Did I get swindled?

Do they have 8 or 16 chips? According to Crucial, here are the compatible modules: http://www.crucial.com/upgrade/compatible-memory-for/So.... If yours is CL 2, then it should be part number CT194994.

Hi,

The link you gave me does not work. My two sticks of ram both have 8 chips all on one side.

There are two stickers on each of the ram.

The first one says:

MT8LSDT3264AY-13ED2 200708 CBNCGH2004
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN SINGAPORE LEA FREE
PC133U-222-542-2
256MB, SYNCH, 133MHZ, CL2

The second sticker says:

Crucial Techonology BP112FY.9N
CT32M64S8D7E.8LTDY
256MB 168-PIN DIMM 32MX64 SDRAM UNBUFF P

However when running Crucial's app, it comes up as saying that it is a 128mb stick of ram.

Do you by any chance know if they still make new sticks of pc133 SDram?

Thanks Again

Everything looks fine, all those part numbers indicate 256MB module (32Mx64). Don't think you got swindled, you just don't know what you're doing (no offense).

Most likely they aren't compatible or there is a BIOS issue. That's an OLD OEM system and OEMs are not known for providing great BIOS refinement or regular updates. Check for a BIOS update.

Otherwise, try modules that have eight chips on EACH side (16 chips total), but not the modules that are built using x4 DRAM components (e.g. 32Mx4). You want modules built using 16Mx8 components.

As a way to be sure, look for modules that are compatible with Intel 440BX chipset.

Sorry about the link. The period at the end shouldn't have been there. http://www.crucial.com/upgrade/compatible-memory-for/So...

Hi

Thanks for the great information! I admit I really don't know what I am doing... but per your suggestion, I checked out my old ram which are two sticks of 128mb ram.

One of them has 8 chips on one side and the other old stick of 128mb ram has 4 chips on each side.

So does that mean my computer's motherboard is capable of handling high density ram as well as low density ram (8 chips on one side and 4 chips on front and back?)

Also I was wondering if anyone knows how I would find out what my bios is and how I could upgrade it.

Once again you guys have all been very helpful and I am learning a lot about computers this past few weeks lol.  

128 MB modules with 8 chips are low density and 256 MB modules with 16 chips are low density.

Unless the 256MB modules use 32Mx4 DRAM and then they're considered high density.

No, the modules he received are made with 256Mbit DRAM. Intel 810 can support up to 128Mbit DRAM max.

Yeah actually my board can support up to max 256mb ram for each slot. I doubled check that...

Sorry can you explain to me what 32mx4 dram means exactly?

One more thing, is it weird that my board apparently supports low density, but it can still use the high density ram albeit at half its intended speed?

I always thought it just wouldn't register.

32Mx4 refers to the internal configuration or organization of the DRAM chip (a.k.a. component). A 32Mx4 DRAM chip is 16,777,216 words deep x four bits wide x four banks (internal). Only software coders and computer engineers need to deal in terms of "word" units, the rest of us can just use bit/byte units instead. e.g. 32Mx4 means 32Mbits deep x 4 bits wide, or a total of 128Mbits (megabits).

128Mbit chip = 16MBytes

Note: the word to bits conversion will differ depending on the technology being discussed. Some things deal in single-words, double-words, quad-words, blah blah. So just know that words to bits can be different depending on what is being discussed.

PC DRAM chips typically come in x4, x8, and x16 widths (these are the only widths sanctioned by JEDEC, the organization that develops PC memory standards). You multiply the total depth by the total width (in bits) to reach the total density (capacity) of the DRAM chip.

16Mx4 = 64Mbits (8 MBytes)
16Mx8 = 128Mbits (16 MBytes)
16Mx16 = 256Mbits (32 MBytes)

So on and so forth. As a practical matter, the bit-width of the chip corresponds to how many DATA pins each chip has. e.g. a 4-bit wide (x4) chip has four data pins. An 8-bit wide (x8) chip has eight data pins. A 16-bit wide (x16) chip has 16 data pins.

Because PC memory bus is 64-bits wide, we need to have a total of 64 data pins in order to create one functional 64-bit DIMM (a.k.a. rank). So a module that is built with 4-bit wide (x4) DRAM will need to use sixteen chips in order to create a functional DIMM. 16 chips x 4 data pins = 64 data pins. A module that is built with 8-bit wide (x8) DRAM will need to use eight chips in order to create a functional DIMM. 8 chips x 8 data pins = 64 data pins. A module built with 16-bit wide (x16) DRAM will need to use four chips. Four chips x 16 data pins = 64 data pins.

This assumes a module that has only a single 64-bit rank (previously called bank). A module can actually have one, two, or four ranks (four rank modules are exclusively for servers at present). Basically, a double-rank module is just two single-rank modules put together. So a double-rank module built with x8 DRAM will have a total of sixteen chips. A double-rank module built with x16 DRAM will have a total of eight chips. Rank is also sometimes synonymous with side. e.g. single or double sided.

Note this is different from the module organization or configuration, which is a higher-level organization. Module organization is expressed as:

16Mx64 = 128MBytes
32Mx64 = 256MBytes
64Mx64 = 512MBytes
128Mx64 = 1024MBytes
256Mx64 = 2048MBytes

Module organization is always expressed as 'M-something' by 64 no matter which chips are used, the 64 referring to its design for a 64-bit memory bus. All 128MByte PC modules are 16Mx64. All 256MByte PC modules are 32Mx64. So on and so forth. The exception to this is ECC modules, which are organized as 'M-something' by 72 because ECC adds eight bits for error correction (64 + 8 = 72), but we aren't discussing those here.

Ok thanks!

I understand much more about how ram works, and the short of it is that my computer can only handle low density ram.

Thanks for the links to where I can purchase some ram, once I get my old purchase returned I'll go ahead and order from there.

Oh! Is it any concern, after installing the purchased ram I noticed a crackling sound in my computer. I sometimes here it now too after reinstalling my old ram.

You have been very helpful!!