Recommendation: Corsair, Crucial, Kingston ~ $250

[Linxor]

I'm about to buy a new computer with these specs: AMD Athlon64 3200+ Clawhammer, MSI K8N Neo Platinum (nVidia nForce3-250GB chipset), and ATI Radeon 9800 256MB, I'm getting 1GB of DDR400 memory to go with it. Unfortunately I've found very few websites that actually do comparison reviews on different RAM types, so I need your help.

The three companies I'm considering for RAM are:
Corsair
Crucial
Kingston

My computer will be used for primarily for light gaming and development applications including Visual Studio.Net, IIS, SQL Server 2000, etc. I'm not a heavy gamer, so I don't think I need Registered memory, nor do I care about superfluous crap like LED's. So I think I can find a decent stick (or paired set) of 1GB of memory for around $250 (+/- $30).

From what I've read about latency, lower is better because every number in the SPD represents clock cycles, and the more time something takes, the less "efficient" it is.

So why would <A HREF="http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=20-145-450&depa=0" target="_new">TWINX1024-3200C2PT</A> (SPD 2-3-3-6) at $234 be cheaper than <A HREF="http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=20-145-500&depa=0" target="_new">TWINX1024-3200</A> (SPD 3-3-3-8) at $255? It's more intuitive that the lower SPD, the better performing the memory is, and therefore the more expensive it would be.

Do any of you have any recommendations for memory for my computer specs in the range of $250 (+/- $30)?

Thanks in advance!

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~ Digital Cowboy Extraordinaire ~

 

[ltj311]

I will recommend to you what I just purchased and installed in my machine.

<A HREF="http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=20-145-450&depa=0" target="_new">Corsair XMS pc300 CL2</A>

I have the same mobo and haven't had any problems. Though I installed them like 2 hours ago. lol

For some reason though when I booted up the first time, they defaulted at 3-3-3-8 1T. It said on the description they ran at 2-3-3-6 1T. I found this a little strange.

No biggee, I rebooted and changed timings to 2-3-3-6 1T and set Vdimm to 2.7v. It's running smooth right now and I don't suspect I will have any problems. Wonder if I should have burned them in a little first. Oh well.

--
MSI K8N Neo Platinum
Athlon 64 3200+ Newcastle
1gb Corsair XMS pc3200
ATI 9800np 256-bit 128mb
3dMark01: 20,371 3dMark03: 6334 Aquamark3: 46,310

 

[Linxor]

A few people on the NewEgg Review Forum for that product mention problems with overclocking that RAM, and instead they recommend going with the LL series. Can anyone confirm this, or is this not an issue with teh MSI K8N Neo Platinum mobo?

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~ Digital Cowboy Extraordinaire ~

 

[ltj311]

If you want to overclock, don't go with p3200. Get at least pc3700. I don't plan to overclock, so the ram is fine for me.

Just remember though, the higher speed the ram the slower the timings. That's the give n take. If you want faster timings, get 3200. If you want to overclock, get 3700/4000.

And I doubt getting low latency pc3200 would help you to overclock. This goes against your chances of getting a good overclock since the lower the timings, the worse chances of a good oc.

--
MSI K8N Neo Platinum
Athlon 64 3200+ Newcastle
1gb Corsair XMS pc3200
ATI 9800np 256-bit 128mb
3dMark01: 20,371 3dMark03: 6334 Aquamark3: 46,310

 

[Obtuse]

You can get 1gb crucial for about $190. If you don't need super low latencies and just want stable, quality ram, that's where I'd go.

"It's too late now anyway. That song is stuck in my head and the only way to get rid of it is to blow it out. With a bullet!! - Carl