Need help understanding FSB, etc.

[jmoore2001]

Ok, so I have an nforce2 motherboard and I'm wanting to upgrade to the Athlon XP 2600+ (which runs at 333mhz). So if the processor runs at 333...which ram should I get? Right now I have pc3200 (i think it runs at 400mhz) but if it would help to get a different speed of ram i'd like to know!

[VHockey86]

Well, all you would need is PC2700, which runs at 333mhz, but the PC3200 will work just as well and leaves a little overheard for overclocking or tweaking

[Telexen]

Any speed over 333mhz RAM will work (PC2700 and up) If you have PC3200 which runs at 400mhz, it will just clock itself down (which you can set back up) to match the FSB of your processor.

[jmoore2001]

Originally posted by Telexen
Any speed over 333mhz RAM will work (PC2700 and up) If you have PC3200 which runs at 400mhz, it will just clock itself down (which you can set back up) to match the FSB of your processor.

so i can set it back up to 400mhz and then what will that do?

[eRaDicaTor]

I don't think you can run your cpu and ram at two different clock speeds.

[Telexen]

You can run them at different clock speeds.. it just means that the difference will have to be buffered constantly - which usually results in a decrease in performance. In most cases, it's best to run them synced

[win2kuser]

Originally posted by eRaDicaTor
I don't think you can run your cpu and ram at two different clock speeds.

Bang on. - They will, but they have to ran as a percentage of which slows performance and is not worth it.

Most NForce2 mobo offer excellent overclocking features.

Set your front side bus at 200 (which = 400 DDR ram) and set your multiplier at 11 or 12 - Viola a 3.2XP (200x11=2200=3.2XP)

My 2.5 Barton normally runs at 166MHz FSB, but will run more than happily at 200 - I'm running mine as a 3.2 - Watch the heat though as these things get hot when oc'd.

[shrae]

Just to note, the 2600+ probably won't be able to run at 2.4Ghz (200x12) at stock voltage. My XP2400+ needs 1.8v to be stable at 2.4Ghz and that is on the low side. I have read reviews and docs online where people needed >1.85v for their 2400/2600+ to reach the 2.4 level.

2.2Ghz(200x11) shouldn't be a problem, but if the board is undervolting may result in stability issues.

[jmoore2001]

ok, right now i have the XP 2100+, so if i dont upgrade yet (but I still have the pc3200 ram) and stay with the 2100+ how could I overclock this? how fast could i get it to? and would it be worth it?

[joker_927]

a 2100+ is 133/266 FSB If I remember right.

If you increase the FSB to 166/333mhz you should see a big improvement.

Just make sure you lower your multiplier a little.