I am having second thoughts

about what ram I am going to get. I was going to get corsair xms pc3200 cas 2 for my xp1600+ Epox 8k3a+. I am going to get 1 gig of memory either way I go if that matters. What kind of ram should I get with this mobo? Is that still the best ram to get? I want it to work well with my mobo and i read somewhere that it could only run default settings. Any help would be appreciated

I don't know of any better memory out there at the moment. It's great stuff -- I'm loving mine. I'm gonna order another 512 stick one of these days when I can afford it.

i read that the c2 mem dont do c2 wit 2 sticks... somehwere..

hmmm has anyone else heard that?

If I were buying a new setup today, I would buy corsair xms pc3200 cas 2 for a xp1600+ and an Epox 8k3a+.

I mght change the 8k3a+ to 8k5a3+. They have boards with the KT400 chipset but I tend to not go with first generation stuff, typically you're helping them solve problems.

I would go with xp1600+ since it is easy to unlock and can perform at very good overclocks. I would be pointed toward a 2900+ which is suppose to run 333 on the FSB. This should allow the pc3200 cas 2 to be used at its fullest.

o0OBruceLeeO0o said:

hmmm has anyone else heard that?

Click to expand...

CMX512-3200 C2
TEST SPECS
Each module is tested in either Epox EP -8K3A
and /or Asus P4S333 at 200 MHz
Latency :2-3-3-T1 (one module installed )
Latency :2.5-3-3-T2 (two modules installed )


http://www.corsairmicro.com/main/products/specs/cmx512-3200c2.pdf

I currently use Muskin PC3000 set at aggressive timings with no problems in my main rig and Corsair XMS2400 at aggressive timings in a second PC using a Epox 8K3A+. I would recomend both Mushkin and Corsair.

since im getting 1gb should i just get some cas 2.5? pc 2700 maybe?

Do you plan to high fsb overclock or do you just want to be able to run the cpu at stock speed or only multiplier overclock?

i want to push my xp 1600 to the limits, i do not plan to unlock so no multiplier

I doubt you will be going over 166mhz fsb with the cpu locked unless the new 1600's are way better than they used to be.
166 would put you about 8mhz shy of 1750mhz.

I don't know the price difference but the corsair 3000 cas2 should be good enough for that with 2x512.

The 3200 c2 would offer a little more insurance on that if you have the extra money.

I am not up to date on the 8k3a but when it came out you could only run the memory at 166mhz with the cpu at 133mhz once you raised the fsb from 133mhz the option to run the memory asych. went away.
They might have changed that with a newer bios thou.
Running the memory async with current amd cpu's does not give much of a performance boost anyway.

with the 3000 will it work cas 2 with 2 stiks of 512mb?

Probably not at 3000 or 183mhz fsb but it should at 166 or less.

You might ask the corsair rep.
www.corsairmicro.com click on ask the ram guy.

cool, thanks for the help, im just afraid ill waist 380$ on ram that doesnt work to its potential

xp 1600 = 10.5 x 133 = 1.4ghz, so 166 * 10.5 = 1750...not 2g Anyway, those new xp1600 can easily run @ the speed of 1.7g+ i am thinking of purchasing one corsair 3200 C2 too (either that or mushkin)...so i can push my chip to the extreme, cuz so far, my rams is the bottleneck of the system.

what fsb for 2ghz

190.4 for 2ghz. Sorry I was using the xp rating of 1600 as 1600 mhz instead of it's real speed of 1400mhz.

hehe np

Hey bruce... If ya want to fully use that ram and not waste your money scratch that Epox 8K3A+ board and get the Abit KX7-133 Raid.

You will lose about 400+points in sandra memory bench using the epox. The Abit KX7-133 is the king of bandwith and its cheaper more reliable and stable. Forget about the extra voltage the eopx will give ya for the cvore and vdimm... Ya can easily volt mod the vcore on the Abit KX7 and you shouldnt ever need to volt mod the vdimm to get what ya want anyways. Its dangerous to do so with the mem anyways. People needed it with the old samsung ram.. you wont need more then 2.85volts to get over 200FSB with corsiar 3200C2.. you should do it with way less if not 2.6v.

Now i own both boards and use them in system one and 2. System one is my gaming rig and the fastest that has the Abit Board. Both systems use the same Corsiar XMS 3200 c2.5 ram.

Lots of people have had and still do have probs with the epox boards.. Lots of people getting those boards RMA'ed.. I just got my replacement Epox board back yesterday from newegg.com. Works fine now but its still super slow..

Epox at 200FSB i get like 2600/2400... Abit KX7-133R i get 3000+/2800+.

I also had both 512 sticks in the abit system when i was waitin for the RMA'ed board.

With one stick i had it up to 208 cas2 2-6-2 2T at 2.75volts
With both sticks i had to drop it to 200 cas2 2-6-3 2T 2.85volts Only cause one of the 2 sticks only liked cas2 2-6-3 2T 2.85 volts at 200FSB+.

Oh with the one stick i could get it up to 215FSB cas2.5 though.. the chipset is where i think the prob lies.

Oh one more thing... The Epox board dont really like 200FSB.. I can boot and all but i get major screen artifacts in windows at 195-200.. I have to turn it down to 190 so it will look normal.. I believe its the cooling on the northbridge since they have attached the heatsink with some thermel tape that sucks.. But seems inpossable to remove without trashing the chip.

On the Abit board i can get into Windows upto 205 without any noticeable artifacts... At 208 i can see it once in a while but it dont bother me...just a few white pixels every now and then.. prob when its hot or something.. Water cooling will fix the issue i'm sure.

So if ya dont want any probs and a fast stable screamer of a system and that will max the rams bandwith like it was ment to be go with a Abit KX7-133R for 102 last time i seen it at www.newegg.com

Oh real quick tip... Use dimm slots 1 and or 3. If ya got 2 sticks of 512MB use both 1 and 3.

Always test the ram first in dos with www.memtest86.com to make sure everything is good before ya go bootin up windows.

how come so many (almost everybody) recomended the epox board if the abit is so much better and cheaper? thanks!