DDR2 800 or 1066?

[paul343]

I am building a new system and have decided on:

Mobo - Asus P5K Deluxe
CPU - Core 2 Duo 6420
RAM - ????

I will be overclocking, and am unsure if the 1066 is worth the extra money? After reading some of the discussions here it would seem that after changing the multipliers, voltages, etc, that the 800 RAM would do a sufficient job anyway.

I do plan to upgrade the processor to a Kentsfield after they show up.

Thanks in advance as I am new to the OC game.

 

[mgtech]

If you gaming it might be. However you can get some patriot ram @ newegg.com for 110 (2 gigs of 1066)

 

[Cyrezz]

Sry im stealing your topic, but is it possible that pc2-8000 can be 1000mhz, and pc2-8500 can be both 1000 and 1066 mhz?

 

[Spikke]

DDR2 is so cheap right now and 1066 barely costs more than 800, I personally see no reason to not go with 1066 for a new build.

 

[mgtech]

i AGREE 200% SPIKKE !

 

[powerbaselx]

I am building a new system and have decided on:

Mobo - Asus P5K Deluxe
CPU - Core 2 Duo 6420
RAM - ????

I will be overclocking, and am unsure if the 1066 is worth the extra money? After reading some of the discussions here it would seem that after changing the multipliers, voltages, etc, that the 800 RAM would do a sufficient job anyway.

I do plan to upgrade the processor to a Kentsfield after they show up.

Thanks in advance as I am new to the OC game.

For OC 1066 is probably better but check the latencies.
If not OC 667 is ok.

 

[Hatman]

No need for more than 6400 for most overclocking.

 

[zenmaster]

DDR2-800 is fine.

Make sure to grab memory with good timings suc has 4-4-4-12.

http://www.tomshardware.com/2007/06/15/hardcore_ddr2_ram_by_corsair/page12.html#3d_games

In the future and looking to OC 1333FSB CPUs from Intel, the faster RAM may be necessary, but for the 64xx chip, DDR2-800 is fine unless you want to get into OCs well beyond the 3.0-3.2 Range.

 

[djgandy]

Depends on price. I've seen crucial ballistix 1066 going very cheap lately :twisted:

you're not enthusiast though so get the 800.

 

[paul343]

As I was thinking, the 800 is good enough for today, but who knows for the near future??

I will definately look for low latency as it seems to me that ram is ram and the published speed just increases the probability that you can OC it to even higher speeds.

I still like the 1066 for the price....., but will probably go with the 800 as by the time I am ready for more I might need a new mobo anyway.

Thanks to all

 

[mtyermom]

you're not enthusiast though so get the 800.

What the hell does that mean?

 

[Stevemeister]

I think tests on THG (there is a recent article on this) have shown that in terms of performance you get far more bang for your buck from spending on a CPU/GPU than you do from RAM therefore don't go crazy spenidng money on RAM.

 

[paul343]

Yeah, it is making more sense to go with 800. Decision made. BTW thanks MtYermom, that did seem abit offside....

Paul

 

[rammedstein]

get some kingston value ram, overclock it to 1066@4-4-4-8 @ 2.3v, last for ever, doesn't get warm, is some nice kit, i use it on my non-elitist rig.

 

[rammedstein]

i hadn't changed my sig since i was at 9x400, thanks for reminding me, i'll fix it.

 

[paul343]

Thanks SupremeLaw, good point with the FSBRAM ratio. That is what I am after. I should be able to get that with the 800 even with 1333 FSB.

Paul

 

[bkiserx7]

get some kingston value ram, overclock it to 1066@4-4-4-8 @ 2.3v, last for ever, doesn't get warm, is some nice kit, i use it on my non-elitist rig.

you got a cpu-z validation for that? also a link to the specific memory you speak of?

 

[ZOldDude]

I am building a new system and have decided on:

Mobo - Asus P5K Deluxe
CPU - Core 2 Duo 6420
RAM - ????

I will be overclocking, and am unsure if the 1066 is worth the extra money? After reading some of the discussions here it would seem that after changing the multipliers, voltages, etc, that the 800 RAM would do a sufficient job anyway.

I do plan to upgrade the processor to a Kentsfield after they show up.

Thanks in advance as I am new to the OC game.

I will be overclocking, and am unsure if the 1066 is worth the extra money?

No it's not worth the extra money.
If your going to OC then first off forget the Asus MB....get a DFI and use Patriot or G.Skill ram.
(Varys with which starting speed you pick and how far you want to push it)

DFI has taken the top OC contests hosted in Taiwan for the past 3 years and have always been the finest MB's for getting the most out of what other parts are fitted to them.

Your going with an Intel C2/C2Duo so google the reviews on the latest DFI platform....and the older MB from DFI that holds the world record from late last year.

My OC Optrons ($77 OEM and OC 50% -sngl core- everything on stock volts) and G.Skill DDR1 on a 939 DFI MB eat up and spit out even the fastest DDR2 ram from Corsair and OCZ when tested for Read/Write/Copy/Latency....by up to/over 1,000 MBps,then again DDR2 will do the same vrs DDR3 when it hits the roof.

FTW:
DFI
PC Power & Cooling
Thermalright
Patriot/G.Skill (pick make/model depending on OC you want to hit vrs price)
Coolermaster cases (always remove rear fan grill on your case with ANY brand of case)
Silverstone FM-121 fans (110CFM w/free speed controller and as low as $11 online)

Slap in your choice of CPU and start useing all the functions of the DFI MB for best OC.

EDIT: For those that wish PM me and I will post a copy of Everest memory benchmarks (link to this page in post so everyone can see).
DDR2 can never beat DDR1 in transfer....it just runs at lower stock volts.
The high end Corsair/OCZ reach about the same volts as DDR1 and still don't keep up.

 

[paul343]

SupremeLaw, thanks for posting those numbers, that does help. The Corsair TWIN2X2048-6400C4D was exactly the memory I was looking at, as it is (essentially) on the QVL and for Corsair's rep.

As the bus speed on the 1333 FSB is 333 and multiplied by 2 to get the Ram rated speed, it seems unlikey that the 1066 Ram would pay off as I don't think a bus speed of 666 is attainable. One more reason to go with the 800 if the 1:1 ratio is important. I guess this last para will show if I am catching on.....

Paul

 

[paul343]

Well, that was all good reading. Thanks SupremeLaw for all of your input, and direction to solid source material. In the end it seems that the Corsair TWIN2X2048-6400C4D is my first choice.

I follow the 1:1 ratio business better now and it is not really in the "must have" category. In terms of bang for the buck, I favour the 800 to the 1066. I'll save the extra few dollars and spend it on DDR3 next year...

Paul

 

[powerbaselx]

get some kingston value ram, overclock it to 1066@4-4-4-8 @ 2.3v, last for ever, doesn't get warm, is some nice kit, i use it on my non-elitist rig.

Kingston valueram (DDR2-667 or 800) is usually CL5, right?

These modules don't come with heat dissipators. Do you know what is its usual OC capability without the dissipators? 10% more? 15%?

 

[powerbaselx]

> if the 1:1 ratio is important.


As it turns out, a 1:1 ratio is NOT all that important
e.g. the Corsair Test Lab Reports I've seen
don't show 1:1 ratios.

The EPP feature was designed to optimize itself,
and it typically runs the memory bus faster
than the front side bus.

(...)

I've also had at least one Intel user
report to me that his ASUS workstation
actually ran slower at a 1:1 ratio!

Probably it runs slower compared to a faster RAM ram access.
Anyway, what is importart for the "light-overclocker" is to know what really causes large steps in performance between settings.
Another thing is to understand if the 1:1 ratio brings another advantages like better system stability, less crashes, etc.

Does anyone knows if the data flowing between FSB-Northbridge-RAM is always synchronous at 1:1 ratio?

 

[paul343]

SupremeLaw

Thanks for the heads up on the newegg price, ordered some today! That is almost free with the rebate...

Paul