ATI's Radeon X1900 Video Card Series Part II

sbohdan · Post by **sbohdan** » Thu Feb 02, 2006 4:24 pm

BiGg RiE wrote:
Nice rig specs sbohdan & kenc51.

first time someone compliments on my rig

kenc51 · Post by **kenc51** » Thu Feb 02, 2006 4:55 pm

BiGg RiE wrote:
Nice rig specs sbohdan & kenc51.

Cheers BiGg RiE..

Yours doesn't look 1/2 bad either!!

BiGg RiE · Post by **BiGg RiE** » Wed Feb 08, 2006 8:43 am

sbohdan wrote:
BiGg RiE wrote:
Nice rig specs sbohdan & kenc51.
first time someone compliments on my rig

What's your 3dmark 03/05/06 scores?

kenc51 · Post by **kenc51** » Wed Feb 08, 2006 8:49 am

BiGg RiE wrote:
sbohdan wrote:
BiGg RiE wrote:
Nice rig specs sbohdan & kenc51.
first time someone compliments on my rig
What's your 3dmaork 03/05/06 scores?

Post your '05 scores here
Post your '06 scores here

Mine
'05 = 8654
'06 = 4798

They may change as I haven't finished tweaking this system yet and I have 2GB of ram arriving either later today of tomorrow

BiGg RiE · Post by **BiGg RiE** » Wed Feb 08, 2006 8:49 am

kenc51 wrote:
BiGg RiE wrote:
Nice rig specs sbohdan & kenc51.
Cheers BiGg RiE..
Yours doesn't look 1/2 bad either!!

Thanks I'm a tryin, thinkin bout that xfx 7800gt for sli, I have the asus en7800gt now. Any suggestions would be great. also I'm workin with the value ram from corsair & lookin to upgrade.

03=19562 w/ stock frequencies
05=7222 w/ o/c
06=3763 w/ stock frequencies

stock= 375 core & 950 mem
O/C= 461-core & 1100 mem O/C

kenc51 · Post by **kenc51** » Wed Feb 08, 2006 9:13 am

Wait until nVidia release thier next GFX card.....It's coming soon ;)
You will see big price drops then......I'm thinking about SLI too, bu not for a while....

If your upgrading your ram, then 2GB is the only way to go....
Moving to a quality 1gb kit will cost almost the same as a 2gb kit....

If your looking to get OC'in ram, I suggest G.Skill's ddr500 kit....I've ordered it last night for myself and Vstrom here is also using it.

F1-4000USU2-2GBHZ

Most are getting well above 270MHz.......

If your not going to OC above DDR500 speeds then don't get this stuff...there are better 2gb sticks with lower latencies

BiGg RiE · Post by **BiGg RiE** » Wed Feb 08, 2006 9:58 am

I'm running 2gb already value ram, I would o/c memory but not sure what is compatible with my mobo & what isn't. I mean I see people suggesting DDR500 kits but I was under the impression that my MOBO was only compatible with DDR400 if someone could post DDR400+ 2GB kits that have been tested & work well with my Asus Sli-Premium I'd greatly appreciate it. I'm relitively new to the O/C scene.

kenc51 · Post by **kenc51** » Wed Feb 08, 2006 10:07 am

DDR500 ram is an unofficial Spec.....No motherboard supports it.
If you put a ddr500 stick into a motherboard it will run @ ddr400 by default...

It just makes overclocking a whole lot easier...but as I said, if your looking for ram which run under this speed, don't buy ddr500....

Easy as 1, 2, 3, Overclocking the A64.
infinitevalence a moderator here wrote this guide....check it out and post back if you have any questions....it should make things clearer...

BiGg RiE · Post by **BiGg RiE** » Wed Feb 08, 2006 10:24 am

Oh Ok... I see now so basically using a DDR500 stick gives you more O/C head room. Well if that's the case I'd be much more inclined to o/c. I mean my main concern was burning out the dimms. If you could give or direct me to some info explaining the timings ie; 2-3-3-3 etc. just so I know what they all mean. I do know that the larger the modules in most cases the looser the timings are.

As for the guide I'll be sure to check that out asap.

Thanks for all your help, I appreciate it.

kenc51 · Post by **kenc51** » Thu Feb 09, 2006 2:52 am

here's a link to Anandtech's guide to memory and latencies
http://www.anandtech.com/memory/showdoc.aspx?i=2223&p=1

BiGg RiE · Post by **BiGg RiE** » Thu Feb 09, 2006 9:33 am

Thanks for the memory link helped alot.
But of course I have more questions.

My memory set up is as follows:

2x512 dimms of corsair value select
1x1Gb dimm of valuselect

Is my running an odd number of dimms hindering my performance ie, are the 2 512's still running in dual channel mode or are all of them running in single since I added the 1GB dimm to the equation?

Would I be better off choosing just the 2x512's or just the 1x1GB dimm?

I read in my mobo manual (Asus Sli-Premium) that installing 4x1GB Dimms would register as under 4GB & run @ 333mhz instead of 400mhz
THis is why I was going wth the 2x512's & 2x1gb dimms setup, once i get the other 1gb dimm I'd be maxing out @ 3GB. I want to get that DDR500 but should I stick with my initial setup of 2x512's & 2x1GB dimms? what do you or anyone else suggest as the best setup for my MOBO?

Also is PC4000 my peak or should I go for something like PC4400?

kenc51 · Post by **kenc51** » Thu Feb 09, 2006 11:19 am

For best performance you want to run 2 sticks of ram = this way it runs in Dual channel.....

With your current setup, your not getting the full memory bandwith your mobo/cpu/ram can provide....It's not currently in dual channel....

I don't know what your finances are like, but adding a second 1GB stick along with 2x 512 sticks will be pointless....your not going to need or use that much ram..

If you can afford it, get anoth 1GB stick and run 2x 1GB sticks in dual channel, mayby sell the 2x 512 kit to pay for it! -> this would give the best performance...

Running 4x sticks of ram with the current amd cpu's causes the cpu to set your command rate to 2T -> command rate is another one of those timings....but it's an important one....going from 1T to 2T will hinder performance more than changing from CAS 2 to CAS 3!!
Most people won't notice this kinda thing though......

It's upto you if you wanna spend the $$ for this.......I suppose you do, simply beacuse your a member of a tech forum and are asking the question ;P

SO -> my suggestion is sell the 2x512 kit and run 2x1GB in dual channel!

Would I be better off choosing just the 2x512's or just the 1x1GB dimm?

Running 2x512 will be better than 1x 1GB stick

I don't know if you can get 1GB sticks of PC4400 ram....but the G.Skill F1-4000USU2-2GBHZ PC4000 ram will hit PC4400 speeds...

I just got mine today (40mins ago)....currently running @ ddr500 speeds
I'll see how high they can go after dinner...;)

BiGg RiE · Post by **BiGg RiE** » Fri Feb 10, 2006 6:18 am

Again thanks so much for your input & suggestions.

I'm thinkin goin with a high performance 2gb kit is what i'm gonna do. I'm goin to keep the ram I bought for the entertainment pc I plan to build for my living room. That ones going to be for movies & surfin the net in the living room.

Now the only thing left to do is decide what kit I'm goin 2 use the one you suggested looks good but gskills is reletively new to the ram market, and i havent seen it compared to any of the major brands. I have seen it mentioned in other forums & people have said it's highly compatible with my mobo. Since my mobo is so picky with what ram it'll take I'll probly get this, but are there any other suggestions? I'm not really concerned with the price I just want the best.

Thanx

kenc51 · Post by **kenc51** » Fri Feb 10, 2006 8:08 am

Gb Redline XP4000 eXtreme Performance Dual Channel kit - Mushkin
This is about the best ram you can get that's currently available

It costs 385euro (about the same in $$)

OCZ has some nice stuff too, but I can't find it available anywhere......

http://www.ocztechnology.com/products/m ... um_edition

the place I buy my ram from, they said OCZ are having probs sourcing good IC's....he offered to hold onto a kit for me, I said no....and now they are not available on the site anymore.......

Basically the Mushkin and OCZ, are the same, It just looks like Mushkin got in there first and sourced the IC's.....

BiGg RiE · Post by **BiGg RiE** » Fri Feb 10, 2006 8:57 am

Great thanks, SO the Mushkin kit is the better of the two?

Also, so there's no way to run 4GB at 1T? I was getting the higher memory capacity because I'm a graphic designer and I run alot of memory intensive programs ie; Adobe Creative suite, Macromedia studio MX, Lightwave 3D, 3D studio max, & i rip & encode alot of videos & dvds

would it be that much of a performance hit if i got 2x2GB kits?

WOuld you get the mushkin over the OCZ if the OCZ was available?

kenc51 · Post by **kenc51** » Fri Feb 10, 2006 10:09 am

I'd go with the Mushkin if you can afford it.....you mayby waiting a while for OCZ

2x 2GB will work, but won't overclock well, if at all
But you can use a divider so you don't OC the ram too much....this doesn't lower the performance much,, if at all

remember the Mushkin is nearly 400 bucks.....G.Skill is 230 euro.....All you paying for is tigher timings, is ~170 bucks more worth it?

BiGg RiE · Post by **BiGg RiE** » Fri Feb 10, 2006 10:20 am

THanks, with all this talk of o/c memory & running sli. I'm thinkin that I'm goin to need a psu upgrade as well. Any suggestions?

I've been lookin at these 2:

http://www.xoxide.com/ultra-x-connect2-uvblue.html
http://www.xoxide.com/ultra-xfinity-600w-black.html

I really want the led mods but the other one has more power and I have a pretty demanding system already, plus i like the force flew uv reactive.

But at the same time I'm really feeling that modular freedom.

kenc51 · Post by **kenc51** » Fri Feb 10, 2006 10:25 am

Mate check this thread out......

http://forums.legitreviews.com/viewtopi ... 0900#30900

You've already qualified to enter from this thread alone!!!!

BiGg RiE · Post by **BiGg RiE** » Fri Feb 10, 2006 10:30 am

tried it but said I needed to wait, to soon after my last post to post again.

thanx

EDit: nvm I got it

kenc51 · Post by **kenc51** » Fri Feb 10, 2006 2:30 pm

BiGg RiE wrote:THanks, with all this talk of o/c memory & running sli. I'm thinkin that I'm goin to need a psu upgrade as well. Any suggestions?

I've been lookin at these 2:

http://www.xoxide.com/ultra-x-connect2-uvblue.html
http://www.xoxide.com/ultra-xfinity-600w-black.html

I really want the led mods but the other one has more power and I have a pretty demanding system already, plus i like the force flew uv reactive.

But at the same time I'm really feeling that modular freedom.

If your shopping there....I'd go for this
http://www.xoxide.com/hiper-power-supply-black.html

Does it have to be from that site?

What's your budget? You should spend as much as you can for a power supply, it's worth it in the end.....

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ATI's Radeon X1900 Video Card Series Part II

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