RDRAM (Rambus) How much does mhz really matter?

[Wezas]

So I'm still here at my dad's house on his Dell 8250.

Evidently it's the most pain in the ass system Dell has ever made. The computer has a P4 2.4ghz, 110gb HD, but only 256 MB RDRAM(PC1066, ECC, Unbuffered) Takes up 2 slots and must be used in exact pairs.

It's hella slow. WoW barely moves, it's slow to open up programs, and it constantly runs out of virual memory. I want to get them to 512. 1gb is a bit expensive (and a bit of overload for what they need)

So I'm looking around and it's pretty expensive. A few sites have versions of it with lower mhz for a decent chunk less (and it's actually available).

256 mb ECC 600mhz = $50
256 mb ECC 800mhz = $65
256 mb ECC 1066mhz = $86 (only one in stock)
(Dell wants to charge $136 each)
(all of the above will replace what is currently in there, because the PC will not work with two pairs of different size)

Another option I have is just adding 2 more 128 mb (1066 mhz) chips for about $47 each. (so for $94 I'll have 4 chips of 128mb each)

So what's better?

Having 4 sims of 128mb 1066mhz or spending a few extra bucks (+$36) for 2 256mb 800mhz chips (with the ability to one day add two more 256mb chips, though they'll likely never do it here).

[Ardwen]

Check ebay I got a gig 2 x 512 of rambus for under 150 bucks and it works fine with the existing 2 256s

And yes it is a pain


Ardwen

[Bobmuhthol]

I'd go with 4 x 128.

[Wezas]

Originally posted by Ardwen
Check ebay I got a gig 2 x 512 of rambus for under 150 bucks and it works fine with the existing 2 256s

And yes it is a pain


Ardwen

Searched a bit, found a few auctions that look too good to be true:

1st (http://cgi.ebay.com/1Gig-of-Infineon-PC800-45ns-RDRAM-2X512-16-ECC-DELL_W0QQitemZ6792010090QQcategoryZ11152QQssPageNa meZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem)

2nd (http://cgi.ebay.com/1Gig-of-ELPIDA-PC800-45ns-RDRAM-2X512-16d-ECC-DELL_W0QQitemZ6791998762QQcategoryZ11152QQssPageNa meZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem)

3rd (http://cgi.ebay.com/1Gig-of-ELPIDA-PC800-45ns-RDRAM-2X512-16d-ECC-DELL_W0QQitemZ6791994170QQcategoryZ11152QQssPageNa meZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem)

Tempted to bid on more then one of them, just in case I might lose one (plus, 1gb couldn't hurt).

[Edited on 8-10-2005 by Wezas]

[radamanthys]

My parents had that machine. *mutters such dirty, virulent loathings that lightning flashes in a cloudless sky*

WoW needs RAM. It eats it up like a fat kid at Dairy Queen. You need at least 512 in yer machine with WinXP, if not more. With RDRAM, it used to be that the 2 chips together are 256, not 256 each. With 4 dimms, you should have either 4x256 chips, or 2x512. That still hold true, or am I full of shit? I refused to work with RD after a while...

Therefore, the first option is the better choice, but you can't put anymore into the machine.

Also, you should buy direct from dell. The latencies and timings on their chips are different than most market ram. Why? I dont know. I've seen it wreak havoc on a machine. Sometimes in certain areas. One thing is for sure though. The ram will screw up eventually if it's not straight up dell ram. The Ebay option seems decent, just be careful, cuz sometimes the effects are different than DoA, and the warranty is null and void. Caveat Emptor.

On a side note:
I couldn't run WoW when I played with 256mb, I could never get out of the pit in Ironforge with the lag. Now that I upgraded my laptop to 3.6ghz and 1gb ram, it'll run perfectly at a nice resolution. Ram is the most important thing for WoW, tho- It's a blizzard thing, I guess. Ever try to play WC3 without enough ram? You know what I'm talking about...

[Skirmisher]

Even from Crucial.com?

I never heard anything like that about aftermarket ram and Dell before.

[radamanthys]

Yea, when you've done as much small time PC repair as I've done, you tend to notice things. Plus, i'm THAT GUY, who goes into computer shops to talk the talk with the other techs. It's a geek thing. I've asked other techs about it and many have agreed. *shrug* It's one of those things. Notice all the ads will say "dell ram"? there's a reason for that :-D

[Wezas]

Originally posted by Skirmisher
Even from Crucial.com?


The Crucial System Scanner detected that your computer uses Rambus memory.
Unfortunately at this time, Crucial does not sell Rambus Memory Upgrades. (http://www.crucial.com/systemscanner/viewscanbyid.asp?id=D76C17CA31D926C3&tabid=&pagena me=)

Dell doesn't even sell the 128mb chips. And their 256mb chips are $136 each (so $272 for 512mb). 512mb chips are $282 each (so $564 for 1gb).

From Dell's site, it basically says that the pair itself must be the exact same. They also say if you are going to put anything into slot 3 & 4, they must both 1) be a matching pair, and 2) be the same size as the memory in slot 1 & 2.

I think if I can snag the E-bay memory up at a decent price (the guy has 100% feedback) and his past auctions have included RAM.

[Skirmisher]

Is that why they only offered rdram for like a month or something?

[Wezas]

From what I remember they thought it was going to be "THE NEXT BIG THING!"

And it wasn't.