RAM Confusion

  • Thread starter Thread starter Erin Peterson
  • Start date Start date
E

Erin Peterson

Hi all.

With the profusion of different types of RAM on the market today I'm a
little confused about the type of RAM I should use to upgrade my comp. Is
there a "quick" way to tell? My comp is a couple of years old now and I
know that it takes SDRAM, not DDR. Would the best way to tell be to get the
MoBo stats and check the manufacturer's site?

TIA,
Erin
 
Hi all.

With the profusion of different types of RAM on the market today I'm a
little confused about the type of RAM I should use to upgrade my comp. Is
there a "quick" way to tell? My comp is a couple of years old now and I
know that it takes SDRAM, not DDR. Would the best way to tell be to get the
MoBo stats and check the manufacturer's site?

TIA,
Erin
Click to expand...

When the system posts there should be a BIOS ID string, a long sequence of
letters and numbers at the bottom of the screen. On some boards you might
need to press escape key or turn off the logo screen in the bios in order
to see these numbers. Write that down and Goggle search it... if you
don't positively ID it then post that string here.

Also there should be markings on the motherboard, usually printing either
at the top of the video card (AGP) slot or in the middle of the PCI slots,
displaying the make and model number and often the revision number.

"Sisoft Sandra" can be found by a Google search, it will identify the
chipset the motherboard uses, and "maybe" correctly identify the
motherboard. WIth either of these bits of info you can find the
manufacturer or post that info here and based upon the chipset we'll
likely be able to figure out.

"In general", a two year old system would be able to use PC133, but
closer to 4-6 years old might need lower density, "PC100" memory. These
generalities are no substitue for the specific info about the motherboard,
that is the definitive factor.
 
"Erin Peterson" said in
Hi all.

With the profusion of different types of RAM on the market today I'm a
little confused about the type of RAM I should use to upgrade my
comp. Is there a "quick" way to tell? My comp is a couple of years
old now and I know that it takes SDRAM, not DDR. Would the best way
to tell be to get the MoBo stats and check the manufacturer's site?

TIA,
Erin
Click to expand...

Once you know your brand and model, but more importantly once you know
which particular motherboard you have, you could use www.crucial.com to
give you a list of what memory sticks are appropriate for your computer.
I've bought from them and like them, but I've also bought elsewhere when
prices were better. I noticed that Corsair now wants a bigger sales
volume and has their Value line of memory sticks which equates to
Crucial and other common brands. I always liked Corsair but they used
to be the premium brand and a very premium cost. Once you enter the
brand and model, or the mobo brand and model, they'll tell you which
memory sticks fit your system. Be sure to pick a bus speed that you
want since they'll list several across all support bus speeds. Then you
can buy from them or simply get the specs from their recommendation and
find another brand with equal or better specs. In my last system, I
might've gotten Crucial but instead found some better Geils that were
also cheaper (it was a 1-day sale at newegg.com).
 
kony said:
When the system posts there should be a BIOS ID string, a long
sequence of letters and numbers at the bottom of the screen. On some
boards you might need to press escape key or turn off the logo screen
in the bios in order to see these numbers. Write that down and
Goggle search it... if you don't positively ID it then post that
string here.

Also there should be markings on the motherboard, usually printing
either at the top of the video card (AGP) slot or in the middle of
the PCI slots, displaying the make and model number and often the
revision number.

"Sisoft Sandra" can be found by a Google search, it will identify the
chipset the motherboard uses, and "maybe" correctly identify the
motherboard. WIth either of these bits of info you can find the
manufacturer or post that info here and based upon the chipset we'll
likely be able to figure out.

"In general", a two year old system would be able to use PC133, but
closer to 4-6 years old might need lower density, "PC100" memory.
These generalities are no substitue for the specific info about the
motherboard, that is the definitive factor.
Click to expand...

I would recommend the new release of Aida32 over SiSoft Sandra, the
'Enterprise System Information' build. I've known Sandra to be wrong almost
as often as it's been right. Aida32 is, IMO, *the* most useful tool for
IDing components. Especially the new release that has a far more up-to-date
database than the older version I just replaced. It even provides hyperlinks
to manufacturers sites where available.
 
~misfit~ said:
I would recommend the new release of Aida32 over SiSoft Sandra, the
'Enterprise System Information' build. I've known Sandra to be wrong almost
as often as it's been right. Aida32 is, IMO, *the* most useful tool for
IDing components. Especially the new release that has a far more up-to-date
database than the older version I just replaced. It even provides hyperlinks
to manufacturers sites where available.
Click to expand...

'Ya know, you turned me on to Aida a year or so ago, and I must admit that I find it to be an
invaluable tool. Sandra still has her place, but for a quick and simple method of determining
many things, Aida just can't be beat.

Jon
 
Jon said:
'Ya know, you turned me on to Aida a year or so ago, and I must admit
that I find it to be an invaluable tool. Sandra still has her place,
but for a quick and simple method of determining many things, Aida
just can't be beat.
Click to expand...

Yep, it's a great little proggy Jon. Have you grabbed the new version? It's
more up-to-date with modern systems, the 'Enterprise System Information'
build is the one to go for.
 
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