[Tech] Ram

[Nanor]

Hey baby gurls,

Crimbo is coming up and I figure I'll use it as a lovely excuse to take off the side of my PC and break something. The excuse I'm using this time is RAM but I really don't have any idea what I'm looking for. I know I want 4 gigs of the stuff but I don't know what stuff will be compatible with my motherboard.

I'd like the price to be around the £70 mark, please.

 

[Ronin Storm]

Are you running a 64bit operating system?

 

[Nanor]

Yes, x64 Windows 7.

 

[Wol]

I don't know what stuff will be compatible with my motherboard

Did you look at the "Memory support list" link on that link?

http://download.gigabyte.eu/FileList/Memory/motherboard_memory_ga-ep31-ds3l_2.0.pdf


This is around the £70 mark. DDR2-800mhz 4gb. gives you two slots free for expansion. I'd definitely get 2x2gb, rather than 4 * 1gb.

Have you also tried the magic system scanner here: http://www.crucial.com/uk/index.aspx?click=true

e2a: Or heck, just say "Whats compatible with my motherboard" - http://www.crucial.com/uk/store/listparts.aspx?model=GA-EP31-DS3L (rev. 2.0)

 

[Chuchurocket]

RAM

Giggedy. That is all

 

[Haven]

Pretty much what Wol says, the link he provides gives the options from Crucial:

http://www.crucial.com/uk/store/listparts.aspx?model=GA-EP31-DS3L (rev. 2.0)

Its pretty clear on your motherboard spec page what it supports:

1. 4 x 1.8V DDR2 DIMM sockets supporting up to 4 GB of system memory
2. Dual channel memory architecture
3. Support for DDR2 1066/800/667 MHz memory modules

For "Fast" memory, you've two choices. Go for overall throughput (FSB) or go for low latency (low timings). My experience would lead me to think that low latency would benefit games more but its a close run thing and depends on other factors such as GPU limited / CPU limited systems and whether you plan on overclocking (go for a higher FSB if you plan on overclocking your CPU).

Two choices then for speed:

High throughput: PC2-8500 • 5-5-5-15 • Unbuffered • NON-ECC • DDR2-1066

Or Low latency: PC2-6400 • 4-4-4-12 • Unbuffered • NON-ECC • DDR2-800

You takes your pick and you pays your money (plus a hefty fancy heat spreader tax if thats your thing).

 

[Wol]

Two choices then for speed:

High throughput: PC2-8500 • 5-5-5-15 • Unbuffered • NON-ECC • DDR2-1066

Or Low latency: PC2-6400 • 4-4-4-12 • Unbuffered • NON-ECC • DDR2-800

You takes your pick and you pays your money (plus a hefty fancy heat spreader tax if thats your thing).

And if you give a hoot, the numbers (5-5-5-15) basically show how many clock cycles it takes to activate certain areas of memory. Larger the number = longer it takes.

The PC2-<number>, shows how fast. So as haven says, the higher number = larger throughput (higher frequency), but random access times are slightly higher.