What to look for in RAM

[BentNotTwisted]

I am buying a new Dell Dimension 2400. It's a P4 2.4 Ghz processor with a 533Mhz front side bus. It has 128MB Shared DDR SDRAM at 333MHz installed. I am told by Dell it is PC2700 memory. I want to install an additional 512 Mb. What do I look for and how much should I expect to have to spend? I have tried pricewatch.com and a few retail outlets, but I want to make sure I am buying the 'right stuff'.

[Lasereth]

I'd get PC2700 again, just to be safe. And cheap RAM sucks. Buy the quality stuff! If you DON'T plan on overclocking, then any Kingston or Crucial will do fine. If you DO want to overclock, then I suggest Geil or Corsair. You probably aren't gonna OC, so I'd just get a 512 MB stick of PC2700 Kingston. It's as simple as that! NewEgg has it for $80.00.

-Lasereth

[The_Dude]

also check www.crucial.com

They have good deals (+ free shipping! )

[G_Lock]

Originally posted by BentNotTwisted
I am buying a new Dell Dimension 2400. It's a P4 2.4 Ghz processor with a 533Mhz front side bus. It has 128MB Shared DDR SDRAM at 333MHz installed. I am told by Dell it is PC2700 memory. I want to install an additional 512 Mb. What do I look for and how much should I expect to have to spend? I have tried pricewatch.com and a few retail outlets, but I want to make sure I am buying the 'right stuff'.

Well that all depends. You can range all the way from generic to top-of-the-line. In my opinion, you get what you pay for, and as far as memory goes, I always try to go with the high end products. By this I mean, known brands, such as Corsair or Kingston. For a single 512MB chip, you are looking at around $85-$100. You DO NOT need ECC, so I don't think you should pay extra to get it. The key number in my opinion to look at is the "CAS Latency" (sometimes shown as "CL"). The best is 2.0, which will give you the highest performance. I try to use only CAS of 2.0, but you will pay a bit more. Right now on ZipZoomFly.com (formerly googlegear.com), they have 512MB of Kingston DDR333 PC2700 selling for either $82 or $97, the first is for a CAS of 2.5, and the later is for a CAS of 2.0 It is up to you if you want to spend the extra $15. In my personal opinion I would, because to me the difference is definately noticable. Whichever you decide, once you get it, I recomend that you put the 512MB chip in the first slot on the motherboard, and move the 128MB to the second. Hope this helps, and please post if you have anymore questions. Good Luck.

G_Lock

[Lasereth]

Originally posted by G_Lock
Right now on ZipZoomFly.com (formerly googlegear.com), they have 512MB of Kingston DDR333 PC2700 selling for either $82 or $97, the first is for a CAS of 2.5, and the later is for a CAS of 2.0 It is up to you if you want to spend the extra $15. In my personal opinion I would, because to me the difference is definately noticable.
G_Lock

YES! Definitely buy that RAM. A CAS of 2.0 is DAMN nice; most RAM out there won't go that low even after OC'ing. I'd hit that RAM up fast.

-Lasereth

[BentNotTwisted]

Originally posted by G_Lock
Well that all depends. You can range all the way from generic to top-of-the-line. In my opinion, you get what you pay for, and as far as memory goes, I always try to go with the high end products. By this I mean, known brands, such as Corsair or Kingston. For a single 512MB chip, you are looking at around $85-$100. You DO NOT need ECC, so I don't think you should pay extra to get it. The key number in my opinion to look at is the "CAS Latency" (sometimes shown as "CL"). The best is 2.0, which will give you the highest performance. I try to use only CAS of 2.0, but you will pay a bit more. Right now on ZipZoomFly.com (formerly googlegear.com), they have 512MB of Kingston DDR333 PC2700 selling for either $82 or $97, the first is for a CAS of 2.5, and the later is for a CAS of 2.0 It is up to you if you want to spend the extra $15. In my personal opinion I would, because to me the difference is definately noticable. Whichever you decide, once you get it, I recomend that you put the 512MB chip in the first slot on the motherboard, and move the 128MB to the second. Hope this helps, and please post if you have anymore questions. Good Luck.

G_Lock

Excellent advice. I was not familiar with the CAS ratings. I will definitely spend the extra money on CAS 2.0. Thank you!

[G_Lock]

Originally posted by BentNotTwisted
Excellent advice. I was not familiar with the CAS ratings. I will definitely spend the extra money on CAS 2.0. Thank you!

Glad I could help. While I am posting, thought I would give you a link directly to the product to help you out. Just click HERE It is $97 and FREE 2nd day air shipping. Well good luck with it all.

G_Lock

[BentNotTwisted]

Thank you, I had already ordered it by the time you posted the link. No extra shipping charge, sweet item and it's Kingston too! The next best price I could find for CAS 2.0 was over $110. I was surprised to see crucial.com didn't have any PC2700 w/ CAS 2.0, just 2.5.
Big thanks.

[Sapper]

Good info guys! Thanks for the tips.

I've always been a computer nerd - but never paid such specific detail to the "finer points".