DDR3 Ram! Is it worth ?

[ThunderBird]

Hi
What do u guys think is it worth getting DDR3 ram now ?

[superfrog]

for Price performance ratio, NOPE. But that is the RAM side, you need to have a DDR3 enabled board as well but the overall performance is not worth it. I think by the time DDR3 becomes mainstream the upgrade will be worth it.

DDR2 - 800 should be enough at this point.

[Non-techie]

DDR3 in the future but not now;as it is very expensive and there isn't any performance gain of DDR3-800/1066 over DDR2-800/1066.

[Ali Tayyab]

right now even if ddr3 had the same price as ddr2 there are so many question marks hanging over its (ddr3's) head because of the voltage requirements.

most ddr3 ram that i have seen (esp here) needs 1.80V to get working.

from what i've seen around the web nehalem's first outing this year (core i7) would need the ram to run at a maxiumum of 1.7V, ideally 1.65V. this is guess has something to do with the fact that the cpu and memory stick share the same power plane. as core i7 has a Vcore of 1.65 same holds true of the ram.

as core i7 isnt out i cant say for sure if this is true, but why take a chance when it isnt needed!

[nazareth]

@ali

You've confused me. Are you saying DDR3 needs less voltage? Wouldn't that be a plus? I don't think I've come across DDR2 that could run (reliably) on less than 1.8v

I'm not being smartass here, just puzzled...

[Ali Tayyab]

Originally Posted by nazareth

@ali

You've confused me. Are you saying DDR3 needs less voltage? Wouldn't that be a plus? I don't think I've come across DDR2 that could run (reliably) on less than 1.8v

I'm not being smartass here, just puzzled...

it goes something like this:
from people who have tested asus's core i7 board say that it limits ddr3 voltage to 1.70 max, ideal being 1.65.

ddr3 ram i see here (local) needs 1.8V to work reliably

it is definitely an advantage, but the oNLY ddr3 ram i see available in Pakistan (local) needs 1.8V, which if the above is true renders the ram useless in a very short time!

__________________

and yes ddr3 does need less juice to work as did ddr2 when compared to ddr.

as i keep saying as the chip isnt physically out yet so these could just be assumptions. but the bit about ddr3 needing less juice is correct.

from here:
ddr3

DDR3 memory promises a power consumption reduction of 30% compared to current commercial DDR2 modules due to DDR3's 1.5 V supply voltage,

[Cateye]

so NOW the question is should one buy a DDR3 motherboard?


i mean invest in DDR3 board buy processor, vga, sound harddisk and every thing of his/her choice and buy the ram whcih is availabe in Pakistan and after sometime one can change his or her ram anytime and he/she don't have to change the whole setup?


IMO one should go for DDR3 at this time because of the BUS speed.

I have seen at galaxy.pk/price.htm

XMS3 DHX DDR3 TWIN KIT 2X2048-1333 (1GBx2) RS=8600 http://www.corsair.com/products/xms3_dhx.aspx

XMS3 DDR3 TWIN KIT 2X2048-1333 (1GBX2) RS= 7600 http://www.corsair.com/products/xms3.aspx






Note: I am not that tachie so please correct me if i am wrong.

[ThunderBird]

Or get Asus P5QC with DDR2 And DDR3 Support ! use DDR2 now and later upgrade to DDR3 !

[fqaisrani]

i am personally not fond of hybrids..

currently i will go for DDR2 as there is no processor out there having FSB out of range of DDR2..

if you got extra cash get DDR2-8500 (1066 FSB) and run them at lower FSB depending on your processor's FSB and enjoy alot better latency timings..

[SiB]

DDR2 is mainstream. Very few people are using DDR3. And the price difference isn't making justice to our hard earned money (In my case - my fathers). I may think in Buying one, if the price gets as low as 5k. But at the moment. DDR2 is powerful enough to run anything, needed.

[Ali Tayyab]

Originally Posted by Cateye

so NOW the question is should one buy a DDR3 motherboard?


i mean invest in DDR3 board buy processor, vga, sound harddisk and every thing of his/her choice and buy the ram whcih is availabe in Pakistan and after sometime one can change his or her ram anytime and he/she don't have to change the whole setup?


IMO one should go for DDR3 at this time because of the BUS speed.

I have seen at galaxy.pk/price.htm

XMS3 DHX DDR3 TWIN KIT 2X2048-1333 (1GBx2) RS=8600 Welcome to Corsair :: XMS3 DHX Product Information

XMS3 DDR3 TWIN KIT 2X2048-1333 (1GBX2) RS= 7600 Welcome to Corsair :: XMS3 Product Information






Note: I am not that tachie so please correct me if i am wrong.

bus speed is one side of the picture. latency is the other. ddr3, just like initial ddr2 (533mhz et al) has high latency. only when ddr2 bus speeds began to increase did they began to out perform ddr modules

similarly u can get high speed dd2 ram, upto 1066 here, which i am sure will probably be faster as compared to equalent first gen ddr3 ram (though dont quote me on this as i have'nt seen any real numbers)

with time ddr3 will eclipse ddr2, but with the current confusion over what will and wont work in the near future coupled with cheaper and faster ddr2 options, i think it is either better to wait if ddr3 is a must, or get some ddr2

edit:
here are some links with specific quotes which basically second what i mentioned above:

1. Ananadtech: AT

Even at slow timings, DDR3 shows a great deal of promise.... but it can't match the same DDR2 memory performance on the P35

As DDR3 prices drop and/or timings improve, it will be the performance choice. For today, the best performance choice is either today's DDR2 or tomorrow's DDR3 on the P35 chipset instead.

2. Neoseeker: NS

The problem with DDR3 is that currently it is difficult to justify spending far more on DDR3-1333 modules than on low latency DDR2-1066 which will give you better overall performance. There is no question in my mind that DDR3 will surpass DDR2 in performance once DDR3-1600 and DDR3-2000 hit the market, but that time has not yet arrived.

[Dr.Farhan]

Point 1 :
never buy hybrids... why? just one line answer.. you never get the best of any world...

Point 2:
intel has imposed strict restrictions on the X58 chipst manufacturing by board partners to make the ddr voltages less than 1.8, better at 1.6V, or that will fry the CPU,..

Asus has, in an email response confirmed this news ,and revised their board scheme

Giel and OCZ and TwinMoss have responded with a solution in official public statements that the only way to run these memories that are already released is to underclock themm,, while their lower timings will somehow still get some performance over basic value rams..

so it shows that the ddr3 will be as much a step in the pathway of transition from DDR2 to DDR5 as vista is from XP to Windows 7..

[nazareth]

@ali

Thanks! That's clear now.

I was feeling bad for a while at having spent $$$ on a high-end DDR2 motherboard instead of one of the new DDR3's. I feel much better now!

[stickman!]

Conclusion

In the near future, it is inevitable that DDR3 is going to replace DDR2 as the standard for memory RAM. At this current moment, the hefty price hardly make it a ‘must-upgrade’ component, considering that you can get a DDR2 RAM operating at the same speed for under $150. Until the time when higher speed DDR3 RAM are more readily available and the price fall to a reasonable range that is comparable to DDR2, it is better to remain with your DDR2 RAM.

source

-peace
stickman!

[Ali Tayyab]

Originally Posted by nazareth

@ali

Thanks! That's clear now.

I was feeling bad for a while at having spent $$$ on a high-end DDR2 motherboard instead of one of the new DDR3's. I feel much better now!