Used vs New memory

[mhw100]

I need to upgrade my RDRAM memory but at the cost of it new is crazy. I've been looking at used RDRAM on eBay and spoken with so-called memory experts (which I am not) who say that in some ways used is better than new.

1. They claim is that memory is very stable and will last decades and if it hasn't failed after a couple of years it probably won't.
2. They claim that used memory is already "burned in" which makes it better. I don't understand this being a newbie.

These so-called experts weren't trying to sell me anything so I assume that there might be some truth to it but I just don't know. Could one of you pros give some advice on this?

Thanks.

 

[timberwolf1]

Usually I'd reckon its not safe to buy used memory.

 

[llama_man]

The experts you spoke to have a point. By "burned in" they mean it's been used for a long time, and any faults with it should have come to light by now. Which raises the main point...

Second-hand RAM can be a good buy IF you know it's good RAM. The problem with buying anything on eBay is that you don't get to see it working. Even once you've got it in your grubby little paws and stuck it in your machine, there's no guarantee that it's 100%. Some memory errors only occur sporadically, so you might not see the faults even if you went to the vendor's house and saw the RAM working.

In an ideal world, you'd want to see the RAM in action running a memtest, to be certain that it was functional RAM. This is unlikely to happen.

I'd agree with the guy above and avoid second-hand RAM (unless buying it from a person you know and trust). New RAM often comes with a lifetime warranty, so you have piece of mind.

 

[mhw100]

Thank you both for your responses. Is there a memory test I or the vendor could run to check it?

 

[llama_man]

memtest86 seems to be popular on these forums, but I've not tried it myself. I also don't know if it works on all flavours of RAM.

I'd be wary of accepting someone's claims to have run the test without seeing it for myself. And to test the memory thoroughly takes several hours, I think!

 

[mhw100]

Yes that is prudent. I just found a used vendor in town so I will see if he will run it in my presence. Thank you.

 

[mhw100]

1. I sat and watched the vendor load memtest and it ran for 7+ hours with no errors that I personally confirmed to be true. Would a 7 hour test be considered adequate for RDRAM?

2. Are there any other diagnositcs within memtest configuration that should be run? e.g. I saw something about checking the "BIOS All" The default was not for All.

 

[mhw100]

Put it in my machine and it tested again with memtest86 and prime95 and all seems well. Thanks to everyone.

 

[llama_man]

Glad we could help!