I was just searching for a 512 SDram at either Pc100 or PC133, when i heard on the grape vine that you can upragde to faster type of ram altogether? Is this true and how exactley?

I also need to clarify one otherÂÂ! thing, If i hav 3 DIMM slots, each with 64 SDRam = 192MB
Out of these, two are said to be running at pc125 (One of them, an un-named module), and the last (i think i put in myself) runs at pc100 and the WIDTH(?) is 74bit, while the other two are 64bit. DO I WORRY ABOUT THIS?? and why do you not find PC125 SDram modules around?

If the max is 768 MBÂÂ! for my board, can i get for instance, one 512MB, one 128mb and one 64mb, will i have a problem? is there a limit per slot or just overall, i would guess to spread evenly the load, it would be 256 on each slot, am i right in thinking this?<< I JUST RAN PC WIZARD WHICH ALSO SAID 256MB MAXÂÂ! MODULE!! >>

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PIII 450, Gigabyte Ga-6bxc, 3dfx voodoo3, 192 SDram

There isn't any SDR SDRAM that exceeds 133 MHz. The next step up is DDR200/PC1600 SDRAM that runs at 100 MHz Double Pumped. This module is not compatible with the old interface.

PC125 is not a ratified standard, but its existence can be explained. The DRAM bus frequency is derived from the FSB (Front Side Bus) using a ratio. Your Pentium 3 450 has a 100 MHz FSB, so a ratio of 4:5 would produce a 125 MHz DRAM bus. Memory speed that exceeds the FSB is generally only a fix against poor memory timings; you would gain no tangible performance from PC133. Very few manufacturers produced PC125 modules, Siemens are the only I can thing of off the top of my head.

I'm not sure about 74-bit, but a 72-bit module is an ECC-Module. ECC (Error Correction Code) is a system that ensures RAM transfers are error free. This is done by performing a type of binary operation called XOR on each 8-bit byte and appending it to the transfer (totaling 9-bits). When the memory controller fetches the page next time, it performs the XOR operation again and determines if the ECC bit is correct; thus determining if any bitflip errors have occurred. The standard SDRAM interface width is 64-bits, or 8 bytes (64 / 8 = 8 ). With ECC data, this would be 9-bits per byte, requiring a width of 72-bit (8 * 9 = 72). If you look carefully at the module, you should also note that there are a 9 or 18 chips on it, where as regular modules have 8 or 16. ECC is a chipset dependant feature, and your chipset (Intel 440BX) supports ECC. However, ECC is only enabled when all modules are ECC, otherwise it will run at 64-bit non ECC mode. ECC is generally used in servers or high end workstations, where errors occurring even at a negligible frequency is unacceptable, and out ways the increased cost.

Which brings me to the final question regarding maximum memory limitations, which I'd like to answer in chicken language.

bok bok bok bok. bok bok bok bok bok. bok bok.

Syhpus is the greatest>>>> all hail Syhpus!

thanks dude. ;D

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PIII 450, Gigabyte Ga-6bxc, 3dfx voodoo3, 192 SDram

I do what I can

The only thing you forgot to metion for aspiring upgraders, is what the CL1 cl2, and cl3 things are whats the difference and do they have to match existing modules? my board is told to use CL2 when i use mainstream sites to check chipset compatability.

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PIII 450, Gigabyte Ga-6bxc, 3dfx voodoo3, 192 SDram

The 'CL' is the CAS Latency, or length of time it takes for the Column Address Strobe signal to stabilize.

I have written on this before, and at the risk of being accused of laziness, I'm going to refer you to that post here.

If you have further questions, post back.

when you say ram modules are keyed, does that mean the knotches in the plastic? or the arrangements of the pins and the actual DIMM slot?

also i got my upgrade, but it wont work with the old modules, why whats wrong? please help........

(1*256)

General Information :
DIMM1 (RAS 0, RAS 1) : 256 (Single Bank)
DIMM2 : Empty
DIMM3 : Empty

Information SPD EEPROM (DIMM1) :
Manufacturer : Hitashi
Part Number : HB52R329E2-B6D
Serial Number : 52026240
Type : SDRAM PC100 (100 MHz)
Size : 256 MB (2 rows, 4 banks)
Module Buffered : No
Module Registered : Yes
Width : 72-bit
Error Correction Capability : ECC
Max. Burst Length : 8
Refresh : Normal (15.625 µs), Self Refresh
Voltage : LVTTL
Manufacture : Week 50 of 2053
Supported Frequencies : 100 MHz
CAS Latency (tCL) : 3 clocks @100 MHz
RAS to CAS (tRCD) : 2 clocks @100 MHz
RAS Precharge (tRP) : 2 clocks @100 MHz
Cycle Time (tRAS) : 5 clocks @100 MHz

Memory Controller Information :
Memory Controller : Standard, EDO, DIMM, SDRAM
Number of connectors : 3
Max. Module Size : 256 MB
Max. Memory Size : 768 MB
Supported Speed : 70ns, 60ns
Supported Voltages : 3.3v
Error Detection Method : 8-bit Parity
Error Correction Capability : Unspecified
Current/Supported Interleave : 1-way/1-way

Advices :
The symbol indicate : Approximate Information
The symbol indicate : Information may be inaccurate





(3*64)

General Information :
DIMM1 (RAS 0, RAS 1) : 64 (Single Bank)
DIMM2 (RAS 2, RAS 3) : 64 (Single Bank)
DIMM3 (RAS 4, RAS 5) : 64 (Single Bank)

Information SPD EEPROM (DIMM1) :
Manufacturer : Unspecified
Part Number : Unspecified
Serial Number : Unspecified
Type : SDRAM PC125 (125 MHz)
Size : 64 MB (1 rows, 4 banks)
Module Buffered : No
Module Registered : No
Width : 64-bit
Error Correction Capability : No
Max. Burst Length : 8
Refresh : Normal (15.625 µs), Self Refresh
Voltage : LVTTL
Manufacture : Week 41 of 1999
Supported Frequencies : 100 MHz, 125 MHz
CAS Latency (tCL) : 2 clocks @100 MHz, 3 clocks @125 MHz
RAS to CAS (tRCD) : 2 clocks @100 MHz, 3 clocks @125 MHz
RAS Precharge (tRP) : 2 clocks @100 MHz, 3 clocks @125 MHz
Cycle Time (tRAS) : 5 clocks @100 MHz, 6 clocks @125 MHz

Information SPD EEPROM (DIMM2) :
Manufacturer : Kingston
Part Number : KGM100x72C2/64
Serial Number : Unspecified
Type : SDRAM PC100 (100 MHz)
Size : 64 MB (1 rows, 4 banks)
Module Buffered : No
Module Registered : No
Width : 72-bit
Error Correction Capability : ECC
Max. Burst Length : 4
Refresh : Normal (15.625 µs), Self Refresh
Voltage : LVTTL
Manufacture : Week 17 of 2000
Supported Frequencies : 100 MHz, 100 MHz
CAS Latency (tCL) : 2 clocks @100 MHz, 3 clocks @100 MHz
RAS to CAS (tRCD) : 2 clocks @100 MHz, 2 clocks @100 MHz
RAS Precharge (tRP) : 2 clocks @100 MHz, 2 clocks @100 MHz
Cycle Time (tRAS) : 5 clocks @100 MHz, 5 clocks @100 MHz

Information SPD EEPROM (DIMM3) :
Manufacturer : Micron Technology
Part Number : 8LSDT864AG-10EC7
Serial Number : 0215BE43
Type : SDRAM PC125 (125 MHz)
Size : 64 MB (1 rows, 4 banks)
Module Buffered : No
Module Registered : No
Width : 64-bit
Error Correction Capability : No
Max. Burst Length : 8
Refresh : Normal (15.625 µs), Self Refresh
Voltage : LVTTL
Manufacture : Week 8 of 2000
Supported Frequencies : 100 MHz, 125 MHz
CAS Latency (tCL) : 2 clocks @100 MHz, 3 clocks @125 MHz
RAS to CAS (tRCD) : 2 clocks @100 MHz, 3 clocks @125 MHz
RAS Precharge (tRP) : 2 clocks @100 MHz, 3 clocks @125 MHz
Cycle Time (tRAS) : 5 clocks @100 MHz, 7 clocks @125 MHz

Memory Controller Information :
Memory Controller : Standard, EDO, DIMM, SDRAM
Number of connectors : 3
Max. Module Size : 256 MB
Max. Memory Size : 768 MB
Supported Speed : 70ns, 60ns
Supported Voltages : 3.3v
Error Detection Method : 8-bit Parity
Error Correction Capability : Unspecified
Current/Supported Interleave : 1-way/1-way

Advices :
The symbol indicate : Approximate Information
The symbol indicate : Information may be inaccurate

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PIII 450, Gigabyte Ga-6bxc, 3dfx voodoo3, 192 SDram

Yes, they key is the notches. SDR SDRAM has two notches, DDR SDRAM has only one. This physically prevents the insertion of the wrong RAM type in the wrong slot, and the retention arms will not close.

If I had to guess at your probelm attempting to run those old modules with the news ones, it would be that your 256 Module runs CAS 3 at 100 MHz, while the old ones run CAS 2 at 100 MHz. If the BIOS isn't smart, it may be trying to run your new module at CAS 2 to match the others. There may be an option in your BIOS that enables you to force CAS 2.

the bios setting is set at auto. should i set it at 2 and run a mixture of cas2 and the new cas3 module? or will that not work? will a cas3 module work at cas2 settings?

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PIII 450, Gigabyte Ga-6bxc, 3dfx voodoo3, 192 SDram

No, you need to set it at CAS 3. If you set it at CAS 2, it will force CAS 2, even on modules that are unable to function at that latency.

when the pc boots on cas3 setting, only the cas3 mod is being recongnised... i.e ram check did only 262mb. then it freezes before windows.

shouldn't it be on auto to let both types work?

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PIII 450, Gigabyte Ga-6bxc, 3dfx voodoo3, 192 SDram

CAS 3 should work for any module rated for CAS 2.

It may help you to understand by reading this.

I do not know what is causing your issue, but I can suggest you try various combinations of modules and slots.

ok so now i have tried setting it at cas2,
and then cas3, like you said.

after jumbling around the modules, i have got the pc to boot up with all three needed module in. Alas, the system doesn't recongnise the smaller modules, windows system registers only256 ram? why is this? when i run pc wizard, the reading say's all three are installed, but alas not recongnised on windows system....


HELP!!!!!

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PIII 450, Gigabyte Ga-6bxc, 3dfx voodoo3, 192 SDram

What version of Windows are you running?

xp pro sp2,ÂÂ! syphus.

Can you give me a general idea on what processor would be sufficient for me to do downloading and browsing the internet at the same time. I checked my download bandwidth against some site and i'm getting around 800kb, now when i use limewire, i only get average of 100 kb download speed. is this because of the delay in the fsb speed or the hard drive write speed?ÂÂ! exactley why can't we get FULL download speeds? i decided to get a new computer after i find myself a job..... :-[ :-\ :'(
but i cant afford the best of the best, but i am the best at finding cheap bargins.. so any advice on making my life easier is appreciated!!!

p.s- never mind the "exactley", firstly it's spelt wrong, secondly, after still trying to contemplate your reply to the Ide or SATA query. ;D

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PIII 450, Gigabyte Ga-6bxc, 3dfx voodoo3, 192 SDram

As for the bandwidth part of your problem-

Computers measure data in bits and bytes. There are 8 bits in a byte, its important to understand this when considering broadband options.
ISPs advertise broadband speeds in kilobits not kilobytes, eg my own ISP gives me "download speeds of up to 2Mbs" this does not mean the same as 2MB per second. Further, Internet Browsers measure download speeds in kilobytes whereas sites that test your connection usually measure in kilobits. Confusing I know.
So, if your ISP says your getting up to 1Mbs then in reality you should expect to see speeds or 100kB when downloading from a browser which will equal 800kbs which is close to the 1Mbs you're paying for.. The actual 1Mbs will only ever be achieved in rare circumstances.

This is a simplification of things as factors such as server speeds can affect it further, but its good to know anyway

Rest assured that it's in order for things like FSB and HDD bandwidth to influence download speed, your system would be in a very bad condition. You're talking about data rates of less than 1 MB/s, where as most of your internal components will be transferring at 100s of MB/s.

A speed of 100 kBps for a 1 Mb connection is acceptable. Internationally, I'd be lucky to pull 300 kBps with my 3.5 Mb connection. You confusion stems from grammatical convention, and how people crap all over it. Technically, bits always get a lower case b, where as bytes should get an uppercase B. Furthermore, the Si measurement kilo should always get a lowercase k, where as Mega and beyond get uppercase.



512 b
64 B
256 kb
32 kB
100 Mb
12.5 MB

bits - rarely if ever used in the context of internet bandwidth
Bytes - used when describing a really bad connection to a Russian or Chinese website: "Dude! I'm only pulling 900 byte/s "
kilobits - standard measurement of internet connection bandwidth
kilobytes - standard measurement of download speeds
Megabits - measurement of high speed internet connections (although 100 Mb is a pipe dream for many)
Megabytes - rarely used in the context of internet bandwidth, except in file size or commercial connections of 8Mb and above.


You get the idea. People break these rules all the time, in the same way they ignore grammar. I urge you not to. You CAN make a difference!

hi again,
finally after getting some things in order, i came back to my single bank o' ram computer....

do i need to buy a exact match of the 256 module to have more ram? seems these 64kb, and my old old old 32kb - 4 chip module, are so obsolete they just have to be binned, seems a shame the aren't compatable with the newer/bigger module, ( snif sniff)

suggestions? final prays, or extensive CAS lat trials?

make love.

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PIII 450, Gigabyte Ga-6bxc, 3dfx voodoo3, 192 SDram