a few basic questions

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Im planning on getting a new setup soon and so far this is what I have:

Gigabyte DS3
C2D E6300 -or- E6400
1gb of ram

Now for the string of questions...
-1 stick of 1gb or 2 sticks of 512? I ask this cause later i will get more to get up to 2gb so I wonder if it will be best tolater have 2 sticks or 1gb or 4 sticks of 512.

-What speed ram should I get? I was thinking ddr2-800 with the cl4 timings. From what I have heard, ram could overclock more if it is rated at cl4 because you can slow down the timings to 5 and get more mhz out of it. Is this true? or would I be just as good off with the cl5 timing ram.

-I heard that with the E6300 you need good ram in order to OC it well because the multi is low. So with the E6400 I wouldnt need ram that was as good?

I dont plan on harcore overclocking, I just wanna have some fun! What would you guys do? Any suggestions? Thanks!

PS: another Q.. you cant increase the multi on c2d chips can you?

 

[||Console||]

Well If it was me I would get 2 1 gig sticks because with Vista and new games 2 gigs will keep your system running in top shape for longer.

I dont know any thing about ddr2 so I will let ppl that have chime in about the timmings aspect .

One thing I never like to skimp on is ram I spend alot on my pc4200 ocz ram when i got it but it has lasted me through 2 sockets and 3 cpus , and will be used in my next move to NF4 mb (for pcie )

 

[batboy]

If you can afford it, go with the E6400. Motherboard and RAM will be less likely to hold you back, because with the E6300 you'll need higher FSB to run the same speed. For example, 400 FSB on the E6400 is 3.2 gig; however, you need 457 FSB to run the same 3.2 gig with an E6300.

Preferably, have only two sticks of matched RAM. If you plan to get half now and half later, then get a 1 gig module now and another later to match as you can afford it. With one stick you'll have to run single channel, but if this is just temporary for a short while, you'll be ok.

Yes, you are on the right track, go for DDR2-800 CAS4 RAM.

You can't raise the multiplier on the regular Core 2 Duo processors. Only the expensive extreme edition version (X6800).

I would also recommend a better heatsink. If you get the E6400, then 400 FSB is easy with maybe a bump in vcore. But, you might run a bit hot with the stock cooler.