Which Brand of RAM Should I buy?

Armymanis

Hello,

I am very cautious when it comes to buying RAM for computers. I am wanting to upgrade RAM for my computer. Currently I have 6GB of RAM in my system and it can go up to 16GB of RAM. I know that I want to buy RAM for less then $300 and was thinking about buying G-skill or Kingston. I have had good luck with the Kingston brand, but I want to make sure I will be getting the most for my money.

Specifications for computer:

HP Pavilion p6210y Desktop PC Product Specifications - HP Customer Care (China - English)


Motherboard Specifications:

http://whp-java.extweb.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?docname=c01635734&lc=en&cc=cn&dlc=en#N132

Which brand would be best for me? What would you suggest? I am trying to run as many virtual machines as I can while I study for my certification exams. Please let me know. Thanks. Yes, I am doing research by myself and will update you.

Why does it say this:

Four DDR2 SO-DIMM (240-pin) sockets



Supported DIMM types:

• PC2-6400 (800 MHz)
  
• PC2-5300 (667 MHz)
  

I know that SO-DIMM is laptop memory.

Upgraded Parts:

750watt power supply added
ATI Radeon 5850 graphics card

Tackle

Armymanis wrote: »

PC Wizard says I have DDR2 RAM, yet when I enter in my motherboard model it says I can have DDR3 RAM. Which brand would be best for me? What would you suggest? I am trying to run as many virtual machines as I can while I study for my certification exams. Please let me know. Thanks. Yes, I am doing research by myself and will update you.

From the link you posted:
Dual channel memory architecture

Four DDR2 SO-DIMM (240-pin) sockets

Supported DIMM types:

• PC2-6400 (800 MHz)
  
• PC2-5300 (667 MHz)
  

Non-ECC memory only, unbuffered

Supports 4GB DDR2 DIMMs

Supports up to 16 GB on 64-bit PCs

Supports up to 4 GB* on 32-bit PCs

• 32 bit PCs cannot address a full 4.0 GB of memory
  

Easiest way to figure it out would be to open your case and look at what is in there. Then you'll know for sure!

Tackle

I see you edited your first post. Must have found out that it was indeed DDR2.

SteveLord

Unfortunately, since you need DDR2...you are going to be paying much more and finding larger sticks will be harder. I would rather spend the money on a DDR3 system to be honest. Putting that up to 16GB for what it would cost is a total waste of money.

Personally, I think you're overdoing it. You can run VMs with 256-512MB of memory just fine for what you need.

Armymanis

SteveLord wrote: »

Unfortunately, since you need DDR2...you are going to be paying much more and finding larger sticks will be harder. I would rather spend the money on a DDR3 system to be honest. Putting that up to 16GB for what it would cost is a total waste of money.

Personally, I think you're overdoing it. You can run VMs with 256-512MB of memory just fine for what you need.

Would it be worth it to just upgrade to 10gb's of RAM? or 12? Instead of 16? I would like to put some Linux systems as well as downloading some programming programs from microsoft dreamspark. All of the operating systems I install will be done in a virtual machine.

Armymanis

This was the Ram I was thinking about getting:

Newegg.com - G.SKILL 4GB (4 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Quad Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F2-6400CL5Q-4GBNQ

Tackle

Armymanis wrote: »

This was the Ram I was thinking about getting:

Newegg.com - G.SKILL 4GB (4 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Quad Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F2-6400CL5Q-4GBNQ

That leaves no room for expansion and you will have less ram than you have now...

That is 4, 1GB sticks. Waste of money. Invest in 1 or 2, 4GB sticks instead (providing you can find them). or go with 4, 2GB sticks.

SteveLord

Armymanis wrote: »

This was the Ram I was thinking about getting:

Newegg.com - G.SKILL 4GB (4 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Quad Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F2-6400CL5Q-4GBNQ

You realize that is FOUR 1GB sticks right? And you have 4 slots total, putting you at 4GB of ram. $74.99 for a downgrade.

DDR2 sticks in anything beyond 1GB is harder to find/not cheap when you do find it. Nobody has been making it in large quantities/there has been little demand for that much memory for a few years now.

Armymanis

haha wow im stupid. Yeah I just reliezed that. Good thing I did not order those yet.

Armymanis

Why is one stick of RAM $80?

Newegg.com - G.SKILL 4GB 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Desktop Memory Model F2-6400CL6S-4GBMQ

Thats a 4b stick of the RAM I need.

Another question,

If my system has a different brand in the desktop, yet it's the same bus speed (800mhz), can I still add in a different brand of memory to make it 10gb's? Or does it all have to be the same type of brand for memory?

Tackle

Armymanis wrote: »

Why is one stick of RAM $80?

Newegg.com - G.SKILL 4GB 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Desktop Memory Model F2-6400CL6S-4GBMQ

Thats a 4b stick of the RAM I need.

4, 1GB sticks for $75 or 1, 4GB stick for $80. Deff go for the 1 stick and don't complain or ask questions. It's a much better deal.

Max out your board and don't worry about upgrading later. I'm positive it will be easier for you to go this route.

"But mommy, he got 4 sticks of ram and I only got 1, it's not fair!!!!"

cyberguypr

Armymanis wrote: »

haha wow im stupid. Yeah I just reliezed that. Good thing I did not order those yet.

Hey, no bragging!

Armymanis

Can you mix match brands of RAM is my ultimate question? Whenever I have replaced RAM on either desktop or Laptops, I personally go for the same brand, but I am not sure whether this can be stretched.

WafflesAndRootbeer

Armymanis wrote: »

Would it be worth it to just upgrade to 10gb's of RAM? or 12? Instead of 16? I would like to put some Linux systems as well as downloading some programming programs from microsoft dreamspark. All of the operating systems I install will be done in a virtual machine.

Just plunk down for 8GB as 16 is way out of your budget though great to have, but before you do that, check your motherboard BIOS to see if it supports the Virtualization technology built into your CPU and be sure to update your BIOS since there are some issues with your desktop that would affect it's stability. Some manufacturers disable hardware support for V for various reasons so that really may be a deal-breaker but it's still a serviceable and useful desktop if you want to put a little bit of money into it to get more life out of it.

Armymanis

WafflesAndRootbeer wrote: »

Just plunk down for 8GB as 16 is way out of your budget though great to have, but before you do that, check your motherboard BIOS to see if it supports the Virtualization technology built into your CPU and be sure to update your BIOS since there are some issues with your desktop that would affect it's stability. Some manufacturers disable hardware support for V for various reasons so that really may be a deal-breaker but it's still a serviceable and useful desktop if you want to put a little bit of money into it to get more life out of it.

I had to enable virtulization technology in the bios in the first place in order to get the two virtual machines to run that i currently have. I am just wanting to upgrade RAM now. Currently I have a Windows 7 virtual machine installed and a Windows Server 2008 virtual machine installed. Looking to get more RAM so I can put Linux on there as well as some programming programs. I here it is good to learn how to program even if you are going into desktop support and eventually networking.

Pishof

If you wanted that much ram it may be more affordable to just purchase a new motherboard that supports both DDR3 and your processor.

The price of DDR3 is freaking dirt cheap even for 16GB and you can get a solid mobo for 60-80 if you do some research before you purchase.

Armymanis

SO do you guy's think I should buy three 4gb sticks to end up with 12gb's of Ram for my machine?

Newegg.com - G.SKILL 4GB 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Desktop Memory Model F2-6400CL6S-4GBMQ

Tackle

For you, yes!

WafflesAndRootbeer

Armymanis wrote: »

I had to enable virtulization technology in the bios in the first place in order to get the two virtual machines to run that i currently have. I am just wanting to upgrade RAM now. Currently I have a Windows 7 virtual machine installed and a Windows Server 2008 virtual machine installed. Looking to get more RAM so I can put Linux on there as well as some programming programs. I here it is good to learn how to program even if you are going into desktop support and eventually networking.

Well, if you can afford it, go with 16GB. That's what I did and it works great for me but it's a costly upgrade with DDR2 ($300-$400 for a tested 16GB set but somewhat less if you buy the 4GB sticks or 8GB matched 4GB pairs when the prices are right) and not one that I would recommend for you since you are on a budget. Going with 8GB and spending some cheese on better HDDs or SSDs to improve your system performance is what I would do in your case as the return would be greater than getting more memory would. Assuming your system has a drive cage like most HP consumer mid-tower desktops, you could easily go with a few different system setups, running one for learning and keeping your current one available to run for your daily stuff as needed with none of the problems that come from a single OS setup. V performance with SSD is pretty awesome because of the I/O capabilities so buying one to run a separate OS and your VMs off of is a good investment.

SteveLord

The OP is very good about ignoring repeated advice apparently. Speaking of which, once again, you do not need a ton of memory for doing a small lab.

Armymanis

SteveLord wrote: »

The OP is very good about ignoring repeated advice apparently. Speaking of which, once again, you do not need a ton of memory for doing a small lab.

I am doing more then just a small lab. I want to install other programs on my computer. I currently have the original 640gb hard drive installed as well as a 2tb hard drive installed.

WafflesAndRootbeer

Armymanis wrote: »

I am doing more then just a small lab. I want to install other programs on my computer. I currently have the original 640gb hard drive installed as well as a 2tb hard drive installed.

What are these other programs?

Armymanis

Linux Operating Systems like fedora or Ubuntu, Windows XP, and Visualbasic.net program like visual studio.

hiddenknight821

Armymanis wrote: »

Linux Operating Systems like fedora or Ubuntu, Windows XP, and Visualbasic.net program like visual studio.

And what they're about to tell you is that these programs are still nothing but small programs that your computers should be able to handle without the additional hardwares.

WafflesAndRootbeer

Armymanis wrote: »

Linux Operating Systems like fedora or Ubuntu, Windows XP, and Visualbasic.net program like visual studio.

You have no reason to go playing around with programming tools unless you're going into the realm of computer programming, which you most likely will never enter. You need to learn how to do scripting with PowerScript, VBScript, and other such things which are commonly used in Desktop Support and Networked Infrastructure jobs, and you can learn those with simple text editors and free tutorials. As far as operating systems go, you don't need to bother with Windows XP. If you want to learn Linux, fiddle with some LIVE distros and learn the basics of the command line before you commit to anything on a system basis.

crrussell3

My opinion would be, as a few others have stated, not to waste your money on upgrading the ram on this. You currently have 6 gigs, which is more than enough to lab pretty much every scenario you need. You can easily 8 vms @512mb each while still reserving 2gig for the host at this rate (as long as you have the hdd/spindles for it).

You should be more concerned with spindles at this point. If you want to concurrently run more than 3 vms on one hard drive, you will start to see slow downs. Any more than that and you can be asking for trouble.

As for wanting to run Linux, Visual Basic, etc, again, you won't have any problems with 6 gigs of ram. These vms don't need to be running 100% of the time. Save the state and close them down, so you can start them back up quickly. Only have running the ones that you are currently using at that time. Again, I point out spindles are your bottle neck here.

Armymanis

crrussell3 wrote: »

My opinion would be, as a few others have stated, not to waste your money on upgrading the ram on this. You currently have 6 gigs, which is more than enough to lab pretty much every scenario you need. You can easily 8 vms @512mb each while still reserving 2gig for the host at this rate (as long as you have the hdd/spindles for it).

You should be more concerned with spindles at this point. If you want to concurrently run more than 3 vms on one hard drive, you will start to see slow downs. Any more than that and you can be asking for trouble.

As for wanting to run Linux, Visual Basic, etc, again, you won't have any problems with 6 gigs of ram. These vms don't need to be running 100% of the time. Save the state and close them down, so you can start them back up quickly. Only have running the ones that you are currently using at that time. Again, I point out spindles are your bottle neck here.

ok. So where do i get the live CD for ubuntu or fedora? Do I have to buy a book?

Tackle

Armymanis wrote: »

ok. So where do i get the live CD for ubuntu or fedora? Do I have to buy a book?

Google it.

"Ubuntu live download" and click on the first link.

WafflesAndRootbeer

Armymanis wrote: »

ok. So where do i get the live CD for ubuntu or fedora? Do I have to buy a book?

You can get a book, which is great if you like reading, but the LIVE distros that ship with books are always outdated. If you want to learn Ubuntu, it's best to burn a copy of the latest LTS edition from a hosting mirror and run that LIVE as the regular version changes constantly and has loads of problems due to all the stuff they are cramming in to test. You can find a book for the latest LTS version if you look around and that will help you get started.

Armymanis

alright. thanks.