2 X 2GB Or 4 X 1GB In Xp

[mstaxi]

Hi I have a headache deciding on XP or Vista
So I am staying with what I know XP
I have a choice now to go with
2 X 1GB
2 X 2GB
Or 4 X 1GB

I know XP only utilizes 3GB Max but which is best[Fastest] Set Up
Going to use
Crucial Ballistix 2GB (2x1GB) DDR2 PC2-8500C5 1066MHz Dual Channel Kit (BL2KIT12864AA1065) X 2 If need Be
Or
OCZ 4GB (2x2GB) PC2-8500C5 1066MHz Reaper HPC Edition Dual Channel DDR2 (OCZ2RPR10664GK)
If This better

 

[Kraynor]

As long as you're sure that you want 1066MHz RAM, 2x2 would be better in terms of stability when overclocking.

For the most part, unless you're overclocking, PC2-6400 or PC2-5400 is plenty. Saves you money, too, since pc2-6400 seems to be the most cost-effective at the moment.

Some more info on your aims for your system (overclocking or not) and parts info (cpu model specifically) would help us give you a better recommendation

 

[LoneEagle]

Do you know somebody having Vista 64? If yes, borrow the cd and install it (no key/activation). This will give you a 30 days trial. I have it with 4*1GB and really happy with it. My games and applications are working fine.

Vista is great with newer machine. I won't go back XP for sure.

Don't forget SP1 will be here in mid-march.

Because I started with 2*1GB, I added 2 more of the same. But I would suggest you to go 2*2GB so a door is open to go higher than 4GB. RAM prices are so good!

Anyway, if you go XP32, go 2*2GB (even not fully used by XP) because RAM is so cheap or may be you could at least go XP64?

 

[mstaxi]

Ok Heres My System
Processor - E8400 = £176.24
Motherboard - Gigabyte GA-P35-DS4 (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard = £111.61
Hard Drive - Seagate Barracuda 7200.11 500GB SATA-II 32MB Cache - OEM (ST3500320AS) = £74.01 X2 Raid 0 maybe
Power - Akasa Ultra Quiet 500W Paxpower Active PFC ATX2.2 PSU - Black Nickel = £52.86
Ram - Crucial Ballistix 2GB (2x1GB) DDR2 PC2-8500C5 1066MHz Dual Channel Kit (BL2KIT12864AA1065) - £50.51
Windows XP - £47.99 Or Vista ...??
Graphics =BFG GeForce 8800 GT OC 512MB GDDR3 HDTV/Dual DVI (PCI-Express) - Retail = £145.69
Case - Antec 900 = £65.79
CPU cooling - Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro CPU Cooler = £17.61
Arctic Cooling MX-2 Thermal Compound = £4
Keyboard - Saitek Eclipse 2 Illuminated Keyboard - Blue/Red/Purple = £23.49
Mouse - Razer Krait 1600dpi Professional Gaming Mouse - Retail = £23.49
Speakers - Logitech Z-4e 2.1 Speaker System = £52.86
Monitor = LG L1900R Fantasy 19" LCD Monitor - Black/Red = £158.61
Burner - LG GSA-H55NBRL 20x DVD±RW IDE Dual Layer ReWriter (Black) - Retail = £19.96
Dvd = LG GDR-H30NBL 16x DVD-ROM (Black) - OEM = £11.74
Will be Building next week

 

[Kraynor]

Didn't quite need that much info and the prices but whatever ^^;

The E8400 cpu runs at a bus speed of 333 MHz with a multiplier of 9, giving it a total of 3 GHz. What this means for you is that ideally your ram should run at 667 MHz (since it's dual channel) for optimum performance. For this, PC2-5300, PC2-5400, or PC2-6400 RAM will be perfect. In fact the PC2-6400 would work better as you could underclock it, resulting in you being able to give it tighter timings with the same voltages. If that means nothing to you, get some good PC2-5400, CL4 if you can (or even CL3).

PC2-5300 would require a slight overclock to hit the 667 MHz clock speed for optimum performance (works out about 662.5 MHz)
PC2-5400 is a bit more rare, but would be underclocked to hit the 667 MHz clock speed (675 MHz)
PC2-6400 is probably the most common on the market at the moment, and would need to be underclocked a fair bit, but would give best performance at 667 MHz (normally 800 MHz)

Hope this clears things up for you, any questions I'll be happy to answer

 

[ImajorI]

Why close off a future 8 gig upgrade path if you don't need to...2 x 2 now. Vista 64 Ultimate with 4+ gigs is the future.

 

[mrmez]

2x2 fo sheezy.

XP will use ~3.xGb
Allows 8Gb upgrade for vista
2 sticks are better for: OC, power consumption, heat, installation etc etc

 

[Waspy]

2x2 gets my vote!

 

[Mousemonkey]

This topic has been closed by Mousemonkey