Looking for memory

[RogueDOC]

I'm told this is what my system needs.

1GB 266MHz DDR Non-ECC CL2.5 DIMM

Here is my system specs.

* CPU: AMD Athlon XP 2400+
* Chipset: VIA KM266
* Memory: 256 MB PC2100 DDR
* Hard Drive: 60GB ATA/100
* Optical Drive 1: 48x/16x/40x CD-RW
* Optical Drive 2: 16x DVD-ROM
* Radeon® 9500 PRO
* Network: 10/100 Fast Ethernet
* Modem: v.92 PCI Modem Card
* Ports: PS/2 Keyboard, PS/2 Mouse, Printer, 6 USB 1.1, 1 Serial
* Available Expansion Slots: 1 AGP 4x, 4 PCI (1 used by modem)

Just wondering what is the best memory to go with.

[RedTornado]

How much memory do you want and what is your price limit? Corsair, OCZ, Mushkin, G.Skill, and Geil all make excellent RAM. Newegg.com, Monarchcomputer.com, Zipzoomfly.com, eWiz.com, and mWave.com are all reputable sites to buy computer parts from.

[MindlessOath]

^ yup. i recomend corsair, ocz, munskin from newegg.com and monarchcomputer.com zipzoomfly.com too

mem is tricky because all it looks like you need is value ram, which i stay farrrrrrrrr far far away from because its likly to go bad sooner, its the quality that lacks. (we see lots of systems every day to prove that theory).  so spend the extra bux and go with something better.

but if value ram goes bad, then it has an extended warrantee, trade it in for a good stick.

[RogueDOC]

Looking to start with 1GB for now. I'd say 150 for RAM. How about ?

[RedTornado]

Yep that looks fine.

Or, you can go with the cool new look from OCZ.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820227121

The Corsair that you linked to has tighter latencies than the OCZ (2-3-2-5 as opposed to 2.5-3-3-8), but you won't be running the RAM at it's full potential anyway since your CPU will limit the speed.

I don't think there's a problem with Value RAM. I've used both OCZ and Corsair value and both were good. They're just cheaper because they don't have cool looking heat spreaders (which don't do anything anyway...they just look cool) and the chips aren't high performance ones like the more expensive RAM...which typically means a tad slower.

[RogueDOC]

Does it matter that those two are PC 3200 and my system has PC 2100 in to now? Not too familiar with the different kinds of RAM

[RedTornado]

No, the important thing is that they're both DDR (as opposed to DDR2 or just SDRAM). PC3200 and PC2100 are just speed ratings and the PC3200 will be slowed down to run at the same, slower speeds of the PC2100 and/or the CPU.

[RogueDOC]

Ok thanks!

[MindlessOath]

value ram differs greatly from the higher quality ram, its not based on heatsinks and latencys entirely.

[Lazerblade]

MO's right, often the cheaper RAM uses a cheaper metal for the pathways, has larger, and therefore less, pathways (mini "wires"). The CL and chip layout differ (they get 512MB by going more chips with lower capacity rather than less chips with more capacity). The smaller pathways and more capacity on high-end ram allow faster response, less bottlenecking for traffic, and better overall performance. Even if the CL matches, often cheap RAM will be more susceptible to heat build-up, dust interference, and continuous speed limitations, which result in data loss and blue-screens. Most high-end boards won't run value RAM consistently. If you can't afford quality RAM, at least get name-brand value RAM, like Corsair or Mushkin. Even Kingston value RAM won't run in my PC, and I have a relatively cheap Soyo board.