Do I need to match my DDR2-1066 with more 1066?

[mvietori]

Hello everyone, hoping for a little advice here.

Right now I have 2x 1024MB sticks of DDR2-1066 (OCZ DDR2 PC2-8500 Reaper HPC Edition). I am looking to slap another 2 gigs of RAM into my machine. My question is, is it a MUST to keep it at DDR2-1066? I know that if I buy 800 the current 1066 will have to run at 800, but would it really make much of a difference? I'm not really a RAM expert, any advice would be appreciated.

The reason I ask is that the price difference from my local retailer is about double going from the 800 to the 1066, which I think is a little extreme. Here is what I'm considering buying:

OCZ DDR2-1066 PC2 8500 Reaper HPC Edition - $145.95
http://www.anitec.ca/product/8554/ocz_ddr2_pc2_8500_reaper_hpc_edition_2gb_dual_channel_kit/

OR

OCZ DDR2-800 PC2 6400 Reaper HPC Edition - $75.95
http://www.anitec.ca/product/9093/ocz_ddr2_pc2_6400_reaper_hpc_edition_2gb_dual_channel_kit/

Thanks!

 

[dokk2]

firstly make sure that your mobo will support mixed ram speeds,,if so,,then install the slowest first,,and bob's your uncle...

 

[mvietori]

Thanks for the reply, but im not sure I understand... are you saying that it's possible to run the one set at 1066 and the other at 800? I didn't know motherboard's could even have that as an option? I was always under the impression that any RAM combination would always run at the speed of the slowest. Is that not correct anymore?

 

[roadrunner197069]

Dont do it. Buy online and save money.

 

[rockyjohn]

Can you buy from newegg? They have your exact same 1066 Reaper memory 2 x 1 GB for $66 plus $6 shipping.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227239

The 800 Reaper is on sale for $40 but I would not take the speed hit for the $26 difference.

If not, maybe you could find another online source you can buy from with a similar sale.

 

[mvietori]

Yeah I'd LOVE to buy from Newegg except that our stupid ass Canadian government doesn't let them (and almost every other American online retailer) ship to Canada.

If only....

 

[rockyjohn]

Send an email to your PM and ask him to reimburse you the difference. Then start a campaign and have everyone email PM asking for reimbursement of higher prices they must pay.

 

[mvietori]

Yeah, if it were that easy to make a change!

So my question still remains, is there a significant performance difference between DDR2-1066 and DDR2-800?

 

[mvietori]

Well I ended up buying the Reaper DDR2-1066 online from Canada Computers:
http://www.canadacomputers.com/index.php?do=ShowProduct&cmd=pd&pid=013545&cid=RAM.346.754

They list the price as $104.99 with a $40 mail in rebate which I guess isn't too bad.

 

[rockyjohn]

No, $65 isn't bad at all for 2 GB of memory. Was not that long ago that I was $40 for 512 MB sticks