Which 4 GB Kit?

[mis33]

According to my research, it's better to get 2x2GB than 1x1GB. These are the ones offered by my local store:

OCZ 4G (2 X 2GB) 667DDR2 XTC Vista Upgrade Edition(5-5-5-15) - OCZ2VU6674GK
OCZ 4G (2G X2) DDR2800 Dual Channel Vista Performance Platinum Edition(5-4-4-18) - OCZ2P8004GK
Patriot Dual Channel DDR2 4GB 6400 (800MHz) CL 5-5-5-12 Eased Latency Kit - PDC24G6400ELK

My other components are Q6600-G0, eVGA8800GTS-320MG-SC, Cosair-620W. Not sure about motherboard yet, P5K-Deluxe or a newer X38 board.

Which memory should I get? Any other suggestions?

 

[StevieD]

Any price differences?

 

[mis33]

$198 OCZ 4G (2 X 2GB) 667DDR2 XTC Vista Upgrade Edition(5-5-5-15) - OCZ2VU6674GK
$260 OCZ 4G (2G X2) DDR2800 Dual Channel Vista Performance Platinum Edition(5-4-4-18) - OCZ2P8004GK
$215 Patriot Dual Channel DDR2 4GB 6400 (800MHz) CL 5-5-5-12 Eased Latency Kit - PDC24G6400ELK

My salesperson also told me that these are not current prices. Maybe $20-$30 less.

Other suggestions are also welcomed.

 

[mis33]

I did my homework and checked Newegg There are only a few reviews for both OCZ but a lot more for the Patriot.

Patriot received better reviews from their users. However, these Patriot modules are EPP Ready, will they work well in a motherboard with Intel chipset (P35 or X38)?

Any other memory modules I should look into?

 

[Maziar]

dont listen to newegg reviews, from those options , the OCZ 4GB DDR2 800 has better timing than the petriot one , so my vote goes for that
and it will work fine with P35/X38

 

[mis33]

Are there any other suggestions?

 

[Guest]

Do you intend to OC your computer? If yes, go with DDR2-800, if now, go with the 667

 

[mis33]

I will OC moderately, maybe 2.8-3.0 Ghz.

I would not mind to pay more for DDR2-800. I plan to get 2x2GB now because I like to build a PC with no upgrade for a few years.

 

[mis33]

I have to make the decision in the next few days. Any more advise or any other suggestions?

As for motherboard, I will probably get the Maximus Formula.

 

[Falken699]

If you plan on OCing mildly, or not bothering at all, I'd grab 2x2GB of the cheapest Micron-fabbed rebranded ram.

For example, grab some Crucial stuff. I think you will be very happy. Also, if you can get the serial #s to be really close (all etched as close as possible on the same wafer).

This gives the closest electrical resistance properties, so if you try a mild OC, you shouldn't have any troubles.

Top tier, top bin, fast RAM is best left to the hobby OCers, you might as well keep the cash and toss it towards RAID and a better videocard, that would give ALOT more bang for your buck. I mean, you are looking at an 8800GTS 320MB?? Grab a GTX, which would account for the RAM price differences.

Good idea on the Asus motherboard, I find them to be headache-free. But again, grab an Asus that fits your needs vs. price.

Happy gaming!!

 

[mis33]

I already bought all the components. My first choice was P5K-Premium but it had SATA problems and I had to return it. I would like to OC my Q6600-G0 to 2.8 GHz.

$244 OCZ Vista Upgrade Edition 4GB (2 X 2GB) DDR2 800 Dual Channel Kit (5-6-6-15) - OCZ2VU8004GK
$260 OCZ Vista Performance Platinum Edition 4GB (2 X 2 GB) DDR2 800 Dual Channel Kit (5-4-4-18) - OCZ2P8004GK
$215 Patriot 4GB DDR2 800 Eased Latency 4 GB (2 x 2 GB) Dual Channel Kit (5-5-5-12) - PDC24G6400ELK

These are the 3 choices offered from my local store. Looking fo rother suggestions if any.

 

[Maziar]

from those choices , the second one is the best , it has the best timings

 

[mis33]

Thanks.

My local store told me that they could also order Cosair for me. Any good Cosair 2x2GB modules?

 

[Maziar]

why u suddenly changed to corsair?

 

[mis33]

Because I did not know that my local store can order Crucial for me. I prefer buying it locally than online because if something is wrong, I can just return it. Furthermore, they still have my PC since I returned it because of SATA issues with P5K-Premium. They're waiting for my decision on motherboard.

I do not know much about memory, this is why I need expertise from your guys. As for values on the timing x-y-z-a, I know the lower the better but which number(s) are more important?

So far, the OCZ Vista Performance Platinum Edition (OCZ2P8004GK) seems to be the way to go. But I would like if there are other RAM modules that offer more performance for same money or more economical for same performance.

 

[mis33]

By my research, I meant my readings from various tech forums. No, I did not go to Harvard, did you?

There are many threads in this forum covering this topic and while I don"t understand the technical details, 2x2 GB is better than 1x4 GB configuration.

 

[geofelt]

The key question should be which kit will work properly in your MOBO. Go to the various ram vendor's web site and run their configurator. Pick only from the list of modules that they say will run on your mobo. If there should be a problem, they should support you. After that, I would go with the least expensive. The C2D processors don't seem to be sensitive to ram speeds.

---good luck---

 

[mis33]

My mistake. I had a typo.

Funny thing is I already bought 2 GB of this exact memory
OCZ Platinum REV 2 XTC Edition 2GB (2 X 1GB) DDR2 800 Dual Channel Kit (4-4-4-16) - OCZ2P800R22GK

Because of the mishap I had with the P5K-Premium, I returned the whole PC to the store. Since then, I have been searching for another MB and my current 2 choices are Maximus Formula and GA-X38-DQ6.

I also like to increase the memory form 2 GB to 4 GB at the same time. I was thinking to get 2 more of this same memory but I learned from the good people in this forum that 2x2GB is better than 4x1Gb. This is why I am now searching for good 2x2GB modules.

 

[geofelt]

The best reason for 2x2gb instead of 4x1 is if you anticipate the possibility of going from 4gb to 6 or 8gb. If that is not likely, then you can probably find a matched set of 4x1 somewhat cheaper. Any performance benefits in a real application(vs. synthetic benchmark, or aggressive overclocking) is likely to be in the 1-2% range.

 

[mis33]

I read that some boards do not work well with 4 sticks of RAM.

On the other hand, in term of performance, I noticed that the 1 GB RAM usually has better timing than the 2 GB RAM.

 

[mis33]

I read that 4x1 configuration will limit to 2T timing, but in 2x2 will allow for a 1T timing.

What are these 1T and 2T timings?