Hi hardware dudes

fatty · 08-23-07, 09:21 PM

Hi, quick question. Five years ago when I built my current PC it was pretty straightforward to figure out what kind of memory you needed for your processor. My Athlon 2500+'s FSB was 333mhz so the corresponding memory was DDR 2700 because it was 333mhz too or whatever. Anything more than that was just gravy and would not be necessary. Not a very technical explanation but you get what I am saying.

Fast forward to today and I am noticing that hardware has advanced enough that I can make a pretty sizable upgrade for not much cash money. The problem is that I have no idea how to figure out what flavour of memory should go with what kind of processor.

The CPU I am looking at purchasing is an Athlon 64 X2 5200+ with 2x1mb cache and 1000mhz FSB. What numbers should I be looking at to match up with memory? What is the optimally compatible memory with a processor like that - PC2-4200, 5300, etc etc...

EDIT: Also, I am considering pairing this with a Radeon x1950 PRO. What should I be looking at in wattage for a power supply?

SUBMAN1 · 08-23-07, 09:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fatty

Hi, quick question. Five years ago when I built my current PC it was pretty straightforward to figure out what kind of memory you needed for your processor. My Athlon 2500+'s FSB was 333mhz so the corresponding memory was DDR 2700 because it was 333mhz too or whatever. Anything more than that was just gravy and would not be necessary. Not a very technical explanation but you get what I am saying.

Fast forward to today and I am noticing that hardware has advanced enough that I can make a pretty sizable upgrade for not much cash money. The problem is that I have no idea how to figure out what flavour of memory should go with what kind of processor.

The CPU I am looking at purchasing is an Athlon 64 X2 5200+ with 2x1mb cache and 1000mhz FSB. What numbers should I be looking at to match up with memory? What is the optimally compatible memory with a processor like that - PC2-4200, etc etc...

EDIT: Also, I am considering pairing this with a Radeon x1950 PRO. What should I be looking at in wattage for a power supply?

Wattage is not what you look at on a PSU - go for amperage on the +12 volt rail. I don't recall off the top of my head what a 1950 PRO would draw, but anything with 18 Amps on the +12 rail that it is connected to should be fine. Make that more amps if the CPU is also on the same rail.

Memory depends on what Motherboard you buy. If you get an AM2, then you will need DDR2. If you get a socket 939 (getting rarer these days), then you will probably be getting normal DDR 400 (PC3200). Anyway, the CPu you call out I beleive is an AM2 socket, but I am in the middle of something so I won't be able to look up its matching RAM speed at this very moment (but it should be DDR2).

One thing I am getting sick of with AMD is the constant change of sockets. Its annoying. Intel hangs on to their socket archetecture for long periods of time, but with AMD, it is actually costing me more because I have to replace so many subsystems just to support the new proc I am buying.

Anyway, back to compressing my video. bb in a bit.

-S

fatty · 08-23-07, 09:41 PM

Hey SUBMAN, yeah, it is AM2 ergo requiring DDR2. What I can't figure out is what flavour of DDR2 - between the 4200, the 5300 and the others, I can understand that higher number = better but I can't seem to make any sense out of what is best compatible for the bus speeds of the 5200+.

JSLTIGER · 08-23-07, 09:52 PM

PC-6400 (aka DDR2 800) is probably your best bet in terms of price/performance.

Reaves · 08-23-07, 11:01 PM

One of my mates recently got a DDR3 mobo. Damn expensive for the RAM.

Zantham · 08-24-07, 12:59 AM

With AMD CPU's people should be looking more at the RAM latencies more than the speed of the RAM. Personally, I'd go with DDR2-800 still over 667 or 533, mostly because 800 cost the same as 533 or 667, and partly because you don't end up with an unlinked FSB ratio. But I would look for latencies better than 5-5-5-15, and see if I could find/afford some that was 3-3-3-8 or better.

Weigh-Man · 08-24-07, 04:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Reaves

One of my mates recently got a DDR3 mobo. Damn expensive for the RAM.

Yes but hopefully it will result in DDR2 coming down in price once DDR3 starts to get more established, then we can all start upgrading again

08-23-07, 09:21 PM	#1
fatty The Old Man Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Canada Posts: 1,448 Downloads: 10 Uploads: 0	Hi hardware dudes Hi, quick question. Five years ago when I built my current PC it was pretty straightforward to figure out what kind of memory you needed for your processor. My Athlon 2500+'s FSB was 333mhz so the corresponding memory was DDR 2700 because it was 333mhz too or whatever. Anything more than that was just gravy and would not be necessary. Not a very technical explanation but you get what I am saying. Fast forward to today and I am noticing that hardware has advanced enough that I can make a pretty sizable upgrade for not much cash money. The problem is that I have no idea how to figure out what flavour of memory should go with what kind of processor. The CPU I am looking at purchasing is an Athlon 64 X2 5200+ with 2x1mb cache and 1000mhz FSB. What numbers should I be looking at to match up with memory? What is the optimally compatible memory with a processor like that - PC2-4200, 5300, etc etc... EDIT: Also, I am considering pairing this with a Radeon x1950 PRO. What should I be looking at in wattage for a power supply? Last edited by fatty; 08-23-07 at 09:33 PM.

08-23-07, 09:52 PM	#4
JSLTIGER The Old Man Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Parkland, FL, USA Posts: 1,437 Downloads: 5 Uploads: 0	PC-6400 (aka DDR2 800) is probably your best bet in terms of price/performance. __________________ Thor: Intel Core i7 4770K\|ASUS Z87Pro\|32GB DDR3 RAM\|11GB EVGA GeForce RTX 2080Ti Black\|256GB Crucial M4 SSD+2TB WD HDD\|4X LG BD-RE\|32" Acer Predator Z321QU 165Hz G-Sync (2540x1440)\|Logitech Z-323 2.1 Sound\|Win 10 Pro Explorer (MSI GL63 8RE-629 Laptop): Intel Core i7 8750H\|16GB DDR4 RAM\|6GB GeForce GTX 1060\|128GB SSD+1TB HDD\|15.6" Widescreen (1920x1080)\|Logitech R-20 2.1 Sound\|Win 10 Home

08-23-07, 11:01 PM	#5
Reaves The Old Man Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Melbourne, Australia Posts: 1,509 Downloads: 4 Uploads: 0	One of my mates recently got a DDR3 mobo. Damn expensive for the RAM. __________________

08-23-07, 09:41 PM	#3
fatty The Old Man Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Canada Posts: 1,448 Downloads: 10 Uploads: 0	Hey SUBMAN, yeah, it is AM2 ergo requiring DDR2. What I can't figure out is what flavour of DDR2 - between the 4200, the 5300 and the others, I can understand that higher number = better but I can't seem to make any sense out of what is best compatible for the bus speeds of the 5200+.

08-24-07, 12:59 AM	#6
Zantham 中国水兵 Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Canada Posts: 283 Downloads: 63 Uploads: 1	With AMD CPU's people should be looking more at the RAM latencies more than the speed of the RAM. Personally, I'd go with DDR2-800 still over 667 or 533, mostly because 800 cost the same as 533 or 667, and partly because you don't end up with an unlinked FSB ratio. But I would look for latencies better than 5-5-5-15, and see if I could find/afford some that was 3-3-3-8 or better.