1GB (2x512) pc2100 vs. 512MB pc3200

Which set should I go with in the following rig:

Athlon XP 2600+ Thoroughbred
Epox 8RGA+
ATI 9700 Pro

I will be running Star Wars Galaxies when it comes out, and I have a feeling it will be a resource hog. Would faster RAM be better for me instead of a large capacity? I am going to get one set of RAM or the other, just don't know which one to get.

Thanks!

Large will out run performance, as games like that will be massive.

I would go with the pc3200 (512), because you can crank up the fsb higher to increase bandwidth for a substantial perfomance gain, then down the road a bit, buy another 512 stick of pc3200 for probably less money. By the time you need 1 gig of RAM for gaming, you could save some cash and get more of the faster RAM.

DDR 2100 is virtually obsolete. Where I live it is the same price as DDR 2700 at Comp USA on sale.

Assuming that your AMD 2600 has the 166 FSB, I think UR better off getting 512 of 3000 or 2700. There is no increase in performance using 3200 vs 2700.

I recently got Kingston HyperX 256mb DDR 3000 for $48. The 512 module is $78 at New Egg. It can run at the fastest memory timings in your BIOS ( 2-2-2-5-1 ) and will have some room for OCing. Then as the other guy said, you can get more ram down the road.

sigh.... 2 minivan vs. 1 sport sedan

ive been wondering about the same thing.

i will be getting a nforce2 board....which means i will need 2 sticks of RAM. I really want to get a gib of ram so i dont have to upgrade in the future...but that is going to be 220+ bucks for good, fast ram.

on the otherhand i can pick up some good pc3500 ram in 2x256 for 60-65 bucks a piece...

right now ive got 2x256mb of some generic pc2100 rubish.

so im not sure if i should go for the 2x256 or the 2x512...

right now im looking at 2 sticks of ths: http://www.googlegear.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=85011

im a n00b...so can someone tell me if that is 6 layer pcb?

thanks

Well if the new Star Wars galaxy is anything like the EQ world, the 1Gig of RAM will help you with the game more than the faster stick of 512.

But, then you have those times you are NOT playing the game?

>>>i will be getting a nforce2 board....which means i will need 2 sticks of RAM. I really want to get a gib of ram so i dont have to upgrade in the future...but that is going to be 220+ bucks for good, fast ram.

on the otherhand i can pick up some good pc3500 ram in 2x256 for 60-65 bucks a piece...

right now ive got 2x256mb of some generic pc2100 rubish.

so im not sure if i should go for the 2x256 or the 2x512...<<

I would use the rubbish for now but get (2) 512mb Kingston HyperX PC3000 for 78 each= $156. This memory will run at 370mhz MINIMUM at the fastest memory timings of 2-2-2-5-1 so u have room for typical moderate OCing.

Memory that runs at good timings ( 2-2-2-5-1 ) vs slow timings ( 2.5-4-4-8-2 ) will give a 5% increase in performance. This equals about a 10 mhz overclock in the FSB.

If UR gonna do some mad OCing then get pc 3200 or 3500.

"if you plan on doing some mad overclocking"

-well, i have just picked up a nf7-s....so i was looking for ~200fsb. ill need some fast ram for that.

i think ill stick w/ the crapola 2100 for a lil while and see how far i can get w/ that. Ill save up some cash and go for some good, fast 3500 in the future.

-TriX

Sounds good. KingstonX, Corsair and Geil offer DDR 433 modules that run at CAS2 settings. My impression is that Kingston is cheapest and offers the fastest BIOS timings.

This is because Kingston has decided to go after the PC enthusiast market with "Hyper X". They are under cutting Corsairs prices AND the Hyper X cost less than their "regular" cas 2.5 ram. Good for us

you dont need two sticks of ram with an nforce two. just get a 512mb of pc3200 now and another later

drewthomas14 said:

you dont need two sticks of ram with an nforce two. just get a 512mb of pc3200 now and another later

Click to expand...

This is what I'm saying.