Setup Suggestion? Memory?

[Innis]

Ok this is the desktop setup I've been building...

Core 2 Duo E6600 Processor
Asus P5W DH Deluxe Motherboard
OCZ Gold PC2-5400 2GB 2X1GB DDR2-667 CL4-4-4-12 240PIN DIMM Dual Channel Memory Kit W/ Heatspreader
Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 320GB SATA2 3GB/S 7200RPM 16MB
ATI Radeon X1900 XTX 512MB Video Card

At first I wanted to get the DDR2-800 memory but the guy at the computer store talked me out of it and said it really was not needed.

Was he right about this or would I still need to go with 2GB of DDR2-800? I keep reading everywhere that people are benchmarking with DDR2-800 which made me wonder. Any help would be appreciated!

[atforum]

what are going to use this comp for?? and if you DDR-2 800 how much memory will you buy (same 2gb?? )

[Innis]

Mostly day to day internet use but also some gaming and video editing.

I was going to get the 2x1GB DD2-800?

[importpsycho]

http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=15367&vpn=OCZ26672048ELDCGE-K&manufacture=OCZ%20Technology

http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=18495&vpn=OCZ2G8002GK&manufacture=OCZ%20Technology


Id put $20 more and get ddr2 800

[happyplato]

Well, if you're overclocking your PC, then defnitely get the DDR2-800. If not, then there is not much benefits.

[Igor01]

Seeing the components that he's selecting, it'd be a shame not to overclock it at least to 3.1-3.2 and get the free performance boost without loosing any stability. Even with slower 6400 memory the E6600 should overclock well, the RAM will just have to run at a lower ratio. Since Innis seems to want good performance without the need to run insane SuperPi benchmarks, and since the price difference between good 6400 and 8000 is pretty significant I'd suggest getting the 6400 over the 5400 and 8000, the first one is too slow and the second one is too expensive.

Having said that I've tried the OCZ Platinum PC2-6400 and it runs just fine on a setup very similar to Innis' specs at 450 MHz, which equals DDR900 with tight memory timings. This should be adequate for most purposes except competative benchmarking and should also have the longevity to be useful when the Conroe is replaced with Kentsfields and possibly whatever comes after that.

[Innis]

So I should stay with the DDR2-667 unless I intend to overclock? Perhaps this was what my guy meant when he said it was not necessary? He knew I would not overclock maybe.

[Igor01]

So I should stay with the DDR2-667 unless I intend to overclock? Perhaps this was what my guy meant when he said it was not necessary? He knew I would not overclock maybe.

Unless saving $20 is an important factor you may as well get the Platinum 6400 that importpsycho posted the link for. Benefits: runs faster and with tigher timings, will not hold you back if you do decide to overclock the system a little, will be somewhat more future-proof.