ECC or non-ECC

Westkhan · 11-14-2005, 01:37 PM

Hi guys...First time post here!

I am about to purchase a Sony Vaio laptop and the very first upgraded I'll be needing is RAM expansion from 512Mb to 1 Gb.

Sony states that PC2-3200 (DDR2-400 CL=3) is the one needed for my model.

A quick search with an on-line vendor showed some 512 modules for sale.

But, for a particular brand (Transcend) the very same module with ECC is about twice the price as one without that spec (75 vs. 135 Euros)!

Is ECC worth the price difference? What, exactly, is the benefit?

Thanks for any replies.

WK

ckfordy · 11-14-2005, 02:05 PM

dont get ecc you wont benefit from it at all and its not worth the price difference

Chris Chan · 11-14-2005, 02:18 PM

ECC is an error checking type of RAM, but like amd64 said, you won't benefit from it. It's mainly used on workstations and servers.

Hairy_Lee · 11-14-2005, 02:43 PM

you lose performance when you use ecc memory, its only useful in server and workstation environments where absolute stability is required. not necessary in desktop environments

Westkhan · 11-14-2005, 04:03 PM

...3 fast, concurring and to the point replies...It seems I stumbled across a great forum.

Is there anything else I should pay attention to, regarding the described upgrade?

Are the specs I referenced (...straight from the Sony site) enough? Are there any RAM sub-types from the described specs that I should choose from?

Thanks!

WK

liquidshadow · 11-15-2005, 01:59 AM

I think thats it.
Just make sure you get the right RAM for your slot

[-0MEGA-] · 11-15-2005, 02:04 AM

You should have a read through the RAM 101, it tells you about ECC and the benefits from it.

Westkhan · 11-15-2005, 01:25 PM

OK...

Today I open the RAM bay on my new Vaio and checked that there was an empty slot for additional RAM.

However, although the Sony site states that PC2-3200 (DDR2-400 CL=3) is the required RAM for my machine, what I found there was Samsung RAM with the following stamped on top:

512Mb 2Rx16 PC2-4200S-444-12-A3

It does not seem to be what is mentioned in the specs...Can you guys shed some light on this?

Thanks.

WK

Westkhan · 11-15-2005, 01:55 PM

A quick check with an online vendor showed that there are either DDR2-400 (PC2-3200) or DDR2-533 (PC2-4300) modules.

No mention of 4200 or 4200S spec...could this be an "in-house" Samsung designation for the second one?

The Sony Vaio support line is down for more then 24 hours now...

WK

**Archangel** · 11-15-2005, 03:49 PM

i would suggest you download and install everest.
http://www.lavalys.com/products/over...?pid=1&lang=en

when you run it, select the overclock section.
and then look for the SPD memory modules. ( not 100% shure if its called that way, since i have the duch version installed)

there it should give the timeings of your module at its stock speed. ( 200 MHz DDR) for example, on my RAM it says, (2,5-3-3-8 @ 200MHz )
the 2,5 is the CL of my RAM, that one should be 3 on your pc.
then, all you need to do, is fina a RAM mmodule with the same timings, and it should work.

and, this ebay link says pc4200 is 533MHz
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...category=80201
so, have a look for the 3200 series

11-14-2005, 01:37 PM	#1 (permalink)
Westkhan New Member Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Portugal Posts: 14	ECC or non-ECC Hi guys...First time post here! I am about to purchase a Sony Vaio laptop and the very first upgraded I'll be needing is RAM expansion from 512Mb to 1 Gb. Sony states that PC2-3200 (DDR2-400 CL=3) is the one needed for my model. A quick search with an on-line vendor showed some 512 modules for sale. But, for a particular brand (Transcend) the very same module with ECC is about twice the price as one without that spec (75 vs. 135 Euros)! Is ECC worth the price difference? What, exactly, is the benefit? Thanks for any replies. WK

11-14-2005, 02:18 PM	#3 (permalink)
Chris Chan Platinum Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Michigan, USA Age: 17 Posts: 509	ECC is an error checking type of RAM, but like amd64 said, you won't benefit from it. It's mainly used on workstations and servers. __________________ desktop: Celeron 1.7/512MB/80GB/integrated/Ubuntu 7.10 server: P4 2.8/768MB/40GB/integrated/Debian Etch laptop: G3 500MHz/256MB/10GB/RageMobility/Debian Etch laptop soon: Sempron 2800+/512MB/40GB/integrated/Ubuntu 7.10 laptop soon: PII 300MHz/192MB/40GB/?/Debian Etch Last edited by Chris Chan; 11-14-2005 at 02:18 PM. Reason: spelling

11-14-2005, 02:43 PM	#4 (permalink)
Hairy_Lee VIP Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Plymouth, UK Age: 26 Posts: 2,553	you lose performance when you use ecc memory, its only useful in server and workstation environments where absolute stability is required. not necessary in desktop environments __________________ Intel Core 2 Duo E6750 EVGA nForce 650i Ultra mainboard EVGA 7950 GT KO SC 512Mb w/ Zalman VF-900Cu 2Gb of OCZ GOLD XTC SPECIAL OPS Eition Notebook - Acer Aspire 9300 - Turion TL-60/ 2 Gb RAM/ Geforce Go 7600 128 Dedicated (400 Mb turbocache)

11-14-2005, 04:03 PM	#5 (permalink)
Westkhan New Member Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Portugal Posts: 14	Wow...! ...3 fast, concurring and to the point replies...It seems I stumbled across a great forum. Is there anything else I should pay attention to, regarding the described upgrade? Are the specs I referenced (...straight from the Sony site) enough? Are there any RAM sub-types from the described specs that I should choose from? Thanks! WK

11-15-2005, 01:59 AM	#6 (permalink)
liquidshadow Diamond Member Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Virginia, USA Posts: 1,040	I think thats it. Just make sure you get the right RAM for your slot __________________ [SIZE="1"]Intel Q6600 \| D-Tek Fuzion Block Asus P5K Deluxe \| Swiftech MCR320 Rad G-Skill 4GB \| Swiftech MCRES-MICRO Res WD Raptor 150 \| EK FC8800 GTX Block Seagate 320GB \| 3 * Yate Loon DM12SL Samsung S182 \| Swiftech MCP655 Pump Coolmax 700W Antec P180b NOW PARTING OUT, PM ME

11-14-2005, 02:05 PM	#2 (permalink)
ckfordy banned Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Madison, Minnesota Age: 19 Posts: 2,743	dont get ecc you wont benefit from it at all and its not worth the price difference

11-15-2005, 02:04 AM	#7 (permalink)
[-0MEGA-] VIP Member Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Goffstown, NH Age: 21 Posts: 28,962	You should have a read through the RAM 101, it tells you about ECC and the benefits from it. __________________ Core 2 Quad Q9550 @ 4.1GHz Asus Rampage Formula X48 ATI 4870 X2 2GB GDDR5 4GB (2x2GB) DDR2 960 300GB Raptor // 2x 750GB Creative SB X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty SilverStone 750W +12V@60A 3DMark06: 22605 www.photosbygeoff.com

11-15-2005, 01:25 PM	#8 (permalink)
Westkhan New Member Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Portugal Posts: 14	The Plot Thickens (as usual...) OK... Today I open the RAM bay on my new Vaio and checked that there was an empty slot for additional RAM. However, although the Sony site states that PC2-3200 (DDR2-400 CL=3) is the required RAM for my machine, what I found there was Samsung RAM with the following stamped on top: 512Mb 2Rx16 PC2-4200S-444-12-A3 It does not seem to be what is mentioned in the specs...Can you guys shed some light on this? Thanks. WK

11-15-2005, 01:55 PM	#9 (permalink)
Westkhan New Member Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Portugal Posts: 14	Hmmm... A quick check with an online vendor showed that there are either DDR2-400 (PC2-3200) or DDR2-533 (PC2-4300) modules. No mention of 4200 or 4200S spec...could this be an "in-house" Samsung designation for the second one? The Sony Vaio support line is down for more then 24 hours now... WK

11-15-2005, 03:49 PM	#10 (permalink)
Archangel Moderator Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Netherlands Age: 22 Posts: 9,894	i would suggest you download and install everest. http://www.lavalys.com/products/over...?pid=1&lang=en when you run it, select the overclock section. and then look for the SPD memory modules. ( not 100% shure if its called that way, since i have the duch version installed) there it should give the timeings of your module at its stock speed. ( 200 MHz DDR) for example, on my RAM it says, (2,5-3-3-8 @ 200MHz ) the 2,5 is the CL of my RAM, that one should be 3 on your pc. then, all you need to do, is fina a RAM mmodule with the same timings, and it should work. and, this ebay link says pc4200 is 533MHz http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...category=80201 so, have a look for the 3200 series __________________ Don't hit me with them negative waves so early in the morning. Last edited by Archangel; 11-15-2005 at 03:51 PM.

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