PC2700/PC3200

[newbie]

Im adding memory to my machine and have DIMM slots, which the manual
says will accomodate PC1600/2100/2700 2.5V 184-pin DIMMs. I have one
pc2700 installed already, and wondering if I can add a PC3200 2.6V
stick. Im guessing that even if it was compatable, I would be running
at the speed of the pc2700. Any ideas out there?
Thanks,
patrick

 

[KC Computers]

Im adding memory to my machine and have DIMM slots, which the manual

says will accomodate PC1600/2100/2700 2.5V 184-pin DIMMs. I have one
pc2700 installed already, and wondering if I can add a PC3200 2.6V
stick. Im guessing that even if it was compatable, I would be running
at the speed of the pc2700. Any ideas out there?

PC3200 RAM is backwards compatible and will slow down to the
same speed as your PC2700 module.

 

[newbie]

It's me again. I realise that I didnt give you any of my system specs!

Pentium P4 2.4GHz
Shuttle AV49V Motherboard
1 stick of 512 mb pc2700
WD 60gig OS HD
WD 80gig storage drive
NEC DVD RW ND-3520AW
Samsung CDRW SW-252F
Vision Tek XTASY 9200 SE

and the memory stick I want to install is a Kingston PC3200 DDR 400 184
pin

 

[newbie]

I could simply return it and get a 2700 for the same price, but if you
think that the 3200 will work (but at the 2700 speed), then I might as
well just put it in and not expect an upgrade of speed. In the end,
will I see much of a performance improvement in my system with 1 gig vs
512?
thanks for your help
patrick

 

[KC Computers]

I could simply return it and get a 2700 for the same price, but if you

think that the 3200 will work (but at the 2700 speed), then I might as
well just put it in and not expect an upgrade of speed.

Just get the PC3200 module.

will I see much of a performance improvement in my system with 1 gig vs
512?

That depends on the version of Windows being used,the number of apps
running at the same time and their demands. 512MB-1GB is becoming
the optimal amount for Windows XP for many users.

 

[newbie]

Windows XP Home. Doing alot of audio and photo editing (Photoshop 7
and SoundForge). Some gaming (SW Battlefront). The pc2700 is 2.5V and
the pc3200 is 2.6V...no big deal?
Thanks Kevin!

 

[KC Computers]

Windows XP Home. Doing alot of audio and photo editing (Photoshop 7

and SoundForge). Some gaming (SW Battlefront).

Then boosting your RAM to 1GB should definitely improve performance.

The pc2700 is 2.5V and the pc3200 is 2.6V...no big deal?

No big deal.

 

[DaveW]

You are correct in your facts.

 

[newbie]

Thanks for your help, guys! I will now open the package - the point of
no return!
patrick

 

[newbie]

I put the pc3200 in slot 1 and the pc2700 in slot 2 and I couldnt get
on the internet (Id open Explorer and it would crash). Other programs
seemed to work. Switched them and put the 3200 in the second slot and
2700 in the first, and it crashed before Windows opened. Could it be a
bad stick, or is it not compatible?
Thanks!

 

[fj]

I put the pc3200 in slot 1 and the pc2700 in slot 2 and I couldnt get
on the internet (Id open Explorer and it would crash). Other programs
seemed to work. Switched them and put the 3200 in the second slot and
2700 in the first, and it crashed before Windows opened. Could it be a
bad stick, or is it not compatible?
Thanks!

Try using only the pc3200. If you still have problems with just the pc3200,
I'd try memtest to see if the memory is actually bad. If memtest says it's
good, it indicates there is some imcompatibility between your two sticks of
memory.

 

[larry moe 'n curly]

Im adding memory to my machine and have DIMM slots, which the manual
says will accomodate PC1600/2100/2700 2.5V 184-pin DIMMs. I have one
pc2700 installed already, and wondering if I can add a PC3200 2.6V
stick. Im guessing that even if it was compatable, I would be running
at the speed of the pc2700. Any ideas out there?

I had an Asus or ECS mobo with integrated graphics made for PC2100 or
PC2700 maximum speed, and it wouldn't boot with PC3200 memory unless I
turned off the automatic memory configuration in BIOS and set the
memory timings manually. If I didn't do that, the screen would display
1/2" wide vertical bars spaced 1/2" apart that would slowly become
white. Be sure to test overnight with both MemTest86+
(www.memtest.org) AND Gold Memory (www.goldmemory.cz).

 

[newbie]

Thanks! I just returned the stick. Some have told me that after 512,
you dont get significant performance improvements, and figured that Id
rather just skip the hassle, keep the money and use it to pay for my
new HD! Thanks for the input!
patrick

 

[jaster]

Thanks! I just returned the stick. Some have told me that after 512, you
dont get significant performance improvements, and figured that Id rather
just skip the hassle, keep the money and use it to pay for my new HD!
Thanks for the input!
patrick

True only if you're doing 1 task at time. Better performance with 1gb.
http://www.tomshardware.com/2005/12/13/how_much_ram_do_you_really_need/page12.html