I am custom building a computer, but I have a question about RAM?

Question

My RAM-savvy friend tell me I should buy the RAM for 88$, however, the RAM with the same brand name and GHz and all the same numbers, basically the same, is 55$. Please help me decide why one is better than the other?

Here are three, please point out any differences i may be missing?

http://www.buy.com/retail/product.asp?sku=203271640&SearchEngine=ya&SearchTerm=203271640&Type=PI&Category=Comp&dcaid=17194
http://www.buy.com/retail/product.asp?sku=204522423&SearchEngine=ya&SearchTerm=204522423&Type=PI&Category=Comp&dcaid=17194
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16820227118

Answer 1

the first 2 are a faster speed ... go with the first one it looks the best ... but in all honesty in normal use u wont notice any difference between them ... and also i would find some through newegg its a better place to order ..

Answer 2

You do not say how a lot you're paying so I are not able to inform if this can be a great deal or now not. one hundred twenty GB is sufficient for disk house. 512 MB reminiscence isn't plenty - a million GB is higher for XP. A two.4GHz CPU will probably be great, however that is an older iteration of Intel CPU's. Rambus reminiscence could also be older science. While there may be not anything mistaken with Rambus reminiscence, brands stopped making motherboards for Rambus reminiscence approximately five years in the past. Every pc that has a community adapter is DSL or Cable able. Make definite that you've a official reproduction of Wndows XP and Office. If the program is pirated, you will not be capable to replace it which exposes you to vulnerabilities. I am announcing this due to the fact you're on the cheap. If the fee could be very low, watch out. You may additionally wish to assess the BBB to look if the PC builder is authentic. Ask what degree of aid you get. A method with older accessories is much more likely to fail. If you're now not fairly definite, assess the price range PC's from Dell. When purchasing from the Dell Outlet, you would store fairly a little and the method will probably be beneath warrantee and moderately new. Still, many folks are very comfortable with customized constructed techniques.

Answer 3

If the $55 RAM has is from the same manufacturer and carries the same label as the $88, then they are identical.



Of the three product links you reference, all three are from the same manufacturer, OCZ Technology, but they are not the same memory. The first and third are very similar. There is a small difference in latency. The third link (newegg.com) is selling a product OCZ calls "Special Ops Edition." The latency is slightly lower (better) than the product at buy.com.



1st product (buy.com) latency = CL 4-4-4-15

3rd product (newegg) latency = CL 4-4-4-12



Latency is the main difference you are paying for. OCZ has also packaged the "Special Ops" product with a camouflage motif on the heat spreaders. (looks pretty silly to me, as if you need to hide memory sticks inside the computer).



The middle link is for a different type of memory called EPP (Enhanced Profile Protocol). Check with your computer manufacturer to see if EPP is compatible with your computer.





Here's what you want to need to know about RAM and what characteristics need to match.



1) Type (RDRAM, SDRAM, DDR, DDR2, EPP, etc) Type must match your other RAM and / or the capability of the motherboard.



2) Speed or frequency (333Mhz, 400 MHz, 667Mhz, 800MHz, etc). speed SHOULD match, but doesn't have to. If you install a slower RAM, all other RAM will slow down to match the slowest stick of RAM.



3) Rank: (single, dual) This is important for some high-end computers where you are installing multi-gigs of RAM. Consult the motherboard manufacturer specs for requirements.



4) ECC (error correcting code) or non-ECC. Most consumer level computers use non-ECC and are not capable of using ECC memory. ECC RAM is used for servers and high-end machines. If the computer has existing ECC memory, then the additional RAM memory must be ECC. A computer cabable of using ECC can use non-ECC, but all of the memory must be non-ECC.



5) Capacity (512MB, 1 GB etc). Make sure your system can support the additional RAM. All motherboards have a limit. An open slot does not always mean the motherboard can make use of more RAM.



6) Latency (2.0, 2.5, 3.0, etc). This is a measure of the time delay in storing or retreiving data from the RAM. The lower the number the better. Latency of new RAM should match the existing RAM, but this is not a requirement.

Answer 4

The first two are PC2-6400



The last one is PC2-5400



The second one is optimized for nvidia sli.



Find out what speed memory your motherboard supports. If it supports PC2-6400 (800mhz) go with the first or second.



The ram you listed atleast the first and third one with heat spreaders are good for overclocking. If you don't plan on overclocking your memory, you can go with cheaper ram. Heat spreaders keep the ram cool and help a bit with performance, but they're not necessary, and the performance gains are minimal. You'll want the heat spreaders if you overclock. The other thing to note is the memory timings. But low memory timings have shown not to produce as great of performance as some people say it does.

If you plan on overclocking and you have a good motherboard that supports it you can always go with the cheaper memory and adjust its memory timings.



I would suggest going with the cheaper ram that is PC2-6400 if that's the kind of ram your motherboard takes, the more expensive ram isn't going to boost your performance much.

Look at your motherboards specifications page to check on the type of memory speed it supports.

Answer 5

I wouldn't get the Nvidia SLI ready RAM unless you have an nforce motherboard. I would get the PC2-6400 memory. It runs at 800MHZ. It can be overclocked, and it's cheaper. I don't think you have to worry about the quality of the RAM, it has a lifetime warranty if it fails.



Regards,



Brandon

Answer 6

If you want to buy a Ram i suggest you go to

www.tigerdirect.com

They have great deals on computer parts.

Answer 7

well, the ones at Buy.com run at 800MHz, whereas the one you listed from Newegg runs at 667. thats the only real "difference" i see besides manufacturers.