Hi

I have a query about types of DDR RAM which I hope someone can answer for me?

My motherboard states:

"Support Single or Dual channel DDR 400/333/266 memory up to 4GB"

Q: I will be buying some DDR 400 RAM shortly, can anyone tell me what Single and Dual channel DDR memory is and, in terms of physical look and also in performance, what is the difference between the two ?

Q: Also, is one more expensive that the other?

Q: Which type is best?

Regards

Brave01Heart

single channel and dual channel aren't physically different types of ram

single channel is just that, one stick of ram in one slot. dual channel, on the other hand, is two sticks of ram in two physical slots, and it can utilize both of them in tandem to give increased performance. just make sure that the sticks of ram you get are good quality and the same kind, ie, don't mix a kingston stick with a corsair stick.

usually, dual channel boards are laid out like this:

-----------------(bank 0)

-----------------(bank 1)
-----------------(bank 2)

a stick of ram in banks 0, and 1 or 2, would result in dual channel mode. a stick in all 3 banks would give dual channel mode, but for best performance, banks 1 and 2 should equal bank 0, ie, 512 in bank 0 and 256 in banks 1 and 2.

bank 1 and 2, without anything in bank 0, would be single channel. hopefully that helps :), that's the way it works on nforce2 mobo's, i assume it's the same way for granite bay boards by intel, but i'm not positive.

thanks Sephiroth for that great info!

that's the way it works on nforce2 mobo's, i assume it's the same way for granite bay boards by intel, but i'm not positive.

i should make sure i fix my RAMs in the correct slots. there is nothing worse that spending money for high quality two ram chips and thinking you have dual channel, but you actually you don't. :o

lol, what motherboard do you have? my old epox 8rda (with the newest bios before it died) and the msi k7n2 delta i have now both showed a little message at post that said either dual channel mode or single channel mode to let you know what it was running it

A couple of corrections, first and foremost using only one stick of ram in any slot will not result in dual channel operation.
My motherboard has four slots and two channels, I can use one stick of ram in anyone I choose but it will not result in dual channel operation, not with just one stick. in your example one stick in bank 0, 1, or 2 will only result in normal operation, if you use two sticks one in bank zero and one in bank one then you can use dual channel, if you use two sticks one in bank zero and one in bank two then that will result in dual channel.
My mother board has two banks A and B and two slots in each, now if I use two sticks in channel A or Channel B then I can only operate normally, in order to use dual channel I would have to use both banks and one stick of memory in each bank. But you cannot use dual channel with only one stick period. Mine is an nforce motherboard also.

Here is #1 from the dual channel operation:
#1: Only one DDR memory module is installed: The Dual Channel Technology can't operate when only one DDR memory module is installed.

now none of this makes sense because the other post was edited and changed to correct the information they had.

Like Sephiroth, I have an nforce2 board
When booting up - the first screen says
Dual Channel Mode

Hi all, Agreed, ya needs 2 sticks to get dual channel performance...
Me just reading thread 2nite scratching my head saying that's what he said hehe.

I just grabbed an nFOrce2 at a shop near my house where they pimp MSI stuffs,
soooo it was K7N2 Delta L (w/out raid)
Trying to figure out which mem to get as well, value or that high dij stuff!
Haven't upgraded major mobo since the KT133A days,
so ive been hittin google the last 24 hrs cramming.

Mushkin level 1 or 2 black pcb ddr modules are pricey, if i had the dough 1GB Dual Pack (2x512) PC4000 DDR is what i'd get... always had great o/c results with Mushkin stuff.

Personally may have to settle on something like station wagon material instead of lamborghini type.

Seen some 512MB generic modules of 3200 locally for 80 bucks each.
Some of em had 5ch chips (good for oc'ing)
If anyone has any personal xPerences on certain generic brands
and where to get em I'd sure like to know as well as Brave01heart would.
edit: :lol: jizac looks at orig date!