Which memory kit is right for me? Corsair/patriot?

[heyzeus17]

This is the current rig i am planning to build: My wish list

I'm having trouble deciding between the Gigabyte P35-DQ6 and the evga 680sli but it looks like i will probably go with the gigabyte as i don't have any interest in sli really. Then a Q6600 and an 8800gtx for the other main parts.

So that brings me to my question, which memory kit is right for me.

I've been having a real tough time figuring this out as there seem to be so many options.

I for sure want 4gb of ram. this is the product list i'm looking at

The two kits i'm currently intrigued by are the

CORSAIR XMS2 4GB(2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400)

and the

Patriot Extreme Performance 4GB(2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400)

I do not know how to overclock but i am interested in learning and as such i would like to have some overclocking ability if i choose to do so, though i won't be doing anything extreme.

The patriots are 2.0v while the corsairs are 1.8v. Does that make a difference?

After rebates the prices are within thirty dollars of each other so the price isn't a deciding issue here for me.

All that said which kit there is better?

EDIT: Been doing a lot of reading over the past few hours and am now thinking of going with these

mushkin 4GB(2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) (HP2-6400)

a bit more expensive but from reviews they seem to be solid modules and i was looking at the mushkin forum and the people/staff there seem to be extremely helpful. That support would probably be great for someone like me who is really new to all this.

So i think i'll probably get the mushkins unless there is some other reason not to.

[gvblake22]

First off, let me start by saying that you probably don't have to spend over $200 on a power supply. You can get a very quality PSU that will have no problem running a quad core processor and a single high-end video card for around $150 or less. That PC Power & Cooling unit is very nice, but overpriced. Check out the Silverstone Olympia and Decathlon series power supplies. Also the Corsair HX series and Seasonic M12 II or S12 II series are some of the more highly regarded PSU's on the market.

Before I get into my rant about memory, keep in mind that you will need a 64-bit operating system to recognize and use all of your 4GB of system memory. Read this review for more information on this issue...

Memory is going to be very hit and miss, especially when it comes to popular reviews. Memory companies (among other companies) have been accused of sending out hand-picked review samples that have been tested to overclock very well compared to something straight off the regular production line. Especially considering the fact that the memory IC's used on the modules themselves are often changed by the manufacturer depending on market prices and availability so just because one person got a kit with Micron chips doesn't mean you will too. This all contributes to a large range of overclocking success. So take overclocking success on a memory kit as portrayed by review sites with a grain of salt.

Luckily, DDR2-800 is fast enough that any decent CAS 4 kit will give you some room for overclocking. 2GB modules (the 4GB dual channel "kits") are another story though because the memory sticks are at a very high density and thus the CAS latency has to be reduced at the higher frequencies so CAS 4 DDR2-kits are not very common. But if you are getting a Q6600, it has a stock FSB of about 266MHz (1066MHz "quad-pumped") and could theoretically be overclocked to a very impressive 3.6GHz by not even overclocking your memory (running it 1:1 on 400x9).

That said, a kit of DDR2-800 memory will still provide you with a fair amount of overclocking headroom without even overclocking the memory. But of course, there are many different ways to overclock a system, but I won't blabber on about that...

Long story short, all the kits you listed are very good and you can hardly make a wrong decision. Corsair is known for great customer support, compatability, and reliability. Patriot is another good companry; while a little younger than some of the others, still offers a good product at (usually) a good value. Mushkin is a smaller company, but (as far as I know) was founded and is run by computer enthusiasts like you and I. I don't know much about their customer support, but I haven't heard anything bad.

Usually the lower the latency, the better the performance (at a given speed). So from that perspective, the Mushkin kit would technically be better, but you will never notice the difference unless you run some memory specific benchmarks to quantify the difference; even then it will be very small.

Overall, The Mushkin kit is really pricey compared to the other two and I would have a hard time recommending the higher price as real-world performance isn't likely to be different. If it were me and I had to choose one of the three, I would probably go with the Patriot kit simply because of price. But if the ~$30 difference between them doesn't matter, then the Corsair kit may be slightly better because of it's more advanced heatsink design. But again, that different heatsink design really isn't going to yield much (if any) difference when all is said and done and may actually end up giving you more incompatability issues than anything else. Some aftermarket processor heatsinks can hang over the memory slots if they are placed close to the processor socket area and the taller heatsinks on the Corsair memory can sometimes interfere with the processor cooler. But these cases are rare and it isn't likely to be a problem with most setups.

Well, I think that's enough rambling for now. I'll let you try and read through all that and post back with any questions you still have. Oh yeah....

WELCOME TO HARDWARELOGIC!!!

[Yellowhello]

Welcome to HL! About the memory, you can grab 2 2Gb kits to make 4GB. THIS kit has gotten rave reviews in all the write-ups I have seen.

That is a ROCKIN' system you have planned there! Be sure to post pics of it as you build it!!

[gvblake22]

Originally Posted by yellowhello

you can grab 2 2Gb kits to make 4GB. THIS kit has gotten rave reviews in all the write-ups I have seen.

That's a good idea Nate, I forgot about that. You wouldn't have to buy them both at the same time either. You could just buy the first 2GB kit and see how you like it, then get the second later if you decide you want to try out 4GB of memory.

[Yellowhello]

Originally Posted by gvblake22

That's a good idea Nate, I forgot about that. You wouldn't have to buy them both at the same time either. You could just buy the first 2GB kit and see how you like it, then get the second later if you decide you want to try out 4GB of memory.

Most def, and plus, he's running a 32-bit OS, so he won't be able to access the full 4GB anyways.

[gvblake22]

Originally Posted by yellowhello

Most def, and plus, he's running a 32-bit OS, so he won't be able to access the full 4GB anyways.

Well he hasn't gotten the OS yet, he just listed it in the specs as another item to buy and mistakenly chose a 32-bit OS.

[[Dr. V]]

Originally Posted by gvblake22

Well he hasn't gotten the OS yet, he just listed it in the specs as another item to buy and mistakenly chose a 32-bit OS.

DEFINITELY be careful about this! 32-bit OS only reads 3.25GB (fine tune me if that value is wrong), so if you're planning to go 4GB+ for sure, then grab a 64-bit OS or you won't be using the entire capacity of the RAM.

Also, overall support in terms of software and hardware for 64-bit OSs has really come around lately and there isn't much you can't do. I'm pretty confident that the parts you chose will do well on a 64-bit OS. The only thing to look out for are 16-bit programs (which there are barely any of anymore anyway), and you'll be fine.

As for the RAM kit - I always recommend Crucial Ballistix as the number one kit, along with OCZ Platinum Revision 2 XTC (or their Titanium series). In my eyes, nothing beats those two kits in terms of everything - including wicked customer support. Corsair XMS2 is a great kit of RAM as well, and so is the new Mushkin line but beware of Mushkin as it's known to have some compatibility issues. I know when I tried running it in my ASUS P5B Deluxe, it just wouldn't work - and I tried two different kits. Besides, the first two sets I mentioned are much better.

Good luck, hope everything goes well.

Oh, and...

WELCOME TO HARDWARELOGIC! THE GREATEST PLACE ON THE ENTIRE WEB PLANET!