PC2100 RAM and AMD XP3000+

[Animal_Mother]

Hey all!

Im going to upgrade my computer soonish and im not going to upgrade the RAM just yet.

The RAM is 256MB PC2100 X2 so 512MB

And im going to get an AMD XP3000+ which runs at 333Mhz, but ive heard some ppls say that the PC2100 RAM only runs at 266Mhz, so when i upgrade will this coase a bottle neck?
Also ppls have said about syncing the RAM and CPU wot is this and how is it done?

CHEERS!!!!

--PETE--

[Terminator]

You don't tell us what motherboard you have so I'm assuning it's pretty medern if it can take the Barton 3000. Firstly the memory you will have will run with the Barton chips but only at 266MHz. This does create a bottleneck as the memory can't supply data to the CPU as quick as the CPU will accept. You have 3 choices :-

1) Run the system asynchrynous, CPU at 333FSB and memory at 266FSB (this is what I'm running),

2) reduce the CPU FSB to 266 and up the CPU multiplier to compensate for the speed drop. Will allow synchrynous settings,

3) Buy some PC2700 RAM...good quality.


T


:t

[Animal_Mother]

Im gonna get a ASUS A7N8X Deluxe.

So which is the best option out of synchrynous and asynchrynous?

[Terminator]

Got exactly the same motherboard. Save youself heaps of money and get a barton2500+ instead and it's hit 3000+ speeds EASILY just by changing the multiplier and maybe up in vcore voltage a wee bit. Synchrynous will always be better. What you save on the CPU you could put to some good ram. I'd buy PC3200 (400MHz) instead as this chip will run at this speed as well (you might need a BIOS update 1004 or 1005.
Mine is Barton 2500+ at 11.5x200 = 2300MHz (above Barton 3200+ 400FSB) speed) with 512 Crucial 266MHz ram (will upgrade to PC3200 very soon) but this needed the vcore up to 1.85v which is as high as this board will go. Will hit 2GHz at 1.75V which is only 0.1V above Barton2500 default (1.65V).

So in answer to the question I'd go for PC3200 RAM with the much cheaper Barton 2500+ (£60).

T

:t

[Animal_Mother]

Im a newbie when it comes to overclocking and changing speeds, stuff like that.

So how do u do it?

[Animal_Mother]

Also i was gonna get a Vantec Aeroflow for the 3000+, will this be okay to use on the 2500+? since that it will be overclocked.

[killer_teddy]

Vantec will be fine on the Barton 2500.
As for RAM get a stick of Crucial PC3200 here: http://www.crucial.com/uk/

[Animal_Mother]

Yeah Crucial Memory b good!!! :D

How does the Dual Channeling work on the A7N8X?

[BipolarBill]

Just put a stick in slot 1 and another in slot 2 or 3 and it works automatically.

[killer_teddy]

Don't the sticks have to be fairly similar to go DCDDR at least the same size.
I'd say order a pair 256MB PC3200 with Crucial.

[BipolarBill]

Actually they do not have to be the same - not even the same size.

[Animal_Mother]

So how do i overclock the XP2500+?

[BipolarBill]

That is not an easy question. Please read the manual and ask us if there's something you don't understand.

You can also read reviews of the board for tips.

[Animal_Mother]

Oh ok.

So all i need to do is to change the vcore up to 1.75V (BTW wot does the vcore do???)

And put it to 1.85v if i get PC3200 RAM

And change the Multlplier to 11.5, so that it goes up to 2300MHz.

Also do i need a BIOS upgrade, since that the ASUS A7N8X will be REV 2.00 i am gettin?

Also do i change the Vcore and the Multlplier in the BIOS?


Cheers ppls u have all been very helpfull lately in my quest to upgrade my computer.

MANY THANKS!!

[Bigjakkstaffa]

Might be a bit late here, but SOME good quality PC2100 (namely Crucial's) has been known to run at PC2700 (333) without problems and with minimal fuss. If the stuff you got's generic then most likely it wont manage it, however if its a decent brand name theres a possibility it might run okies

--Jakk:t

[BipolarBill]

Have you looked in BIOS yet?

Vcore = CPU voltage. Bring it up one notch.

Set multiplier to what you would like. To change any setting, you must set System Performance to Expert. Voltage settings are in Power BIOS Features.

[killer_teddy]

Originally posted by Animal_Mother
(BTW wot does the vcore do???)
http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/popular_articles/article/1482.1/

[Animal_Mother]

Is it possiable to blow up the CPU or mobo when overclocking?

If so how can this be avoided?

[killer_teddy]

Well, not 'blow up' exactly but you can kill your mobo or CPU, good cooling and not pushing it too hard is how to avoid such catastrophes. Just go careful and check stuff your unsure about with us before you do it and you'll be fine.

[Timmac4]

Yes it is. If you push the voltages too high without good cooling it can easily damage your cpu. I hear a lot of people giving advice to people new to overclocking lately, and they all seem to say the general thing. It's easy just raise x,y,z and you're done. Now even though this is very true, you should at least aquire the knowledge of what overclocking does, and how to achieve it before you attempt doing it. There are several web sites out there devoted to teaching people how to overclock their computers, and the chances of damage to someone who has been doing it for a while are minimal, but I see first time overclockers destroying more stuff when they don't want to learn the proper ways.

[Animal_Mother]

What does unlocking a processor do?

[killer_teddy]

Unlocking will let you change the multipliers but this is done autamatically by nForce2 boards on most CPU's.
have a look around here: www.overclockers.com

[RamonGTP]

I agree, get the 2500+ overclock it, use the money you saved for better memory. I have my 2500+ overclocked to 3200+ which saved me $350... Thats enough for a memory upgrade and still have money left over.