DDR2 Ram

[Mitternacht]

I know everyone here recommends 2 GB of RAM for games, but is 1 GB of DDR2 800 Mhz good enough?

[Airbozo]

1gb worked for me for years. I added another 1gb for BF2 hoping to speed it up. It worked for me. 1gb should be fine unless you are playing some really texture intensive games. The extra 1gb, will be used to load those textures in memory and speed up access times. I have no specific data other than I did notice a difference, but only in a few games.

[dgrmkrp]

i'm not the best to say anything.. but i've did build some pcs and they only had 1gig of ddr800 ram.. i built some with only 512MB, but the video card was the limiting factor there.. plus the mostly office usage.. but for the games we play (in the dorm), the video is the most limiting factor, not the ram.. 1 gig is kinda common here, not 2.. :( i would like 2.. and would go for 2 if i had the chance, but i've seen a nice single core amd 64 with a good video card (older generation) and just 1 gig playing really smooth at 1024 with maxed out details in some newer games, like oblivion (must take in account that some features are not available that could cripple the system.. so.. all ok) or fear or hl2.. so.. good enough it is..

[Mitternacht]

I'm just comparing 2 gigs of DDR 400 Mhz to 1 gig of DDR2 800 Mhz. AWould it be technically the same?

[Airbozo]

I'm just comparing 2 gigs of DDR 400 Mhz to 1 gig of DDR2 800 Mhz. AWould it be technically the same?

No it would not be the same. With the ddr 400 you would have more memory, but the access time would be slower.

[Mitternacht]

No it would not be the same. With the ddr 400 you would have more memory, but the access time would be slower.

K. I thought since the DDR2 would be twice as fast, it would make up for only having 1/2 the memory.

[nil8]

Short Answer: If you're a graphic intensive gamer/user, you really need 2 gb. If not, 1 should work.

Long Answer: That's like saying if you cook a turkey at 700 degrees for half the time, it will come out like if you cooked it for 350 for the whole span of time. It doesn't work that way. Think of it like a highway. The higher the speed the faster the cars(programs) can go & the more memory means more lanes of traffic. The best option is high speed and many lanes. If you can't do this, then it's a decision between slower speeds and many lanes or faster speeds and less lanes. Both will cause congestion eventually as you task the system, it's just a question of how soon and of how much roadway(resources) the cars take.

[Nagoshi]

The speed (800MHz, 400MHz, 667MHz..) will be determinated by your CPU.

On which system you are plannign to use it? It's going to be useless having 800MHz if your FSB is only 667.

[Mitternacht]

My CPU is a Athlon 64 X2 2.0Ghz, 1000Mhz FSB