Dual Channel Memory

[ridhwan]

i am having an ASUS M2N8-VMX motherboard. the board has four dimm sockets DIMM_A1, DIMM_B1, DIMM_A2, DIMM_B2. Currently i am having two 1Gb 667MHz

sticks in DIMM_A1 and DIMMB1 and they are working as dual channel. So i was thinking of adding another two 1GB sticks but of frequency 800MHz in DIMM_A2

and DIMM_B2. Hence i would like a suggestion whether it is the right thing to do or not ?

 

[o1die]

Depends on what you use your system for. I've got one with 2 gigs, and one system with 4. I don't notice that much difference in speed when online or doing normal tasks in 32 bit windows. Adding 2 more gb, any windows 32 bit will see only about 1 gb of it. If you still want to try, look for the same ram type; many oem sticks are single sided, meaning the chipsets are only on one side of the stick. 667 ram is still available, or check craigslist for 2x2gb kits. If your board isn't on asus website, it's probably oem made for dell or hp. Those boards are listed on dell or hp's websites and are pickier about upgrades.

 

[ridhwan]

thanks for the reply. I am planning to upgrade to windows 7 64-bit, hence i wanted to know if i installed two x 1gb

800mhz (alongside my two x 1gb 667MHz which is working as dual channel currently) will my system will be working at

800Mhz or 667Mhz or would they be working simultaneously.

 

[o1die]

Probably 667, but you can try setting it manually. Also be aware that some changes to your system after installing windows 7 won't show up in your system specs. That's normal.

 

[andrern2000]

Your overall system will run at slower memory speed. It will run at 667 Mhz although you put 800 Mhz. To get 800 Mhz, you need to set to 800 Mhz in BIOS, thus, it will overclock the 667 Mhz sticks to match the 800 Mhz speed.