You guys are awsome. Now, I need more help

I have $90 to $110 to spend on 2x256 PC3200 or PC3500 RAM. I am NOT OC this rig. I am looking for the best mix of FSB, tight timings, and reliability availible. I'm leaning towards this Mushkin or this Mushkin #2 or this Buffalo Right now. I am also open to any other suggestions from other reputable vendors as well.


And, what is the difference between the first two Mushkin sticks?

Please keep in mind that the more money I can save, the better. This rig will be used for gaming, surfing, and some video editing and cd/DVD burning.

Here are the specs:

Asus A7N8X-X Mobo
AMD 2700XP
Nvidia 5900 NU or 5900XT (I haven't decided on this yet either)
cheap 450w PSU
WD 80gig HDD

Thanks

If your not going to OC your rig, then that means you will be running it at a 333 FSB, no? (The Athlon XP 2700+ has a 256kb L2 Cache w/ a 333MHz FSB) With a 333 FSB, you will have no need for DDR400, or even DDR333. It is pointless to run memory at a higher clock speed then the FSB.

You may want to increase the FSB of the 2700+ from 266MHz (166 x 2) to 400MHz (200 x 2), but depending on whether you have an unlocked T-bred "B" this may be quite hard. Or you may want to purchase a 2500+ CPU (Barton-Core, 512kb L2 Cache w/ a 333MHz FSB) if you havn't already purchased your 2700+. A locked 2500+ offers a lower multiplier (11X) then a locked 2700+ (13X), and would make it easier to set FSB to 400 (200 x 2).

If your not overclocking, and are keeping a 333MHz (166 x 2) FSB, then I would suggest Kingston Value-RAM PC-2700. You can purchase this on-sale now (this week) from Best Buy for a great price. ($71.98 + Sales Tax - $16 Mail-In Rebate for 2x256MB)

Or if your planning on setting FSB to 400MHz (200 x 2), or if you are heart-set on getting PC-3200, then I would suggest one of the following:

• 2x256MB Buffalo PC-3200 OEM (w/ Winbond CH-5 chips)
  $44 per 256MB @ NewEgg - N82E16820150563
  Offers good chips (good timings above 200MHz) at a low price, but with it's low price comes a varying degree (depending on who you talk with) of reliability and performance capability.
  
• 2x256MB KingMax PC-3200 OEM (w/ KingMax labled chips)
  $44 per 256MB @ NewEgg - N82E16820156002
  Offers great stability at low voltage and mid-grade timings at a low price.

I would set timings for the Buffalo PC-3200 (w/ Winbond CH-5 chips) to 2-3-2-7 (CAS Latency, tRCD, tRP, tRAS - in that order) at DDR400 (200MHz x 2).

I would set timings for the KingMax PC-3200 to 2.5-3-3-8 (CAS Latency, tRCD, tRP, tRAS - in that order).

This computer is for my mom and she is planning on rebuilding in about a year. She wants the PC3200 or 3500 so she can take it out of this PC and put it into the new, better one in about a year

Then I would recommend the more stable KingMax memory.

I went to BB and checked it out. I saw that they had 512mb of dual channel PC3200 value ram for $89.99 with a $25 mail in rebate. I grabbed some of that and took it home. I put it in and got it to run very stable at 2-2-2-7!!!!

Nothing else is OC'd so the FSB of the CPU and RAM is running at 166. It says in the manual for the mobo that you take the 166 and multiply by 2 to get the actual FSB, due to this being an AMD processor. Is this correct?

My new problem is, I have put this RAM in in every possible combination and I can't get into dual channel mode. I also didn't see any setting in the BIOS for this. How do I get it to run in Dual Channel?

check your manual

or go to the motherboard forum and ask

you need a supporting mobo to get dual channel, nice tight timings!

The mobo says it does dual channel but it doesn't say how. P.O.S. I am proud of the timings though. Not bad for value RAM