Memory limited bottle neck

I am currently running my E6600 at 356X9 (3204 GHz). 4:5 puts the DRAM clock at 445 MHz with 5/5/5/13. My memory is G.Skill PC2-6400. This configuration is rock solid and Memtest/Orthos will run forever without errors.

I feel the E6600 has a lot more speed in it so I upped the FSB to 367 MHz (3303 GHz). This places the DRAM clock at 459 MHz but also causes many errors when Memtest gets to test #5. Leaving the FSB at 367 MHz, but dropping the CPURAM ratio to 1:1, again establishes a stable system. Obviously the E6600 is fine at 3.3 GHz and I am memory limited. In fact, I really do not yet know how fast I can get the Old Girl to run with 100% stability at default voltages and sane temperatures.

Newegg has 2GB of G.Skill DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) for $60.00. There are 72 reviews and all are very positive. However, this memory seems very inexpensive so I am concerned that it may not be a consequential improvement over what I have now. Am I likely to get past my current memory bottle neck with this particular memory?

In other words, I do not mind spending $60 for what I perceive will be only an incremental improvement in speed by going from 3.2 to 3.3 GHz (and maybe even 3.4 GHz.). However, I do not want to waste even the $60 and also not spend any more than this for a relatively minor improvement.

4:5 = 400mhz fsb to 500mhz memory speed. 500=1000MHz ddr2 so that will give you no problems

All RAM has to be able to run its rated speed. Other wise you return it.

However 800MHz should be able to do 900 with no problems...

HAve you tried adjusting voltage/timings on your memory to get stability before buying new ram?

When I was reading this I thought about an overclocking guide which I've read quite a long time ago and this is a quote out of that article

This solution, however, isn't ideal. Running the FSB and RAM with a ratio causes gaps in between the time that the FSB can communicate with the RAM. This causes slowdowns that wouldn't be there if the RAM and the FSB were running at the same speed. If you want the most speed out of your system, using an FSB:RAM ratio wouldn't be the best solution.

Click to expand...

http://www.ocforums.com/showthread.php?t=263753

Thanks for the quick response.

I tried to adjust the timings but, interestingly, anything consequentially different from the 5/5/5/13/35 defaults, looser or tighter, results in the machine not even booting.

I just had an interesting thought. Since the new memory would be rated at DDR2-1066, it should be able to handle a DRAM clock speed of 533 MHz. If I change the ratio from 4:5 to 2:3, then at 367 MHz FSB (3.3 GHz), I will have a DRAM clock of 550 MHz. This should be an easy overclock for the new DRAM. Now I might achieve more than an incremental performance improvement as this should result in a 20% increase in memory performance.

Tiando, I just saw your post. You are probably correct but being able to run a significantly higher CPU & DRAM clock probably significantly offsets any disadvantage of not using a 1:1 ratio.

Although I have been an addicted overclocker since the days of the original 133 MHz Pentium, I have always been reluctant to use anything other than the default CPU/memory voltages. I am willing to take advantage of any latent capacity but only if I can be assured of 100% stability. For a number of reasons I feel that the need to raise the default voltage removes a level of conservatism that I want to maintain. I use my machine for work related activities so I must maintain it operating as reliable as it would be if it was not overclocked.