A8N dual 512 or dual 1gig advantages?

R

Ren H

Limp Gawd
Joined
Mar 27, 2005
Messages
203
Just got this board here, any ideas under what circumstances would I see any benefit from having two gigs (pc3200) dual channel over just 2x512?
(under XP with A64 3200)
 
Ren H said:
Just got this board here, any ideas under what circumstances would I see any benefit from having two gigs (pc3200) dual channel over just 2x512?
(under XP with A64 3200)
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not a lot, XP can run pretty well with 1gb though some apps will run much better with two gigs or even require it though most will choke on your cpu anyways. I didn't see that much difference back when I did that upgrade (hell I still have 4 512mb sticks)
 
Going forward, it doesn't hurt to have the extra memory. Generally speaking your multitasking will improve and you'll have less lag while the page file is being used.
 
Thanks guys, I figured that, now what's worth more to me, 40$ for an extra gig or 40$ for a few beers hmmm :D
 
Definitely go for a 2 gig kit. With high performance memory,typically 512 gig sticks will have lower latency than 1gig sticks, but filling all four slots with 512 gig sticks will cause latency to go up because the chipset strains to manage timings on all four slots, causing reduced chipset life. A rule of thumb is that increased memory density brings higher latency. Bank population brings higher latency and reduced chipset life.
 
Honestly, with that old of a board, chipset life is irrelevant (unless you plan on keeping it another 5 years), and I doubt you'd notice the increased latency of going to 2T and slower memory speeds with looser timings.

With $40 worth of beer in you, I doubt you'd notice your computer is even on let alone how much memory it's running ;).
 
Depends on what you do with your box. I only upgraded to 2 x 1Gb with my A8N-SLI when I noticed some lagging in my Civ 4 gaming. However, you can never have too much memory. :D
 
Snoozer said:
~ when I noticed some lagging in my Civ 4 gaming. However, you can never have too much memory. :D
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lol, nor too much time, don't get me started on civ again please!

kirbyrj said:
With $40 worth of beer in you, I doubt you'd notice your computer is even on let alone how much memory it's running ;).
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lol again, I would notice the hangover, though, and with nothing to show for it in the mourning :D

So, depending on what I'm using it for, the extra ram should outway the increased latency which probably wouldn't be noticeable anyway.

The plan is mostly data backup and transfer of large files between drives, and burning to disk. I may also install pci raid controller (dual boot with Linux)
Virus scanning is on the list too.

Seems the prevailing opinion is to go for the extra ram, but my issue is also when to say " 'nuff money spent " as I have more than one machine to deal with. (So no multi-tasking)

I think it really comes down to how good XP is at memory management, if it will do ok with the 2x512 under these conditions I should do like the man with the accent says and save my money! (for networking at the bar ;) )
 
I think that it's probably a good "last" upgrade for that board/CPU. The extra memory will be nice for server duty anyway.

What kind of PCI RAID card are you using? (not related to the initial topic, but I'm interested to find out what people use)
 
I've got an old promise fast track, not exactly up to date, from what I've been reading it could be a hassle to get it going under linux but the newest stuff at that price point wouldn't be happening at all I believe.
 
Appreciate the advice people, think I'm going to see how it goes with the 2 512s for now
Thanks again!
 
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