Why is my memory benchmark lower after upgrading from 4gb to 6gb?

[regrebner]

I have a dell xps 410 and have a moderate understanding of components. I recently decided that i would upgrade my system because it is near its EOL. Before i get flamed for upgrading, i know it is a waste of money for a little boost.

Here are my specs...

current:

Dell XPS 410
Intel e6600
4x1GB 667mhz 1.8v DDR2 memory
Nvidea GT 520 (old 7950 GX2 took a dump, but was a beast for 6 years)
Windows 8.1 x-64
250GB HDD

Surprising this computer still works for minimal gaming.
Ex. I can play Eve online at Max settings without any lag.
I know its an old game...

Here's what i want to do:

Upgrade proc to Q6700
have 6-8GB ram @ 800 mhz
i think i want the Radeon 7950
upgrade the PSU to 750
PCI-E AC-gigabit wireless adapter if the video card doesnt take up all the room.

I think this system will play all games at reasonable FR with medium settings at1080p

Heres the problem...

I just bought 2 x 2GB 800 Mhz 1.9v DDR2 DIMMS

I ran passmark on the memory before installing and got a 780 on the 4x1 setup

i installed the 2 x 2gb setup and got a 781... well its not a huge improvement....

in installed 2 x 2GB and 2 x 1GB cards to = 6GB

I know the Frequency of the 2gb cards will lower to 667, but when i ran the benchmark on the 6gb set up i was getting consistantly lower ratings. between 735 - 762 with an average of 755 on 5 tests.

What could be causing this and what would be the best way to set up the memory? Even though i was getting lower scores the computer seemed to run a lot smoother. I also need at least 6 GB for the latest gaming requirements...

should i buy 2 more sticks at 800mhz? or just say f it and leave it where it is... The benchmark on my memory was very low imo...

 

[gaborbarla]

Hi,
I think your PC is outdated and you should not think about upgrading, but getting a new PC all together. I know how this sounds, but even if you upgrade to the core 2 quad and get that 8 gigs of faster RAM, you will still be about 5 CPU generations behind the latest i5s and i7s. Similarly your RAM is ancient by todays standards and for $50 you can get decent RAM that is much faster. Your 6 gigs is okay for now, but I would save up and sell that PC for some money to towards my new PC.

 

[Supahos]

the reason your scores are lower is when you start mixing kits strage things can happen. All the memory is now running at the slower speed with the 2x2 and 2x1 in there. More memory doesn't increase your scores it only helps if you were running out of memory before. I woudln't upgrade the stuff you mentioned as that is too much to dump into old tech.

You can build a system based around a haswell I3, and 8gb of 1600mhz ddr3 for not a whole lot of money and it will run circles around your proposed upgrade, and will have an upgrade path if you chose to upgrade your processor later.