Jonathan's Hardware Thread 1.0 (2003 Q3)

[Jonathan]

Uh, you mean 2x 256 MB Corsair, right? Because otherwise you're not getting the dual-channelness out of your nForce2.

That's 2x512 = 1 gb

That's nice. You didn't say that.

[VLSmooth]

Also, ninety bucks is a dirty price for a barton. I had no idea they were that low. No wonder AMD is losing money like it was going out of style.

Also, why PC2700? I would have figured you for an eXXtreme overclocker. And you went for the 400 ultra, which says to me, "Overclock me to 400 MHz FSB." Only you have 333 MHz RAM.

In almost all documented cases I've read this goes to 400 MHz easily, however, running ram at 400 MHz and the cpu at 333 MHz (which the barton 2500+ is) does not improve performance, and may actually hinder it. I won't be running at 400 MHz anyway unless I overclock. As for the ram, I got it for the CAS2, which is a simple and safe way to get performance since memory timings are where it's at!

[Jonathan]

And, what'd you pay for shipping?

[VLSmooth]

And, what'd you pay for shipping?

All free, since only the case had shipping, and my sister covered that when buying her components ($15)

[Jonathan]

Also, ninety bucks is a dirty price for a barton. I had no idea they were that low. No wonder AMD is losing money like it was going out of style.

Also, why PC2700? I would have figured you for an eXXtreme overclocker. And you went for the 400 ultra, which says to me, "Overclock me to 400 MHz FSB." Only you have 333 MHz RAM.

In almost all documented cases I've read this goes to 400 MHz easily, however, running ram at 400 MHz and the cpu at 333 MHz (which the barton 2500+ is) does not improve performance, and may actually hinder it. I won't be running at 400 MHz anyway unless I overclock. As for the ram, I got it for the CAS2, which is a simple and safe way to get performance since memory timings are where it's at!

Right. So you overclock your CPU to 400, buy 400 RAM with rated at 2, and go to town. So why not 400 and CAS2 together? Out of your price range? You could stepped back to 512, then.

[VLSmooth]

Corsair XMS ram is known for overclocking, so there's little reason to pay a premium unless I wanted to jump way above 400. If the processor can go from 333->400, the ram will likely do it easily, IF I want to go through the trouble. As for the 512 total, I wanted a gig, and believe the performance increase from 512 to 1 gb is definitely worth it now. As for 4 sticks, well, this mobo doesn't support it. Even if it did, I'd have no room for ram expandability.

[VLSmooth]

Uh, you mean 2x 256 MB Corsair, right? Because otherwise you're not getting the dual-channelness out of your nForce2.

That's 2x512 = 1 gb

That's nice. You didn't say that.

(2) 512mb Corsair XMS (extreme memory series,CAS2,PC-2700C2PT) ($206)

Also, I wouldn't spend over $200 on just 512 mb of ram o.o

[Jonathan]

Corsair XMS ram is known for overclocking, so there's little reason to pay a premium unless I wanted to jump way above 400. If the processor can go from 333->400, the ram will likely do it easily, IF I want to go through the trouble. As for the 512 total, I wanted a gig, and believe the performance increase from 512 to 1 gb is definitely worth it now. As for 4 sticks, well, this mobo doesn't support it. Even if it did, I'd have no room for ram expandability.

If by "performance increase from 512 to 1 gb" you mean "disable Windows virtual memory" then I can maybe see that. Otherwise, you'll have to clue me in.

[Jonathan]

(2) 512mb Corsair XMS (extreme memory series,CAS2,PC-2700C2PT) ($206)

Also, I wouldn't spend over $200 on just 512 mb of ram o.o

Super blah. It's in parentheses. I filtered it out. I thought it was a list marker.

[VLSmooth]

Also, ninety bucks is a dirty price for a barton. I had no idea they were that low. No wonder AMD is losing money like it was going out of style.

Also, why PC2700? I would have figured you for an eXXtreme overclocker. And you went for the 400 ultra, which says to me, "Overclock me to 400 MHz FSB." Only you have 333 MHz RAM.

Allow me to also reiterate that this is the retail version with heatsink+fan and a 3-year warranty

(strangely enough, the OEM was $95 at the time of ordering, let's hear it for price mistakes)

[VLSmooth]

If by "performance increase from 512 to 1 gb" you mean "disable Windows virtual memory" then I can maybe see that. Otherwise, you'll have to clue me in.

Yes, I did/do plan on disabling windows virtual memory. This, which I do take with a grain of salt, is another reason. Finally, I just want the ram

[bob]

I'm way out of touch of current computer hardware. I don't even know half of these distinctions you guys are talking about.

And when did the V-Man get an HDTV? How big? Is this in lieu of a monitor, or in addition for watching movies and anime? Can you really use an S-Video cable for something better than standard NTSC resolution?

[Jonathan]

Yes, I did/do plan on disabling windows virtual memory. This, which I do take with a grain of salt, is another reason. Finally, I just want the ram

Well, alright. Fair enough. And the grain of salt is right. For datasets in excess of 512 MB, then 1 GB of RAM will help. But someone should be coding Premiere or whatever to not load shit all into memory at once, anyhow. And the "512-MB RAM is the bare minimum for fast Windows XP systems" is BS, in my opinion.

[VLSmooth]

I'm way out of touch of current computer hardware. I don't even know half of these distinctions you guys are talking about.

And when did the V-Man get an HDTV? How big? Is this in lieu of a monitor, or in addition for watching movies and anime? Can you really use an S-Video cable for something better than standard NTSC resolution?

I purchased Samsung TXN-3271HF, 32" HDTV, which compliments the Samsung 900 NF 19" flat monitor I already have.

As for the S-Video cable, it's the best I could do without shelling out tons of cash for an HDTV with a DVI connection. I manage to get a pretty clear 640x480 progressive. As for watching anime, of course (also will use it for epsxe, dvd-viewing, etc)

Argh, must write Otakon con report sometime. Too many distractions.

Short blurb: great fun, will do next year, picture server will be up on a cmu box in a few days, possibly with the winning amvs (anime music videos)

[Dave]

hehe I chose to get 1GB of ram because UT2 required almost exactly 590 MB RAM to not have to load textures at any point during any level. With 512, it runs like crap. Other newish games such as AC2 ran like crap on a P4 2.4 Ti4200 with 256 MB Ram but when increased to 512, ran silky smooof!

So 1GB ram is almost needed nowadays, especially when the new games hit and the 64/128 Video card memory is fullish

ps - I have no clue what I am talking about

[Jonathan]

here's what some guy says Intel's roadmap looks like.

also, owners of 865/875 motherboards would do well to purchase double-sided DIMMS, not single-sided. most DIMMS on the market are double-sided, but you might find some real cheap stuff that is single-sided. it's only a percent or two slower, but be forewarned.