Do I have to buy RAM in groups of three?

N

nouse4aname68

n00b
Joined
May 31, 2010
Messages
24
I was at Frys tonight and the employee I spoke with (I know, bad source) told me that for the build I am making I need to have 3 sticks of ram, and not two. So after my research, I am still confused and hope that I can get the help I need here.

I am planning on getting the Asus P6X58D-E and i7-950. For RAM, I am hoping to hop on the deal of GSKill 2x4gb that is going on now. Will I be able to use 8gb RAM for this setup? The employee said if I want to do DDR3 I needed to use 3 or 6gb. Please help!

Mobo: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...31641&cm_re=asus_p6x58-_-13-131-641-_-Product

RAM: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231314

Thanks!
 
You can use dual channel memory in an X58 motherboard, but you won't get the same bandwidth as if you went triple channel.
 
real world how much difference will it make? maybe not much. but if your system can be faster, why not make it faster? get 2 of the 2x4 gb kits and sell the fourth
 
So, to make sure I understand this, if I buy 2 ddr3 sticks that are 4gb each, I will be technically running ddr2 for 8gbs, but if I get 3 ddr3 sticks at 2gb each I will get ddr3 for 6gb? So there isn't a way to run 8gb of ddr3 ram?
 
Nevermind, I think I understand now. 2 sticks will work, but will be dual channel, not ddr2. So 8 gigs of dual channel should be good enough for me.
 
If you buy 4 sticks, the Asus manual for that motherboard even says that you can insert all 4 sticks. I guess this allows you to have 6 GB as triple channel with the extra 2GB working as something of a single channel overflow for Channel A.

From page 2-16 of the Asus manual
C*: Supports four (4) modules inserted into the blue slots (A1, B1, and C1) and the black slot A2 as one set of Triple-channel memory configuration.
Click to expand...
 
DDR2 and DDR3 are different types of RAM. like SO-DIMM and SDRAM. your board uses DDR3, which is the only type of RAM you can use.

i really dont know how the memory controller handles it, but why not just buy a set of 3x 2GB sticks and take full advantage of tripple channel instead of trying to piecemeal it together? newegg had a deal on 6GB of corsair dominator memory, which is the same as i have (also have almost the same motherboard), and runs fantastic for $110 the other day. you dont have to jump on the deal just because its in front of your face.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top