amnesiwot Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 Hello, I would like advice on increasing my RAM. At the moment I have have 2 x 2 gb of this: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Corsair-Dominator-4GB-2x2GB-PC2-8500-1066-Dual-DDR2-Memory-CM2X2048-8500C5D-V1-1/201429193804 I want to add another 4gb. I have a 64 bit OS and 2 free slots so hopefully this should be possible. I would like to know if I can complement my existing RAM with 2 x 2gb of this: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Corsair-4gb-DDR2-TWIN2X4096-8500C5C-/111772741800?hash=item1a062cb0a8 The main difference is the latency: current: 5-5-5-15 new: 5-6-6-18 The rest seems the same to me: Both 1066Mhz Both 2.1 v Both DDR2 Is it a good idea or should I stick to the same spec? I ask because the original RAM is quite pricey second hand whereas the one I'm looking at it significantly cheaper and most of the specs match. To my novice eyes the latency difference seems negligible. So is it a case of that just lowering the bar a little? If so, then surely the overall improvement justifies it? Or is it difficult to say, therefore best to errr on the side of caution and just match the existing RAM? Thank you for your time, David. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wired Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 It's best to keep them at the same specs, but even if they were identical kits no one can guarantee compatibility since they haven't been tested together. Also, their warranty isn't transferable. You're better off going with just purchasing a new DDR2 kit from a store, or looking to upgrade to a DDR3 system. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amnesiwot Posted September 21, 2015 Author Share Posted September 21, 2015 Thanks for the reply. Damn, I was afraid you were going to say that. Oh I can't afford to upgrade my system, hence the RAM upgrade. And I'm not concerned about a warranty. Just looking at getting the cheapesst best 2nd hand 4gb RAM I can to go with what I've already got. Thank you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corsair Employee Greybeard Posted September 21, 2015 Corsair Employee Share Posted September 21, 2015 If budget is the case, you could always try that plan of yours, you'll just have to force the spec in your MB BIOS and see if you can get those two sticks to work. You'll have to input the timings manually, in this case, go with the more relax set; 5-6-6-18 with DRAM freq 800Mhz since you are populating all DIMM slots. Voltage at 2.5v Then again, like wired said above, there's no guarantee them to work, but its always worth a shot if you don't have other options. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amnesiwot Posted September 22, 2015 Author Share Posted September 22, 2015 Thanks for the response. OK please bear with me here - I've never delved into RAM before... So even though all 4 sticks would have a voltage of 2.1v that would be set to 2.5v in the BIOS? And likewise even though they were all 1066Mhz, I'd set it as 800Mhz in the BIOS? So I guess if money wasn't an object you'd say match it to the original too then? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corsair Employee Greybeard Posted September 24, 2015 Corsair Employee Share Posted September 24, 2015 yes, DRAM voltage at 2.5v in BIOS. And yes, down clock the memory speed to 800Mhz. The reason is, you are trying to compensate for the load on your MCH (memory controller), hence the higher voltage and slower speed. For the DRAM voltage, you can actually start at 2.1v and see if your system is stable. If not, then increase it in small increments until your system is stable. Again, it doesn't really matter if you have two kits that have the same part #, they are still two separate kits of RAM that were never tested together. Therefore, we cannot guarantee they're compatibility with each other. That said, two kits of the same part #s is preferable, as they'd have a better chance working together in a system. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amnesiwot Posted September 24, 2015 Author Share Posted September 24, 2015 That's a great answer. Very useful advice born out of experience for someone who doesn't know about this sort of thing. Thank you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattlach Posted September 25, 2015 Share Posted September 25, 2015 Yeah, unfortunately for you, the older slower DDR2 RAM is more expensive than the newer RAM. Ideally all RAM in the system should be of the same part number. If that isn't possible at the very least you need to make sure they are the same voltage and clock, and try to match the timings as closely as you possibly can. The BIOS will try to find a setting that will make them work together. This can either work reasonably in some cases, or cause terrible instability in others. There is really no way of knowing until you test it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattlach Posted September 25, 2015 Share Posted September 25, 2015 yes, DRAM voltage at 2.5v in BIOS. And yes, down clock the memory speed to 800Mhz. The reason is, you are trying to compensate for the load on your MCH (memory controller), hence the higher voltage and slower speed. For the DRAM voltage, you can actually start at 2.1v and see if your system is stable. If not, then increase it in small increments until your system is stable. Again, it doesn't really matter if you have two kits that have the same part #, they are still two separate kits of RAM that were never tested together. Therefore, we cannot guarantee they're compatibility with each other. That said, two kits of the same part #s is preferable, as they'd have a better chance working together in a system. To add to this, having different kits in different channels is USUALLY (BUT NOT ALWAYS) OK, if they are otherwise the same. You really want the RAM sitting in the same channel to be tested together as a kit. I currently have RAM from two different manufacturers in my system, but both are quad channel kits tested together. The only reason I did this was because the RAM I had in the first channel was obsolete. I bought the second kit knowing it might be a risk, and was happy when I did an overnight Memtest followed by (the night after) an overnight Prime95 test and everything checked out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amnesiwot Posted September 25, 2015 Author Share Posted September 25, 2015 Hi Mattlach, Thank you for the great replies. I'm not sure what a channel is I'm afraid. I can see 2 pairs of slots for memory. Is a pair of slots a channel? I will bear what you've said in mind and hold out for some that match mine on Ebay. I'm amazed the older RAM is so expensive. This should be one advantage of having an older configuration! arrrgggh! Anyway thanks for the great advice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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