Need a quick answer about ram

L

LiefChou

New Member
Hi, I'm only here for about half an hour so, I need an answerr as soon as possible =].

Which would run faster? 2.5Gb DDR2 ram at 400mhz or 2GB ram at 800mhz. The computer isn't used for gaming or anything, just surfing, email, and pictures. I'm thinking the more ram since the computer probably doesn't need as high transfer rates.

Thanks :)
 
Actually scratch that. It seems that the computer can't handle 800mhz. So now the question is 2.5GB at 400mhz or 2GB at 533mhz. Thanks =]
 
Oh I don't remember, I've left now. I was installing some ram for my mum's friend. It was just a sort of old dell. All I remember was that the processor speed was 800mhz. But thanks for your help :)
 
cohen said:
2GB at 533MHZ will be faster, the higher the MHZ the faster it will be
Click to expand...

Not necessarily...

The reason I asked about the CPU-- the CPU could be running a FSB of 800Mhz(200Mhz). And he's asking for what is the better option... If the FSB is really 800Mhz then the 2.5GB at 400Mhz would be better than the 2GB at 800Mhz.
 
id go with 2gb at 533mhz.

given that you cant use 2 sticks with a 2.5gb configuration it wont be running dual channel. 2gb running in dual channel makes it actually run a lot faster than 2.5gb in single channel.

make sure you arent reading the mhz wrong either. technically DDR2 800 is 400mhz... dual data rate = DDR. it transfers data twice per cycle making it run effectively at 800mhz. the reason i mention that is i havent seen ddr2 400 memory in a long time.
 
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fade2green514 said:
id go with 2gb at 533mhz.

given that you cant use 2 sticks with a 2.5gb configuration it wont be running dual channel. 2gb running in dual channel makes it actually run a lot faster than 2.5gb in single channel.

make sure you arent reading the mhz wrong either. technically DDR2 800 is 400mhz... dual data rate = DDR. it transfers data twice per cycle making it run effectively at 800mhz. the reason i mention that is i havent seen ddr2 400 memory in a long time.
Click to expand...

Dual channel is really not that noticeable unless you are doing intensive multi-tasking. And yes, you can run 2.5Gb in dual channel, 1.25GB in each channel aka 1GB stick + 256Mb Stick... Sharpen that math up...
 
yea you could do that.. but my guess is he doesnt have 2x1gb sticks and 2x256mb sticks.

either way, you're more likely to have a dual channel configuration with the faster ram. in my opinion though, the speed wont help your performance a whole lot.

you can check with cpu-z if its running in dual channel or single channel mode. ive always configured mine to run dual channel.
 
Ah yes, I actually did have x2 256mb sticks at 400mhz and x2 1GB sticks at 800mhz. There were four ram slots (which actually surprised me because it was quite a cheapo computer), and I did have dual channel config. The processors FSB was 800mhz. But it's too late to make any changes now, but if its a point your trying to make by all means figure it out, again thanks :)
 
yea i would still go with the 2gb configuration dual channel over 2.5gb 400mhz dual channel... lol

correction: i would go with 2x2gb configuration in dual channel.. 4gb ftw
 
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