers DDR800 RAM with 2GB kits from £140.
Seb

crap73
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Post by crap73 » Thu Feb 01, 2007 8:16 am

If you're considering overclocking, go for DDR2-800.
The 533 will give fine performances at stock speeds, but it will be your first limit when you start overclocking.

I've been using THIS with my E6600 and it runs easily at 860MHz.

Dik1985
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Location: UK

Post by Dik1985 » Fri Feb 02, 2007 2:01 am

Thanks, I'll go for the DDR2-800 as they're selling it for what i was gonna pay for the cheap stuff anyway!

Incidently, do you know of any good OC'ing threads that may help me understand the ratio relationships and best settings to go for in OC'ing my E6300 and E4300?

Thanks again

belkincp
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Memory is huge!

Post by belkincp » Tue Feb 06, 2007 3:49 am

I had 512mb ram for a while..and when i played swat 4 it was freeze for few seconds or just have plain lag once every few seconds.....once i got 1gig of ram it never lagged again....turnes out my video card was good enough..but the ram i had wasnt enough..id say the biggest difference is 512 to gig........1 gig to 2 gig isnt as big or nearly as needed.

cmthomson
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Post by cmthomson » Tue Feb 06, 2007 9:54 am

2GB gives a much snappier system than 1GB if you run memory pigs like Acrobat Pro, or do video editing. 512MB is fist-poundingly slow with XP.

Dik1985
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Location: UK

Post by Dik1985 » Wed Feb 07, 2007 2:25 am

This main machine will be for Vid Editing so I think I'll go ahead and stick with 2GB.

This will be running Vista business too, which I have no doubt will be more annoying with memory than XP.

Thanks for the suggestion tho belkincp... saving money is always good.

Anyone have any idea when the E4300 prices will drop in the UK?

CA_Steve
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Post by CA_Steve » Wed Feb 07, 2007 6:15 am

Dik1985 wrote:This main machine will be for Vid Editing so I think I'll go ahead and stick with 2GB.

This will be running Vista business too, which I have no doubt will be more annoying with memory than XP.

Thanks for the suggestion tho belkincp... saving money is always good.

Anyone have any idea when the E4300 prices will drop in the UK?
If running Vista and doing video editing, then 2GB is probably the min you should aim for :-)

It was thought that E4300 prices would have already dropped by now...there is another intro happening in April, so probably then.

wussboy
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Post by wussboy » Wed Feb 07, 2007 9:47 am

Does anyone know the answer to this question in regards to Linux? How much Ram is recommended for, say, Ubuntu? And is there an advantage to having more? If there was an advantage, how much could you have?

cjmuk
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Post by cjmuk » Tue Feb 13, 2007 9:51 am

If you are overclocking, DDR800 gives you a bit extra headroom, but if you are not, there is a tiny difference in performance between DD533/667/800 running alongside a C2D - maybe a percent or two difference. This has been well documented so you should be able to google for verification. Apparently it's more relevent to AMD kit which has an on-die memory controller.

As to how much memory... I do 3D gamin on my machine and I've just doubled up from 2 to 4GB PC6400 and it has made a world of difference. But general Vista stuff was fine with 2GB. When it comes to video editing, I suspect there will be a healthy performance increase running Vista x64 in conjunction with 4GB RAM..... though I would doubt it would be 'essential'.

firebane
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Post by firebane » Tue Feb 20, 2007 8:29 pm

wussboy wrote:Does anyone know the answer to this question in regards to Linux? How much Ram is recommended for, say, Ubuntu? And is there an advantage to having more? If there was an advantage, how much could you have?
Ahhh good ole linux, the operating system that runs awesome on 128mb of ram or 4gb of ram.

With linux more is better, but less is just as good. Like any system the more memory the better the system. My linux systems are setup with a 500mb swap and I use 1gb of ram and almost never touch the swap file..

Beyonder
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Post by Beyonder » Tue Feb 20, 2007 9:52 pm

wussboy wrote:Does anyone know the answer to this question in regards to Linux? How much Ram is recommended for, say, Ubuntu? And is there an advantage to having more? If there was an advantage, how much could you have?
Linux is not as small and light as people like to insinuate. Ubuntu really needs 256 MB of RAM, and 512 is probably more realistic if you want a decent experience. A gig wouldn't hurt.

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