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unibroker
Premium Member
join:2010-11-12
Coeur D Alene, ID

unibroker

Premium Member

[memory] Mixing Speeds

I currently have a HP Pavilion a1640n with 4 memory slots. Currently slots 1 and 3 are each occupied by Samsung DDR2, 533 MHz/1G. I am running a 64 bit Linux OS and was considering getting two, 2GB Kingston modules but they run at 667 MHz. In my reading this afternoon one piece of advice was never to mix speeds. Later I read that it was okay as long as the slots are paired with the same speed. If I go with the last suggestion then I would be able to use the Kingston modules in slot 2 & 4 without any issue? If I add only one module to say slot 2 would there be any issue?

Thanks in advance.

JimE
Premium Member
join:2003-06-11
Belleville, IL

JimE

Premium Member

The only way to know is to test it.

When multiple speeds are used, all will be run at the lowest common speed. Also, many motherboards will further reduce the speed when all 4 slots are used.

It's typically recommended to buy RAM in sets of the number of sticks needed. There is the speed issue, different brands/types require different voltages for proper operation, and partly because some RAM just doesn't mix well together.

I will also point out that simply buying the correct RAM (ie: size and speed) doesn't guarantee it will work. Most motherboard and/or BIOS makers have a list of the RAM brands/types tested to work properly. Anything else is just trial and error.

If you need to mix RAM, buy from a reputable seller with a good return policy.
unibroker
Premium Member
join:2010-11-12
Coeur D Alene, ID

unibroker

Premium Member

Thanks for the input Dogg. Below are from my PCs owners manual.
Motherboard

Manufacturer: Asus
Motherboard Name: P5BW-LA
HP/Compaq motherboard name: Buckeye-GL8E
Memory

Dual channel memory architecture
Four 240-pin DDR2 DIMM sockets
Supports PC2 4200 (533 MHz), PC2 5300 (667 MHz) and PC2 6400 (800 MHz) DDR2 DIMMs
supports 2GB DDR2 DIMMs
Supports up to 8 GB on 64 bit PCs
Supports up to 4 GB* on 32 bit PCs

I had read earlier that PC2 6400 could not be used because the processor cannot be overclocked. When I googled my existing memory (PC2 4200) I got Kingston ValueRAM 1GB 533MHz DDR2 Non-ECC CL4 DIMM Desktop Memory (no mention of "PC2 4200"). As suggested I'll just make sure of the return policy.

JimE
Premium Member
join:2003-06-11
Belleville, IL

JimE to unibroker

Premium Member

to unibroker
When in doubt, I use Crucial. As long as you use what they recommend, they will stand behind the product and replace it free.
unibroker
Premium Member
join:2010-11-12
Coeur D Alene, ID

unibroker

Premium Member

Prior to your last post I ordered a Kingston from one of Amazon's resellers. It should be here before the end of the week and I'll report back with the end result. BTW, I ordered just a mirror of what I have presently (two, 1GB sticks). I decided to keep the variables down to a minimum in case of failure.
Thordrune
Premium Member
join:2005-08-03
Lakeport, CA

Thordrune

Premium Member

Intel chipsets in general tend to be forgiving with memory configurations (there's a PC on my bench at work with one 1 GB stick and one 4 GB, different rated speeds, no issues).

What it "should" do is detect the different speeds and run at the lowest one, so in this case, it should run all of them at 533 MHz. Kingston memory is pretty good, I doubt you will run into issues.
unibroker
Premium Member
join:2010-11-12
Coeur D Alene, ID

unibroker

Premium Member

Update: I received my memory sticks yesterday afternoon. Mildly concerned when I pulled them out of the package and they had a lower profile (thinner) than the existing Samsung sticks. Installed them, rebooted and the system detected them. Thanks for all of the input.