Gigabyte i-RAM 2 Information

I expect Vista to be able to address and use 4G of physical system ram.
 
seto said:
I expect Vista to be able to address and use 4G of physical system ram.
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I don't think it will be different thant XP in that respect.
 
seto said:
I expect Vista to be able to address and use 4G of physical system ram.
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The 64 bit edition will but I don't think the 32 bit edition will. Remember Vista is built upon XP its not like its from the ground up.
 
The only way I'd use the board is if it was NOT PCI based, but ran off a molex power connector, had 2 SATAII outputs so it could act, if desired, as a raid array... 0,1,etc, and had 8 DIMM slots for ddr.

Would make a great place to retire old DDR to. Could be placed anywhere inside the case, and even externally if needed. And make sure a battery option existed, but in an external box, you could leave IT powered without having to leave your machine powered.

The possibilities are numeorus, the lack of vision for features by Giga is pathertic.

*racism alert-you've been warned* This is what you get when relying on 3rd worlders to innovate.... they DONT 99.9% of the time. And as outsourcing places more of the responsibility for innovation into 3rd world hands, less and less of it will occur.
 
xX_Jack_Carver_Xx said:
The only way I'd use the board is if it was NOT PCI based, but ran off a molex power connector, had 2 SATAII outputs so it could act, if desired, as a raid array... 0,1,etc, and had 8 DIMM slots for ddr.
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The problem is that people complain about the iRAM losing data when the PC is off. Unfortunately the designers of the ATX spec did not forsee internal devices requiring power when the PC is 'off', for that reason no voltage is supplied to anything but the motherboard, which in turn allows PCI devices to wake the system up.
Yes, Gigabyte HACKED the system, but that is what I'd applaud them for. Their design/ engineering divison made smart choices when it comes to power supply and transparency.

Would make a great place to retire old DDR to.
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but then it'd need [exaggerate]~5000[/exaggerate] DIMM slots to get to any usable size. The reasons for the future move to DDR2 are likely to include higher RAM density and lower power consumption.
One needs to keep in mind that the suspend current on most PSUs is limited to ~1A. this has to drive the iRAM and possibly other devices while the PC is powered down, which clearly puts a limit on the amount of DIMMs one can have on an iRAM.
Could be placed anywhere inside the case
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the iRAM-2 appears to be a 5.25" device.
The possibilities are numeorus, the lack of vision for features by Giga is pathertic.
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if it is so bad, why then has nobody else produced a better device?
*racism alert-you've been warned* This is what you get when relying on 3rd worlders to innovate.... they DONT 99.9% of the time. And as outsourcing places more of the responsibility for innovation into 3rd world hands, less and less of it will occur.
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*anti-racist-arsehole-ism ahead, you'be been warned*
Well then, Why don't all the super smart Americans that work in the engineering departments at American companies will throw their perfect device on the market and put the idiots in other countries out of business and us out of our misery having to deal with all this junk that other companies invent.
 
*racism alert-you've been warned* This is what you get when relying on 3rd worlders to innovate.... they DONT 99.9% of the time. And as outsourcing places more of the responsibility for innovation into 3rd world hands, less and less of it will occur.
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I'm confused by this comment. Are you saying Gigabyte isn't designing the I-Ram 'correct' in so much as:

The only way I'd use the board is if it was NOT PCI based, but ran off a molex power connector, had 2 SATAII outputs so it could act, if desired, as a raid array... 0,1,etc, and had 8 DIMM slots for ddr.
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because they are based in a third world nation?
 
I don't see why they can't find a different kind of battery that would last longer. Secondly I also agree there is no reason to waste a PCI slot just for power.
 
so where do you plan on getting the power from? other than wake on device hacking?
 
benamaster said:
I don't see why they can't find a different kind of battery that would last longer. Secondly I also agree there is no reason to waste a PCI slot just for power.
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I totally understand you. I mean, we could just put a lead-acid battery right next to my case and that surely would keep the iRAM powered for a week or two, not a problem.

Come on: Half the people in this thread are complaining about the iRAM's price and now you want to increase it significantly by finding a >1700mAh battery and slapping it on there?

Also, if you read the articles in the PSU forum about ATX power connector adapters, you will see that they are a bad idea. For that reason the 'hack' that Gigabyte has done is actually very elegant, since it does not require any modification apart from plugging the card in.
 
drizzt81 said:
I totally understand you. I mean, we could just put a lead-acid battery right next to my case and that surely would keep the iRAM powered for a week or two, not a problem.

Come on: Half the people in this thread are complaining about the iRAM's price and now you want to increase it significantly by finding a >1700mAh battery and slapping it on there?

Also, if you read the articles in the PSU forum about ATX power connector adapters, you will see that they are a bad idea. For that reason the 'hack' that Gigabyte has done is actually very elegant, since it does not require any modification apart from plugging the card in.
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True.. All they need as a PCI card for power that goes to a 5 1/4" bay that has 8 ram slots a 2 SATAII 300 for RAID 0 performance
 
mjz_5 said:
True.. All they need as a PCI card for power that goes to a 5 1/4" bay that has 8 ram slots a 2 SATAII 300 for RAID 0 performance
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Why not just use a molex connector and leave the pci slots out of the picture all together? I mean using a PCI slot is bad, for starters, I dont have one left, second of all is that most people running SLI does not want a card sandwiching their video cards... also you have to keep in mind that gamers will probably be the biggest audience for this product... so that means that SLI system + sound card + possible PPU card... there defnitley wont be space for any kinda ram drive.


Also, you dont need two sata ports for raid0 performance, rather just get two units and raid them... more storage that ways.


They are coming out with a baymount version that doesn't use pci for power, the second they do, I'm down for two of them.
 
Ockie said:
Also, you dont need two sata ports for raid0 performance, rather just get two units and raid them... more storage that ways.
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one device per sata connector.


Ockie said:
They are coming out with a baymount version that doesn't use pci for power, the second they do, I'm down for two of them.
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a bay drive would be a good idea.
 
Ockie said:
Why not just use a molex connector and leave the pci slots out of the picture all together? I mean using a PCI slot is bad, for starters, I dont have one left, second of all is that most people running SLI does not want a card sandwiching their video cards...
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The PCI card doesn't have to be full-height. It could be just a tiny thing that goes into the slot (and doesn't even have a metal bracket on the back, so it might work with dual-slot video cards) and supplies power. There's no other practical way to power this thing, unless you're going to have an external power brick and all that entails. I'll stick with PCI slot power, thanks. A huge heavy battery isn't my idea of a good time, either.

You could possibly have this thing plug into the ATX24 connector, and do some tricks with wiring to leave the PSU on but the machine off, but I think that would leave the molex connectors powered, and that'd be bad.

 
eSATA would be pretty cool. could have its own seperate psu with battery backup.
 
You need to tie into the 5Vstandby line, which is on the ATX24 connector. Then the unit could be stand alone, not plugged into any slot, have 2 sataII connectors on it (two VIRTUAL drives, or one virtual drive, its all just software on the device after all) and a battery to cover when the machine is unplugged.

If the device was placed in a 5 1/4 bay, it could have it's own standby supply using a little power brick, like lots of small electronic devices use. That just plugs into the unit on the outside....say, a bracket ont he back with the connector for the power brick. This would avoid trying to tie into the ATX24 connector.

But 8 slots for DDR, 2 sataII connectors to allow single/dual-raid drive operation, and a better battery to give more safety margin.

$99-149 price point.
 
xX_Jack_Carver_Xx said:
But 8 slots for DDR, 2 sataII connectors to allow single/dual-raid drive operation, and a better battery to give more safety margin.

$99-149 price point.
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Sounds good! Put it into production, and I'll buy one. Maybe two. :rolleyes:

 
Jason711 said:
eSATA would be pretty cool. could have its own seperate psu with battery backup.
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I agree. then it could be a internal or external drive pretty easily.
 
drizzt81 said:
for $99 I'd buy at least one.
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Sure, but my point isn't that it's a good idea, it's that it's impractical or someone'd be doing it. The demand isn't high enough for these things to drive the prices down. I mean, even with 8 sticks of the cheapest 1GB sticks on newegg (at just under $500 for the lot) you've spent $600 for an 8GB drive. Granted, it's hella fast, but there just isn't enough demand to make bulk manufacturing practical. And if you keep demanding new features (which won't help much - if the current iRam is as fast as it looks, why do you need double the STR?) you keep forcing them to abandon the old ones and move to a whole new board. That's not helping things any.

 
unhappy_mage said:
Sure, but my point isn't that it's a good idea, it's that it's impractical or someone'd be doing it. The demand isn't high enough for these things to drive the prices down. I mean, even with 8 sticks of the cheapest 1GB sticks on newegg (at just under $500 for the lot) you've spent $600 for an 8GB drive. Granted, it's hella fast, but there just isn't enough demand to make bulk manufacturing practical. And if you keep demanding new features (which won't help much - if the current iRam is as fast as it looks, why do you need double the STR?) you keep forcing them to abandon the old ones and move to a whole new board. That's not helping things any.

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they should take orders for them @ 125 dollars. See how many people order, than adjust price if necessary. with a disclaimer though
 
mjz_5 said:
they should take orders for them @ 125 dollars. See how many people order, than adjust price if necessary. with a disclaimer though
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And if, say, they can't get enough people to get the cost below say $110 (so they make a profit - this is a business, not a charity!), they'll have to raise the price to, say, $150. And some few people will drop out - they signed up for $125, they're on a tight budget, $150 is too much... and they have to raise the price again. I'd imagine it's really hard to talk anyone into committing for $125 a pop when the circuit board hasn't even been laid out yet.

 
unhappy_mage said:
Sure, but my point isn't that it's a good idea, it's that it's impractical or someone'd be doing it.
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I completely agree, i was just edging on Mr. Monday-Morning-Engineer Jack Carver, who seems to know how to do everything better. It is crystal clear to me why Gigabyte went with the design they chose, considering that it was quite a risk they took in the first place considering that they are aiming at a relatively small market.....
 
They do not need a pci slot nor do they need an external power brick.. you can tap directly into the 20/24pin ATX cable by using the live wires. So all they need to do is make a interceptor cable that plugs in between your board and psu and then has a wire running to the bay mount.
 
There was a thread about $35 1gb modules in the memory section here, I wonder if they would work on the I-Ram?
 
i wanted to get a iRam, however, i wont be able to use it.. My ATI x1800XT, sound card and tv tuner are taking all my PCI slots
 
Ockie said:
They do not need a pci slot nor do they need an external power brick.. you can tap directly into the 20/24pin ATX cable by using the live wires. So all they need to do is make a interceptor cable that plugs in between your board and psu and then has a wire running to the bay mount.
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yes and here is a reason why people shouldn't add connectors between their ATX PSU and their mobo:
http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=895505
 
mjz_5 said:
i wanted to get a iRam, however, i wont be able to use it.. My ATI x1800XT, sound card and tv tuner are taking all my PCI slots
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My point exactly why it shouldn't be PCI based. I have the same problem in my small form factor computers.
 
all the PCI slot does is give power when the system is off to keep the data intact. Which part fo the pci slot sends power? Why can't someone engineer a ribon connector that comes off of a riser that allows you to mount the iram somewhere else in your system but still draw poer from the pci bus to keep the data in tact? In theory, depending on the amount of power this thing uses, youcould stripe multiple irams and have a 8, 12, or 16 gig drive without using pci slots- if the ribon running the power supply comes off of a riser.
Thoughts anyone?
 
iansilv said:
all the PCI slot does is give power when the system is off to keep the data intact. Which part fo the pci slot sends power? Why can't someone engineer a ribon connector that comes off of a riser that allows you to mount the iram somewhere else in your system but still draw poer from the pci bus to keep the data in tact? In theory, depending on the amount of power this thing uses, youcould stripe multiple irams and have a 8, 12, or 16 gig drive without using pci slots- if the ribon running the power supply comes off of a riser.
Thoughts anyone?
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They have these PCI vampires already... however, companies prefer to leech off the ATX 24Pin connecter instead by using a vampire harness.

And as for striping, yes, this is the selling point on the IRAM2... it allows the use of multiple IRAM's to be used and Striped.
 
Ockie said:
And as for striping, yes, this is the selling point on the IRAM2... it allows the use of multiple IRAM's to be used and Striped.
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What keeps you from striping iram 1s? They're just plain sata; plug 'em in and stripe them like normal drives.

 
MondayMorningEngineer here....

Maybe the easiest way to tie into the ATX20/24 connector is not a passthrough, the issues with too many connections on the high power high current lines is serious.

You cauld simply pop the 5Vsb connector out, and have a one wire adapter with equivalent male on a wire, and a female one pin connector to plug the PSU power cable's male into, branched also off to the Iram. Using a normal 4pin molex as well for operational power. Include the little molex pin popping tool with the product (extra $.50).

On the external idea, if the standby power was provided by an external brink, that brick could have a cheapo small motorcycle battery/charger/brick inside, so the higher capacity and also cheaper lead acid battery can be used for the standby.

Years ago we used these small lead acid batteries... about the size of a few CD's stacked up... to provide battery backup of DRAM in industrial computers. the requirement was to hold data over a long weekend plant shutdown as a design requirement. They worked fine.

If I had the $25K needed to jump start a little product like this, I'd go for it in a heartbeat.

I think there is a bigger market than expected. Once a fexible well thought out and affordable version actually exists, all the cool uses would come out of the woodwork.
 
wherever the power gets leached off of, it would allow the irams to be installed not in pci slots.
 
unhappy_mage said:
What keeps you from striping iram 1s? They're just plain sata; plug 'em in and stripe them like normal drives.

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Yes, however you can only have as many as you have pci slots and your limited by size and physical spacing... whereas with iram2 you can have as many drive units as you have sataports and bays.
 
Ockie said:
Yes, however you can only have as many as you have pci slots and your limited by size and physical spacing... whereas with iram2 you can have as many drive units as you have sataports and bays.
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an anandtech review says that gigabyte doesn't recommand RAIDing the iRam.
 
mjz_5 said:
an anandtech review says that gigabyte doesn't recommand RAIDing the iRam.
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I'm talking about the IRAM2... the SELLING Point of it.
 
Well, to ask a more pointed question about the uses I was forseeing for myself, and see if the talking heads in here have an idea of how I should go about it.

Planning on building a new desktop this summer for myself. My desktop at school is a P4-D with 4 gigs of ram, of course, it can only see like 3.2gigs of it, so I wasn't planning on going to 4 gigs, I was actually planning on going with 2 gigs of fast OC'ing memory, and run it in Dual channel. After hearing about the iRam, I was thinking of picking up the 4gig verison and installilng XP on it, and weekly(give or take) ghosting XP onto an actual harddrive incase something broke.

With Vista coming out soon, I've got to ask a few questions though. What will be the storage requirements of Vista? Would a 4(or 8) gig iRam be enough, or would that be insuffient? Basically I want to use the iRam as the boot drive and install nothing else on it. Max(or kinda near) max out system memory in order to minimize page file use, while at the same time relying on the iRam to speed up the windows side of the equation.

Would this be viable, or should I just say "fuck it" and go with a slower, albet cheaper, Raptor of some kind?

I'm just one of those folks who hate's waiting on things! ;)
 
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