Nforce2-which memory

[gateT]

Thinking of getting a NF2 with Athlon XP2100.

Would PC2100 just be a drag on this setup

I know it got good OCing reviews,but that was before the higher FSBs came out.

Most of the good deals seem to be on PC2100 right now but don't want a serious bottle neck.

Just getting out of the P-3 platform so I need a little help with this AMD stuff.

 

[ChampionAtTufshop]

plan on overclocking?
if not, i would get 2x XXXmb of pc2100 (xxx=any amount per stick you wnt)

this would allow usage of dual channel ddr, also the ram:cpu would be in sync in terms of mhz

it al depends on if you plan to overclock or not...

 

[gateT]

Maybe not to start off with but I'm sure before long I'll start pushing it a little. It will depend on if my Ti4600 will start being the bottleneck,right now I'm sure it's my memory bus.

 

[ChampionAtTufshop]

then get pc2700
it will help in the future as well (as the 266fsb is being replaced with 333 slowly by amd...)

 

[nick1985]

yeah get 2700 to match the 333 if you ever need to upgrade

 

[snidy]

What about DDR 3200?

 

[CraigRT]

I got PC2700 and it's not fast enough (well, for a p4 system)
you can potentially push your FSB even past PC2700 levels. get something higher if you can, if not, the 2700 will be okay.. but to get higher might pay off in the long run.

(I just ordered 2x256 Kingston HyperZ PC3500 for example)

 

[snidy]

I was looking at the kingston 3500. It's for my new system I'm building
Asus Nforce2 delux
XP2700

 

[bgeh]

imo, get the corsair xms3500
the timings of the kingston hyper x 3500 are higher than the corsair's
corsair:2-3-3-7-1T
kingston:2-4-4-8-1T
and the price is around the same

 

[CraigRT]

Get either of the memory types.
the only reason I am getting the Kingston over Corsair is that I save on shipping because I can get this stuff locally.

but CAS2 3500 is wicked fast memory.

 

[nick1985]

get 222 mushkin. its faster than corsair

 

[CraigRT]

Originally posted by: nick1985
get 222 mushkin. its faster than corsair

I doubt it. most of the reviews I have seen say that Corsair is the best memory on the planet.

back in the PC133 days, I got a stick of High Performance REV2 and I was not impressed by Mushkin memory. only by their quality and packaging.. but the memory itself was nothing special. my CAS2 Crucial PC133 ran much better.

 

[KingofFah]

If the 2100 is a palmino, then you will have to unlock it and drop the mutliplier to push up the FSB. (2100 is close to the limit of the palminos). If it is a Tbred A, then you should be able to change the multiplier without unlocking the CPU. I do not think you will be able to hit 166X13 with the tbred A.

 

[mechBgon]

I built a 2200+ using two 256Mb XMS3200 v1.1 on an A7N8X-Deluxe yesterday. It's an office system (yes really) so I'm not going to OC it. But at stock speed, with the CPU and memory synced at 266MHz, it's faster than my KT333 system with a 1600+ synced at 333MHz... slightly (yes, I used my infamous WinZip/UT benchmark).

If I were to unlock and crank up the CPU/memory speeds to 333MHz...? I would expect about a 5%-7% jump in performance at an equivalent MHz, judging by these benchmarks at Hexus, where they held MHz constant and ran benchmarks at both 133/133 and 166/166 speeds on an nForce2 board. There are also a P4/RDRAM and a AthlonXP/KT400 system in the benchmarks.

If I were buying, I'd get really fast RAM and keep boosting the FSB while dropping the CPU multiplier as needed to keep the CPU stable.

 

[19]

I have the same question - I just got the Asus A7N8X Delux and need RAM for it. I'm using an XP 2100 (not sure if its T-bird A or B) for now but I plan to upgrade to one of the 333 FSB CPUs when the prices drop. I was considering OCZ's "Dual Channel Optimized DDR" or their "Enhanced Latency" DDR - does anyone know how they stack up against Corsair et. al.?

 

I was considering OCZ's "Dual Channel Optimized DDR" or their "Enhanced Latency" DDR - does anyone know how they stack up against Corsair et. al.?

From what i hear it doesnt stack up against it at all. I read in posts all the time to stay away from ocz crap.....

 

[mechBgon]

Originally posted by: Phocas

I was considering OCZ's "Dual Channel Optimized DDR" or their "Enhanced Latency" DDR - does anyone know how they stack up against Corsair et. al.?

From what i hear it doesnt stack up against it at all. I read in posts all the time to stay away from ocz crap.....

What he said ^

 

[CraigRT]

Originally posted by: mechBgon

Originally posted by: Phocas

I was considering OCZ's "Dual Channel Optimized DDR" or their "Enhanced Latency" DDR - does anyone know how they stack up against Corsair et. al.?

From what i hear it doesnt stack up against it at all. I read in posts all the time to stay away from ocz crap.....

What he said ^

what he said what he said.
Geil too
HELL SPAWN.

 

[19]

From what i hear it doesnt stack up against it at all. I read in posts all the time to stay away from ocz crap.....

OK, I'll prolly go with Corsair then. But what about the difference between PC-3500 and PC-3200? Is the 3500 worth the extra $30 (for 512 MB)? Like I said, I'll be overclocking my XP 2100 for now, and will upgrade to a 333 FSB CPU in about 6 months (I will prolly overclock that eventually too); I want RAM that will meet all of my current and future needs for this particular mobo (A7N8X).

 

I did some research on the 3500 and 3200 xms, from the people that i asked that knew a thing or two about them, they said there wasnt a difference that they saw. There are claims that the 3500 has the 5ns ram and 3200 has some also, but the 3200 could easily oc to the 3500 levels. Even being told that by people who know their sh!t, I still got the 3500 (i am only speaking about the XMS corsair) and couldnt be happier. Great stuff and i cant wait to really use it with the upcoming springdale mobos.

 

[19]

but the 3200 could easily oc to the 3500 levels

True, but then 3500 could oc to 3700. But is there any advantage to having RAM that is so much faster than the FSB? I've read that (currently) with AMDs you're better off running the RAM at the same speed as the FSB, but that in the future, when faster processors come out, you'll be better off running the RAM faster than the FSB. Could someone explain why? I think it has something to do with latency versus bandwidth...

 

[Literatii]

It all comes down to whether you OC or not. If you do, just realize that the nforce2 chipset runs best when the RAM is synced to the FSB. So, if you don't OC, PC2700 CL2 should be fine. If you OC (and have >= 333 2600 XP), then look at PC3200.

There is not that much performance gain from going Dual Channel (unless you use integrated graphics). So if you're on a budget, buying 1 stick has very minor consquences. Samsung RAM (ergo OCZ) is finicky with the Asus board.

 

[nick1985]

3200 isnt faster than 2700 if you use a 333 FSB processor, much to peoples dismay. the 2700 matches your FSB so it runs a whole lot better

 

[nick1985]

Originally posted by: nick1985
3200 isnt faster than 2700 if you use a 333 FSB processor, much to peoples dismay. the 2700 matches your FSB so it runs a whole lot better

a little known fact about ram.


people jump all over that 3500 crap and they only have a 2100. that makes no sense to me. if you are not overclocking you will see NO difference than if you had pc2100. i have 2700 because i plan on getting a 333 fsb to match it in the future. dont listen to those guys. get no higher than 2700, and get mushkin 222. its the best stuff around, especially if you game

 

[Literatii]

Like I said... it depends if you overclock.

If you unlock your Tbred B and get a good OCable mobo (like the Epox 8RDA) you can get close to 200/400 FSB with good cooling. At that point you may wish you had PC3200 instead of PC2700.