AM2 mb questions

koOp · 07-28-2006, 03:46 PM

are mb for am2 limited? since AM2 can support ddr2 does this mean we cant use ddr? or does it depend on the mb? also could someone plz show me the best mb for am2 in the genre of gaming

Maddhatter · 07-28-2006, 04:20 PM

im pretty sure since it supports ddr2 you can still use ddr but it won't go to the boards full ram speed potential i think how that works is only as fast as your fastest stick of ram

Saurian · 07-28-2006, 04:49 PM

DDR is 184 pin, DDR2 is 240 pin. So physically its a no go.

I believe the move to AM2 was done mostly to allow addressing of DDR2 ram, so I'm unsure if you can get AM2 boards with 184-pin ram.

SC7 · 07-28-2006, 05:19 PM

No, you cannot use DDR on an AM2 motherboard. There are two reasons.

1st. Size. DDR is 184-pin, DDR2 is 240-pin. The sticks won't fit into the same slot. So why don't we see hybrid mobos, or some mobos that support DDR? See reason 2.

2nd. Integrated memory controller. An integrated memory controller means all memory chip support is dependant on the processor. AM2 processors have different cores, which support DDR2. The chip cannot support both because of the integrated memory controller, and the layout is simply designed on that. While backwards compatibility could be maintained, AMD did not, probably because it's not worth it, and that DDR2 became a major selling point of the AM2 platform.

bball4life · 07-28-2006, 05:58 PM

Yep, so if you want to use ddr and upgrade your cpu and mobo you have to go with socket 939 which I would pretty confidently say is the best socket that supports ddr. Since intel has been with ddr2 for a while now socket 939 is the last ddr socket we will probably ever see, now its time to wait for ddr3. Hmm does that mean it will be 296 pin

(240 pin- 186 pin) add another 56 pins and you have ddr3. Too bad by ddr4 it would be as long as our mobo's.

Burgerbob · 07-28-2006, 06:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bball4life

Yep, so if you want to use ddr and upgrade your cpu and mobo you have to go with socket 939 which I would pretty confidently say is the best socket that supports ddr. Since intel has been with ddr2 for a while now socket 939 is the last ddr socket we will probably ever see, now its time to wait for ddr3. Hmm does that mean it will be 296 pin

(240 pin- 186 pin) add another 56 pins and you have ddr3. Too bad by ddr4 it would be as long as our mobo's.

I like that

...
Why would want just DDR when you could get some crazy good DDR2? it is better, after all. Just get a good AM2 board that supports high DDR2 speeds, and you are good. Of couse, you could prob get Conroe now.

SC7 · 07-28-2006, 09:20 PM

Actually, you can get a conroe board with DDR. You just need to find a manufacturer. As a matter of fact, the board someone posted in these forums a few days ago, the ASROCK with VIA chipset and AGP had DDR. You can have DDR on an Intel because the memory dependancy is on the chipset. Often chipsets will support more than one memory type, especially a lower end like the VIA PT880.

With DDR3 around the corner, it is clear that AM2 won't be a lasting socket type. DDR3 support will be built into the next architecture from AMD (K8L). I don't neccisarily think it's all to bad that with Conroe intel kept the controller onboard. What's puzzling me is that if AM3 and AM2 are interchangable, how memory controllers will work.

Unless AM3 won't support DDR3? Bad Move. I guess we'll see.

mrjack · 07-28-2006, 09:29 PM

I bet ASRock has a mobo supporting AM2 and socket 939 and uses DDR for both.

They always have all kinds of hybrid motherboards.

SC7 · 07-28-2006, 09:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mrjack

I bet ASRock has a mobo supporting AM2 and socket 939 and uses DDR for both.

They always have all kinds of hybrid motherboards.

Yea, wouldn't surprise me. They at one time had the 754 and 939 hybrid board. They've also had AGP/PCI-E boards, and on a 775 they had 2xDDR, 2x DDR2. They also had a socket 478 motherboard with a 915G chipset and GMA 900 graphics. I guess they have kind of a market niche.

bball4life · 07-28-2006, 10:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mrjack

I bet ASRock has a mobo supporting AM2 and socket 939 and uses DDR for both.

They always have all kinds of hybrid motherboards.

Nope, they have a mobo that supports sockets 939 and AM2 but it requires an add on card for the am2 slot, which also includes ddr2 slots, so you still have to use the ddr2 ram with the am2 cpu. But it does have ddr slots on the actual mobo for the socket 939.

07-28-2006, 03:46 PM	#1 (permalink)
koOp Platinum Member Join Date: Apr 2006 Posts: 539	AM2 mb questions are mb for am2 limited? since AM2 can support ddr2 does this mean we cant use ddr? or does it depend on the mb? also could someone plz show me the best mb for am2 in the genre of gaming

07-28-2006, 04:20 PM	#2 (permalink)
Maddhatter Platinum Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Indiana Age: 26 Posts: 781	im pretty sure since it supports ddr2 you can still use ddr but it won't go to the boards full ram speed potential i think how that works is only as fast as your fastest stick of ram __________________ Mobo: GIGABYTE GA-965P-DS3 CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E6320 Conroe 1.86GHz PSU: Rosewill 400W Ram: G.Skill 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit GPU: Ati Radeon x1800xt 256 mb OS: Windows XP Professional 64 bit

07-28-2006, 05:19 PM	#4 (permalink)
SC7 Platinum Member Join Date: May 2006 Location: New Jersey, USA Age: 17 Posts: 757	No, you cannot use DDR on an AM2 motherboard. There are two reasons. 1st. Size. DDR is 184-pin, DDR2 is 240-pin. The sticks won't fit into the same slot. So why don't we see hybrid mobos, or some mobos that support DDR? See reason 2. 2nd. Integrated memory controller. An integrated memory controller means all memory chip support is dependant on the processor. AM2 processors have different cores, which support DDR2. The chip cannot support both because of the integrated memory controller, and the layout is simply designed on that. While backwards compatibility could be maintained, AMD did not, probably because it's not worth it, and that DDR2 became a major selling point of the AM2 platform. __________________ My Rig Pentium 4 2.8 GHz Northwood Intel 845GVSR Motherboard 1 GB PC 3200 DDR BFG Tech FX5500OC 256 Mb PCI Edition 160 GB WD Caviar SE (8 Mb cache) Edition 60 GB WD Caviar SE (8 Mb cache) Edition Sony DVD-Rom/CD-RW Drive Dynex DVD+-R/RW Dual Layer Drive Nice MAG Innovision 17" LCD Flat Panel Monitor.

07-28-2006, 05:58 PM	#5 (permalink)
bball4life Diamond Member Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Somewhere.... Posts: 1,423	Yep, so if you want to use ddr and upgrade your cpu and mobo you have to go with socket 939 which I would pretty confidently say is the best socket that supports ddr. Since intel has been with ddr2 for a while now socket 939 is the last ddr socket we will probably ever see, now its time to wait for ddr3. Hmm does that mean it will be 296 pin (240 pin- 186 pin) add another 56 pins and you have ddr3. Too bad by ddr4 it would be as long as our mobo's. __________________ Fold To Cure Team 12912 AMD 3700+ San Diego (@2.75) I A8N SLI premium I 1 GB OCZ Gold PC3200 (@460 2-2-2-5) I 160GB Seagate HDD I EVGA 7900GT KO (@550/1800) I Seasonic S12 600W SLI PSU I Audigy 2ZS I MX3100 Mouse/Keyboard I Logitech x5300 I Dell E193FP 19" LCD I Black Aspire X-Cruiser Macbook I 2.0GHz Yonah I 1GB RAM I 80GB HDD

07-28-2006, 09:20 PM	#7 (permalink)
SC7 Platinum Member Join Date: May 2006 Location: New Jersey, USA Age: 17 Posts: 757	Actually, you can get a conroe board with DDR. You just need to find a manufacturer. As a matter of fact, the board someone posted in these forums a few days ago, the ASROCK with VIA chipset and AGP had DDR. You can have DDR on an Intel because the memory dependancy is on the chipset. Often chipsets will support more than one memory type, especially a lower end like the VIA PT880. With DDR3 around the corner, it is clear that AM2 won't be a lasting socket type. DDR3 support will be built into the next architecture from AMD (K8L). I don't neccisarily think it's all to bad that with Conroe intel kept the controller onboard. What's puzzling me is that if AM3 and AM2 are interchangable, how memory controllers will work. Unless AM3 won't support DDR3? Bad Move. I guess we'll see. __________________ My Rig Pentium 4 2.8 GHz Northwood Intel 845GVSR Motherboard 1 GB PC 3200 DDR BFG Tech FX5500OC 256 Mb PCI Edition 160 GB WD Caviar SE (8 Mb cache) Edition 60 GB WD Caviar SE (8 Mb cache) Edition Sony DVD-Rom/CD-RW Drive Dynex DVD+-R/RW Dual Layer Drive Nice MAG Innovision 17" LCD Flat Panel Monitor.

07-28-2006, 04:49 PM	#3 (permalink)
Saurian Platinum Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Oskaloosa/Pleasantville, Iowa Age: 22 Posts: 552	DDR is 184 pin, DDR2 is 240 pin. So physically its a no go. I believe the move to AM2 was done mostly to allow addressing of DDR2 ram, so I'm unsure if you can get AM2 boards with 184-pin ram.

07-28-2006, 09:29 PM	#8 (permalink)
mrjack VIP Member Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Finland Age: 17 Posts: 2,362	I bet ASRock has a mobo supporting AM2 and socket 939 and uses DDR for both. They always have all kinds of hybrid motherboards. __________________ Main rig: Intel Core 2 Duo E7200 @ 3GHz \| MSI P7N Zilent 2x2048Mb OCZ Titanium 800MHz DDR2 Samsung Spinpoint T166 320Gb SATAII Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 250Gb SATAII Western Digital Caviar 500Gb SATAII MSI NX8800GT OC 512Mb @ 660MHz/950MHz Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Xtreme Audio \| Antec Truepower Trio 550W

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