What speed RAM do I buy with a 1066mhz Core 2 Duo CPU?

[ridergroov]

Hey folks. Getting ready to build a new system and this is my first
with the new dual core chips so I'm not sure what bus speeds match the
ram speeds. What speed RAM do I want if I am using a Core 2 Duo E6400
at 1066mhz? I know with the P4s I would have an 800mhz CPU so I would
get PC3200 at 400mhz. This is the kind of example I am referring to.
Thank you.

 

[Bob Knowlden]

The "1066" MHz frequency is 266X4 (quad pumped). I think that means that the
slowest RAM you would use would be PC2-4200 (266X8X2).

Your mainboard may support a variety of CPU/memory frequency ratios, so that
would permit you to run faster memory at its rated frequency. As you can
also buy RAM of different latencies, your choices could be pretty
bewildering.

Your mainboard manufacturer may have an approved memory list, or you can see
what's available at www.crucial.com.

This is the RAM that I'm using with an Asus P5W DH Deluxe board:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820145034

It works well, but note that the board must be capable of supplying 2.1 V to
the RAM to obtain the 4-4-4-12 timings.

HTH.

Return address scrambled. Replace nkbob with bobkn.

 

[VanShania]

PC6400 is certainly the minimum that you would want to put in. It runs at
800mhz. There is ram that runs at 1066(PC 8500), and it would let your
computer scream along as fast as its supposed to..
You also have to keep in mind the timings of memory. The lower timings also
mean higher costs(but faster performance for gaming and perhaps video
editing). The norm for DDR2 is 5-5-5-15

You can do a search on newegg for a look. Corsair had a good review in CPU
mag a while back when compared to OCZ. Other popular brands are Crucial and
Kingston. I would read the reviews before making a decision on which brand
to buy

--
Love and Teach, Not Yell and Beat
Stop Violence and Child Abuse.
No such thing as Bad Kids. Only Bad Parents.
It is violent/abusive/neglectful parents that churn out the serial
killers/murderers/child molesters etc.

A64 3500+, Gigabyte GA-K8NSC-939,AIW 9800 Pro 128mb
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2XSATA 320gb Raid Edition, PATA 120Gb
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Games I'm Playing- NFS: Most Wanted, Civ 4

 

[ridergroov]

PC6400 is certainly the minimum that you would want to put in. It runs at
800mhz. There is ram that runs at 1066(PC 8500), and it would let your
computer scream along as fast as its supposed to..
You also have to keep in mind the timings of memory. The lower timings also
mean higher costs(but faster performance for gaming and perhaps video
editing). The norm for DDR2 is 5-5-5-15

You can do a search on newegg for a look. Corsair had a good review in CPU
mag a while back when compared to OCZ. Other popular brands are Crucial and
Kingston. I would read the reviews before making a decision on which brand
to buy

--
Love and Teach, Not Yell and Beat
Stop Violence and Child Abuse.
No such thing as Bad Kids. Only Bad Parents.
It is violent/abusive/neglectful parents that churn out the serial
killers/murderers/child molesters etc.

A64 3500+, Gigabyte GA-K8NSC-939,AIW 9800 Pro 128mb
MSI 550 Pro, X-Fi, Pioneer 110D, 111D
Antec 550 watt,Thermaltake Lanfire,2 Gb OCZ Platinum 2-3-2-5
2XSATA 320gb Raid Edition, PATA 120Gb
XP MCE2005, 19in Viewsonic,BenchMark 2001 SE- 19074
Games I'm Playing- NFS: Most Wanted, Civ 4

Alright well I'm going to be using an Asus P5B Deluxe. The bus speed
is 1066 but from the manual it looks like it only supports 800mhz
RAM. Why? What is the best RAM to get for this mobo? Thanks for the
help!

 

[DaveW]

It depends on what RAM speed your motherboard goes up to in support. The
better Asus boards support up to PC 6400, which is 800 MHz DDR2. Strictly
speaking the natural DDR2 match to a Core 2 Duo running at 1066 MHz is 533
MHz RAM.

 

[ridergroov]

It depends on what RAM speed your motherboard goes up to in support. The
better Asus boards support up to PC 6400, which is 800 MHz DDR2. Strictly
speaking the natural DDR2 match to a Core 2 Duo running at 1066 MHz is 533
MHz RAM.

I'm not sure what you meant by your last comment. Why would you want
to put 533mhz RAM into a board that supports 800Mhz?

 

[VanShania]

Remember with a bios flash that board may be able to support 1066 mhz ram.
Best way to find out is call Asus. They have a pretty good customer support
service.

--
Love and Teach, Not Yell and Beat
Stop Violence and Child Abuse.
No such thing as Bad Kids. Only Bad Parents.
It is violent/abusive/neglectful parents that churn out the serial
killers/murderers/child molesters etc.

A64 3500+, Gigabyte GA-K8NSC-939,AIW 9800 Pro 128mb
MSI 550 Pro, X-Fi, Pioneer 110D, 111D
Antec 550 watt,Thermaltake Lanfire,2 Gb OCZ Platinum 2-3-2-5
2XSATA 320gb Raid Edition, PATA 120Gb
XP MCE2005, 19in Viewsonic,BenchMark 2001 SE- 19074
Games I'm Playing- NFS: Most Wanted, Civ 4