Best configuration for 3gb of RAM

A

andy4569

New Member
I'm going to use 32 bit Vista OS and I was told that it will only utilize up to 3 gb and that 4gb would be a waste. I'm going to get an Intel Core Duo processor. What would be the best way to run a 3gb setup. Three 1gb chips or two 1gb chips and two 512mb chips? I know I want to get all the same brand and speed, but I always thought your supposed to install RAM in pairs?
 
With three 1gb dimms you would likely see the second 1gb on the first or A memory channel. For adding a pair of 512s you would see those as the second dimm for each channel not the first. The 512 method sees an equal amount on both channels while the usual recommendation is to run equal sized dimms for the best performance.
 
RAM is used in matched pairs if you want to run dual channel. Certainly DC offers better performance, and thus you don't want to use 3 1GB modules.

However, for what it's worth, just install 2 x 2GB modules. There will come a time when you'll be glad you did.
 
Someone on another thread was trying to run 8gb with XP and was advised that was simply put overkill even with a 64bit edition of Vista installed. I comtemplated whether or not to go with a pair of 2gb dimms here for the current build and simply stuck with 2gb instead. This is with Vista and XP seeing a dual boot here.
 
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