RAM selection

[Sedako]

With conroe's release just around the corner, i'm getting all the new components for my upgraded system ready to go. The only thing i'm really having a problem deciding on is the ram. I plan on OCing the E6600 as high as I can with a Tuniq Tower. At the range I plan on taking it to, DDR2 1000 will provide the most efficiency. My problem is that I may not be able to afford 2 gigs of DDR2 1000. My alternatives were as follows (assume equal ram timings):

Purchase a 1 gig stick of DDR2 1000

or

Purchase 2 x 1 gig sticks of DDR2 800

Which one of these selections would provide the most efficiency with an E6600 OCd to 3.0+

 

[Asus]

If you plan on gaming mostly then I'd aim for the 2x 1GB DDR2 800. DDR2 1000 doesn't give much performance over 800 and hopfully the DDR2 800 will let you OC nearly as high. I think 2GB over 1GB would give a pretty good increase in performance, especially games coming up in a year or so.

Warbie linked to this in another thread.

This shows that there isn't much performance difference with lower timings. It was posted within that oc.uk thread.

 

[Warbie]

I agree with Asus, and would go with 2 gig DDR 800. I wouldn't be comfortable going higher than 3.6 on air anyways, regardless of how good the heatsink is.

It may be worth waiting to see how these first batches of conroe's perform. A few reports suggest they aren't matching the speeds seen in recent benchmarked. I know one person with a 6600 who is having trouble reaching a stable 3 gig. Of course, these could just be rumours, and he could just be unlucky (plenty of other people have been getting better results), but there's no guarantees. Either way, I think your cooling or cpu will limit your overclock before your ram does.