[lampshade]

currently i have pc800 RDRAM. i was wondering if it could be upgraded to SDRAM or DDR-RAM?
thanks

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Short for Rambus DRAM, a type of memory (DRAM) developed by Rambus, Inc. Whereas SDRAM can deliver data at a maximum speed of about 100 MHz, RDRAM transfers data at up to 800 MHz.

RDRAM is already being used in place of VRAM in some graphics accelerator boards. As of late 1999, Intel has been using RDRAM in its Pentium III Xeon processors and more recently in its Pentium 4 processors. Intel and Rambus are also working a new version of RDRAM, called nDRAM, that will support data transfer speeds at up to 1,600 MHz.



http://www.webopedia...dram_memory.asp

Edited by Keith, 18 June 2005 - 07:55 PM.

[Retired Tech]

Short for Rambus DRAM, a type of memory (DRAM) developed by Rambus, Inc. Whereas SDRAM can deliver data at a maximum speed of about 100 MHz, RDRAM transfers data at up to 800 MHz.

RDRAM is already being used in place of VRAM in some graphics accelerator boards. As of late 1999, Intel has been using RDRAM in its Pentium III Xeon processors and more recently in its Pentium 4 processors. Intel and Rambus are also working a new version of RDRAM, called nDRAM, that will support data transfer speeds at up to 1,600 MHz.



http://www.webopedia...dram_memory.asp

Edited by Keith, 18 June 2005 - 07:55 PM.

[lampshade]

thanks but i was wondering if it is possible to upgrade? the machine its running on is a dell. 2.0Ghz P4. 512 RDRAM pc800, and a radeon 9600xt. i'd use it for gaming and would like a gig of ram but only have two DIMM slots. on newegg.com RDRAM seems pretty expensie so i thought why not go to DDR.

[Retired Tech]

Get Everest Home Edition

http://www.lavalys.c...p?pid=1&lang=en

Click + next to computer then DMI then memory controller to see supported memory types

Edited by Keith, 18 June 2005 - 09:40 PM.

[ryanmills]

RD RAM and DDR RAM are two different types. So no unless you have one of the few boards the support both (but you can only use one type at a time).

A few things to keep in mind when upgrading memory.

Are you looking to add more?
If you are looking to add more while you can just buy another stick and throw it in. You my end up damaging your over all speed. I would recommend a good set matched set of a larger size than you have now and either sell your current chip or hold onto it to build a small machine. Also pairs are often cheaper than single chips and to take advantage of DDR features you need to have two sticks anyway for most mobo’s. I’m not sure if it’s the same with RD.

How much should you have. My own thoughts.

256 - Good for the desktop user. Email, internet even movies.

512 - Good for the power user. Gaming can be done even at good levels. I have a old +2700 with only a 9700pro 40gig drive and 512megs of RAM. It can run CS:S and HL2 at 1152 and most of the setting around medium and bench at 92 FPS on CS:S. Its slightly over clocked. But more importantly its timing are set just right and all the speeds and components are matched. I will explain bit more on that later.

1 gig - Good for the heavy gamer and A/V freaks. I run a gig and don’t really come close to forcing paging unless I’m run premiere.

2 gig - Good for server class machines with heavy services running or the extreme gamer

If you have enough memory. A speed upgrade can bump up your FPS anywhere from 5-20FPS depending on your current setup.


Thoughts on upgrading speed.

Step one. What is current bus speed. I run all AMD so I will base it on that. I will use my old system as example on what possible on a cheap system done right. Its +2700 is running at 333MHz so I will be looking to buy DDR333 or PC2700 (same thing just a different name). You should look to match your bus speed. Going beyond it won’t really improve much. Next its time to hit my motherboards website. Most will list what memory has been test to fully work with their boards. I would stick to that list other wise you may run into issues. If you decide to chance it. Timing is a BIG factor in performance. Check the Latency, CAS being the biggest when shopping (it will be the first number in the set. Most will list like 3-3-4-5 the first 3 is the CAS. The rest are another post to explain). Lower is better. Cheap memory is just that. If you can afford it spend more, do it. I would also recommend you stick to name brands. Other terms like ECC and Registered are again another post to explain. Good to have but not needed unless you are running a server or a computer with really tight timing. In the computer I am using for an example I’m running OCZ Enhanced Latency at 2-2-2-3 at 333mhz. But I run at 2.6 volts not 2.5 volts. It was just a little unstable under load otherwise.



Now some of this will change since you are using RD but the idea is still the same.


-Ryan