I think I heard that Rambus was kinda dying out :/
People keep saying that, yet even without any improvements in ages, the RDRAM systems still have top-notch performance with very few configuration worries. DDR meanwhile struggles to get to the same level of performance, and even then there are numerous configuration concerns to take into account depending upon the mobo you get.
Besides, with DDRII, Athlon64, and Prescott all coming along in the near future, do you really think that you would keep your old mobo and RAM the next time you upgrade anyway?
And from what I saw here on THG, the SiS648-chipset really is near the 850E chipset, regarding performance.
http://www6.tomshardware.com/mainboard/20021204/sis648-15.html
Uh huh. And did you also read <A HREF="http://www.tomshardware.com/mainboard/20021204/sis648-03.html" target="_new"> the negative comments</A> that THG had for that chipset and for SIS? We get the following quotes:
<font color=green>
<b>DDR333: Only With Two!</b>
Why should SiS have it any differently than VIA? All current chipsets for fast DDR memory are hampered by the Achilles heel of fast clock rates and aggressive timing: three or even four DIM modules cannot be had at high processing speeds, as the resulting signal lengths create problems.
In practical terms, this means that DDR400 can only be achieved by using a single memory module. This, however, was mitigated by the fact that currently neither Intel nor SiS nor VIA supports DDR400 - performance beyond DDR333 cannot be achieved.
But even with DDR333, two DIMMs are as good as it gets. If the main memory is to be expanded to its maximum (up to 3 GB), three 1-GB modules are necessary. But the chipset can only manage this with 133 MHz (DDR266).
But there are still many skeptics who question whether or not the current chipsets from SiS are really stable when running.
its PCI performance is nowhere near that of the Intel chipsets.
Things get more difficult when it comes to fine-tuning: because mainboards with SiS chipsets have always sold primarily in the low-budget range, even manufacturers are cutting corners in order to remain competitive. As a result, aggressive memory timings are not thoroughly tested, or are only optimized to a modest degree. This makes it very possible that memory from manufacturer X will not work reliably with fast timings on the board from manufacturer Y.
</font color=green>And did you ever wonder why that article specified in the test setup RAM that was "256 MB PC3200 CL2"? That's CL2 DDR400! That's no where <i>near</i> the supposed DDR333 CL2.5 that THG talks about earlier.
Is the SISsy motherboard really worth those gambles to you?
Further, let's look at prices, shall we? If you get a Matsonic SIS648 motherboard for $75 and a 512MB stick of OCSystem DDR400 CL2.5 for $127 you'll spend $202 for the ultra-cheap route. Admittedly, here the ultra-cheap route for RDRAM is a DFI 850E motherboard for $107 and two 256MB Generic PC1066 32ns sticks for $88 each, for a total of $283. So yes, going the absolute cheapest route you can save whopping $81 bucks going with the SISsy solution. Turn that around to look at quality parts though instead of uber-cheap crap.
You could do a Gigabyte SIS648 motherboard for $80 and a 512MB stick of Corsair XMS DDR400 CL2 for $171 to total $251. Or you could do an Intel 850E motherboard for $129 and two 256MB sticks of Samsung PC1066 32ns for $94 each, for a total of $317. Now you're only saving $66 to go the SISsy route. Ooh.
Either way, a whole $81 or a whole $66, you're not even saving enough to buy an extra stick of RAM. (Not that you could even <i>use</i> an extra stick of RAM since the SIS motherboard will only run one stick at DDR400 anyway.)
I'm not trying to persuade for just Intel systems either. If you went AMD you could get an Asus nForce2 Deluxe for $136 and two 256MB sticks of Corsair XMS PC3200 CL2 DDR SDRAM for $87 each. That's $310, which seems like a lot, but you wouldn't need to buy a sound card to go with it because it comes with very excellent onboard sound. Hell, it comes with onboard USB2, onboard Firewire, onboard RAID Serial ATA (and ATA133), and onboard <i>DUAL</i> 100Mb LAN as well. It has everything short of SCSI! And since you can get an Athlon 2600+ for about the same price as a P4 2.6GHz, there's no real price difference with the processor. So subtract the extra $50+ that you would have spent on that Audigy card, and now you're actually <i>saving</i> money compared to the P4+SISsy route listed above.
I'm just trying to say that it really doesn't make sense to cut corners so badly that you have to get that SIS motherboard. You could get much better quality parts for only a little more. You can even <i>save</i> money if you go with an AMD solution and use the quality onboard sound instead of getting an Audigy.
I'd just like to sum it up with my favorite quote from THG.
"<font color=green><b>Anyone who decides in favor of a low-cost product knows there is a risk of certain minuses.</b></font color=green>"
PC Repair-Vol 1:Getting To Know Your PC.
PC Repair-Vol 2:Troubleshooting Your PC.
PC Repair-Vol 3:Having Trouble Troubleshooting Your PC?
PC Repair-Vol 4:Having Trouble Shooting Your PC?
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