4x256 vs. 2x512

A

apHytHiaTe

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Assuming there is room enough on my motherboard, and money is no object, which combination is the best for DDR SDRAM in dual channel. I have already dismissed 1x1024 because of lack of dual channel (although greater expandability).

Thx in advance.
 
Some boards that support PAT only seem to support it with 2 sticks, not 4. I'm trying to find the link where I read about this to see if it was fixed by a bios update or something. I'm pretty sure it was an asus.
 
Makes you think... why do they put 4 slots for memory if they only want you to use 2....
 
you want to go with a 2x512 setup for sure. Think of it as your computer having to deal with 2 people rather then 4 people to get things done. It just cuts down on relaying info to one another :)
 
So if fewer "people" to deal with is better, then should I just cut down the number of "people" to one? That is not my favorite choice, because if I just dropped in a 1 gig module of RAM, that would not allow dual channel.

I guess that 2x512 is the perfect blance of things tho. I guess I shall go that route then.
 
you're right you want to take advantage of dual channel. We need atleas 2 people so they can motivate each other at the work place :)
 
I'm assuming you use an Intel if you have a mobo with 4 DIMM slots. If so, you'll want dual channel as the P4 benefits greatly from it.

If you use Athlon XP, then dual channel is almost completely worthless, and a 1 GB module would seem cool, wouldn't it? :)

Well, besides being prohibitively expensive that is.

I say 2 x 512.
 
What about an Athlon 64?

Also, my friend always tells me that more sticks = better, kind of like data striping across multiple HD's improves performance. Guess I should tell him he's wrong?
 
Clownboat said:
Guess I should tell him he's wrong?
Click to expand...

Yes, do that. As soon as possible. You will have done a great service.
:p

On i875 boards PAT has always been disabled when using 4 dimms. on i865 boards, I have no idea. I would assume it could be enabled since the board tricks it into being enabled in the first place. But the more sticks of ram you have the lower your chances for a higher overclock. Just like someone else mentioned...too many people to slack off at the job and not get things done. Take them all out and put each one on a Performance Improvement Plan, and once you find out which two will clock the highest, you fire the others.

....but that's just management for you.... :p
 
I was considering Intel, but this is mostly a theoretical kind of question. Other factors like cost, amount of money I have at a given time, type of motherboard, memory interface type, and heat generated are important to be considered before a purchase, but I was ignoring them at the time. Also I am more interested AMD procs because of price/performance. However if i went with a64, then dual channel is not even a concern, because I sure as heck don't have the dough for a 939 pin proc.... but I might think about an opteron like the 146, which is basically an underclocked fx51. But then I have to worry about registered RAM then... Argh!
 
If I were to build my system from scratch now, it would be an AMD64. However, I wouldn't build it right now anyway since too much stuff is coming out that I may want/use.
 
Argh! My post on processors turned into a memory talk for a while, and now this thread turned into a processor talk. Hahaha :confused: :D

Well man I dont have money for AMD 64 right now, and anyway the new stuff coming out will be unproven and "immature".
 
apHytHiaTe said:
and anyway the new stuff coming out will be unproven and "immature".
Click to expand...

true...very true...but I'd still go with an AMD64 if I could afford it (<the afford it being the key part there). The reason I went with a P4 this time is because I already had a low end P4 in a decent MB.
 
apHytHiaTe said:
So ru saying go with a cheaper p4 if u can't afford a 64?
Click to expand...


haha, not sure. The only reason I went with a P4 is because I already had components for P4. I didn't want to get a new mb AND cpu. But if you're gaming, AMD is better.

I wish I could afford one of each system of about the same speed, that way I could get a good feel for each one, but from what I understand if you're encoding audio/video or graphics then the P4 is better. If you're gaming (there are other things but I can't remember them) and stuff like that the AMD is better.

Both P4 AND AMD are great systems. I love my P4, HT makes a nice difference in everyday work. I think I'd also love an AMD too though. But 64-bit will be gaining momentum in the near future, so you may want to check into that. I'm certainly not the best source for info on that.
 
Ok firs if All I see a tremendoud difference in gaming quality on my AMD and P4

The P4 is alot smoother and, I get alot more fps In game.

I have both a Amd xp 2600+ and a P4 2.4c.


The amd is my brothers, I will never buy AMD

Even if Intel went out of Business, i would Buy cyrix chips

and there will be no 64 bit gaming for many many years.

And all of you guys buying 64bit processors, guess what there will be no 64 bit windows
 
vinny77 said:
Ok firs if All I see a tremendoud difference in gaming quality on my AMD and P4

The P4 is alot smoother and, I get alot more fps In game.

I have both a Amd xp 2600+ and a P4 2.4c.


The amd is my brothers, I will never buy AMD

Even if Intel went out of Business, i would Buy cyrix chips

and there will be no 64 bit gaming for many many years.

And all of you guys buying 64bit processors, guess what there will be no 64 bit windows
Click to expand...

let me mention the part you failed to....your 2.4c is runnin' at over 3.7Ghz. Makes a HUGE difference in gaming over a 2600+.

And there will be no 64-bit windows??? What's that beta/RC floating around then??Why are OEM's like ATI and NVIDIA releasing 64-bit drivers?

:EDIT: I hope you were being sarcastic too... ;)
 
apHytHiaTe said:
Assuming there is room enough on my motherboard, and money is no object, which combination is the best for DDR SDRAM in dual channel. I have already dismissed 1x1024 because of lack of dual channel (although greater expandability).

Thx in advance.
Click to expand...
Actually, it depends on whether the memory is single-sided or dual-sided. And factor in the core-logic chipset and the FSB speed as well.

For an Intel P4-based system running on an Asus P4C800-E Deluxe i875P-chipset-based motherboard and an 800MHz FSB, 4x256MB double-sided DIMMS perform fastest. Next fastest would be either 2x512MB double-sided DIMMS or 4x256MB single-sided DIMMS. Slowest would be 2x512MB single-sided DIMMS; that setup would be almost as slow as two mismatched pairs of DIMMS with the FSB speed set at 800MHz (200MHz QDR).

On that same motherboard but with a 533MHz FSB (133MHz QDR), 2x512MB double-sided DIMMS or 4x256MB single-sided DIMMS work best, followed by 2x512MB single-sided DIMMS. Surprisingly, with a 533MHz FSB, 4x256MB double-sided DIMMS perform slower than 2x512MB single-sided DIMMS - though not by much.
 
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