Quote:
Originally Posted by machoo
My motherboard is a Gigabyte EP45 or something. It can go upto 16GB , Win 7 64bit O/S and I have 2 of my 4 slots remaining. So with COD only 32bit , will it even work for me?
|
The reason I was asking whether your operating system was 32 or 64-bit was because if it were 32-bit, your system would be limited to using about 4GB of RAM anyway. So, as that's not an issue, the question is how much to get?
At the moment, having 6-8GB total is generally considered to be enough. Unless you're using video or sound or photo-editing programs and manipulating a large amount of really big files in real-time, or perhaps trying to run a lot of memory-intensive programs at the same time for some reason, it's highly unlikely you'll need more than 6-8GB.
What that means is, with 4GB already (which must be 2x2GB), you only really need 2-4GB more, if that. And seeing as DDR2 is dual-channel RAM, which works best in multiples of two, you'd be better off getting an extra 2x2GB for a total of 8GB than just getting another 2GB for a total of 6GB. If you only add one more stick of RAM, of any size, you'll be using three slots and it will all run in single-channel mode, not the dual-channel mode it was designed for. In real terms, according to my own testing, that probably wouldn't matter, but why risk it?
So, what does it add up to? IMO, get a matched pair of 2GB sticks like the ones you've already got (assuming they are a matched pair that came in a kit together, not just random separate 2GB sticks.) Try to match the brands, but it's probably not that important. And as you already know, if you can't match the speeds the faster ones will drop down to the slower one's speed, so try to match the speeds too.
It also might be a good idea to check which slots each pair goes into. (Your motherboard's manual should have that info in it.) It might not always be the case, but from my experience, each pair, especially if they're different, has to go into alternating slots, not side-by side, in order to work in dual-channel mode.
Hope that helps. But really, unless you're already experiencing problems due to a lack of RAM, I'd hold off on it altogether until you really do need it (or until you decide you just want it anyway.
)