Single channel 3 GB vs dual channel 2 GB

[leo749]

Hey guys, Need help regarding memory. I upgraded to Windows Vista 2 weeks back. I have a C2Q 6600 at 3.2Ghz, 2GB of memory and and 8800GT Graphics card. Yesterday i was playing UT3(1440x900, with all the details maxed) and after some time the comp froze up and there was a blue screen, which had some kind of error like 'page file dumping' or something like that( it restarted immediatly by itself). Since i dont think the problem would be my processor or my graphics card( i read reviews which said UT3 at all settings at 1600x1200 is not a prob for 8800GT) i came to the conclusion that the prob is insufficient memory. First question is, is that conclusion right? second, now i want to upgrade my memory. I already filled two slots( i dont want to buy 2x2gb cause i recently upgraded my processor and mobo and am a student on budget), but i cant use the RAM slot closest to the Processor socket since my heatsink fan covers it. So i only have 1 slot left. I can buy 1GB module at newegg for 21$. So, do you think my mobo (Foxconn P35a) would support 3GB in dual channel mode( i heard some mobo's can do that by dividing the chips or something like that), or if it doesn't would 3GB of single channel memory slow me down as opposed to 2GB of dual channel memory( I read an article a while back which said that the difference between single and dual channel in practical applications was almost non-existent). Please help me guys. Thanks.

 

[pinaplex]

the problem could be that your overclock isn't fully stable. I'm guessing that is the case. i would check that first.

try bumping up the voltage on the cpu and see if that keeps the game from crashing.

or

try lowering the cpu to stock speed and see if UT3 still crashes. if it doesn't then you can be sure the overclock isn't stable.

 

[leo749]

Could that really be the problem? 'Cause when i started overclocking the cpu, i read online that 16-20Hrs on Prime 95 indicates that it is good enough. I ran it for almost one whole day without any prob's. Anyway, i shall try what you suggested and see wht happens. Thanks for the suggestion.

 

[leo749]

Oh.... I also forgot to mention. This crash happened abt 30 Mins into the game. I forgot to mention this before. I used to have XP Pro before i had Vista Ultimate. I used to game for abt 4-5 Hrs at a stretch before without the slightest choppiness. Same story even in Crysis. These prob's started only after i upgraded to Vista. And this only happens during gaming. Any idea's?

 

[hesskia]

leo749: 3GB of Single Channel could be as fast as 2GB of dual channel, depending on the speed of the ram and your FSB. for example, you could run a 1-to-1 ratio with your RAM to your FSB on a 1600mhz FSB by using DDR1600 or DDR800 (dual channel).

If you run three sticks of RAM, you will be in single channel.

 

[RetiredChief]

Have you installed SP1 for Visa?

 

[fjabad]

Hello,

I don't think purchasing 1GB of RAM would help your current situation. You should be able to run UT without any problems. As stated earlier, I would definitely check your overclock, make sure it's stable, p95 small ffts, and also stress your memory, occt RAM test and memtest for windows will definitely let you know if you're RAM is receiving the right voltage

 

[shadowthor]

sounds like overclock not stable or ram is bad.

 

[leo749]

Thanks hesskia.

RetiredChief: Yes, I have installed SP1.

fjabad: I made a copy of memtest86+ and ran it from the cd. Waited for 2 passes and it gave 0 errors. Like i said in the earlier post, i already ran Prime95 a while back( at same clock speed though) in windows xp( should i run it again in VISTA?) for almost 20Hrs and it did not give any errors with a max temp of around 64C.

One more development in the past few hours. I swapped my logitech RF wireless laser mouse with a wired dell optical mouse and there was no choppiness whatsoever in the game( I disabled the windows sidebar and spyware doctor though.). S, is there a possibility it could be because of the wireless Mouse? Thanks guys

 

[sajohnson22]

Run Prime95 again in vista sp1 with blend stress cpu and ram. I have had stable overclocks with just stressing the cpu but when I blend it would fail. Give that a run and see how long it goes.

 

[fjabad]

OCCT RAM test and Windows Memtest stress your RAM much more than Memtest86+.

As evidence of that I ran Memtest86 for 5 hours, no errors, however running OCCT RAM test caused an error within two hours. Running windows memtest caused an error in less than 30 minutes.

http://hcidesign.com/memtest/