Hey everybody. I have never really understood stuff about ram timings and terms like 'CAS Latency'. I have only just realized that buying el-cheapo sticks of ram (Which i have done) may mean I have poorly performing ram even though it is PC3200. I have 2 sticks of 512Mb in my PC running in dual channel and I have dug up this info on them:

DDR2:
Refresh : Reduced (.5x)7.8 µs, Self
Supported Frequencies : 166 MHz, 200 MHz
CAS Latency (tCL) : 3 clocks @200 MHz
RAS to CAS (tRCD) : 4 clocks @200 MHz
RAS Precharge (tRP) : 4 clocks @200 MHz
Cycle Time (tRAS) : 8 clocks @200 MHz

DDR3:
CAS Latency (tCL) : 2.5 clocks @200 MHz
RAS to CAS (tRCD) : 3 clocks @200 MHz
RAS Precharge (tRP) : 3 clocks @200 MHz
Cycle Time (tRAS) : 8 clocks @200 MHz

Could you guys explain what this stuff means? What changes could I make to increse performance? Thanks for any help.

Mattwizz3 : )

Sempron 2600+ OC 2.2GHz
512Mb
2X 80Gb 7200Rpm
nVIDIA FX5500 128Mb
Damn Microsoft...
DIE STEAM DIE!

What system are you asking about?

There are different types of DDR-SDRAM...DDR1, DDR2, DDR3

DDR2 doesn't run with timings like that (3-4-4-8)...so I assume you're calling your different RAM sticks #2 & #3?

The difference between timings of 3-4-4-8 & 2.5-3-3-7 are minor, but every little bit helps. I have my RAM set to 2.5-3-3-7 even though specs are 3-4-4-8. Some RAM will run with tighter timings, some won't...when overclocking, you may have to loosen timings to enable stability at the higher bus speed.

This may help:

http://www.tomshardware.com/motherboard/20040119/index.html

ASUS A7N8X-X
Athlon XP 1800+
8.5 x 200MHz
1024MB PC3200 2.5-3-3-7
Asus A9550GE/TD 128MB
WinME/WinXP Pro SP2

WOW, Thank so much jam! That is extremely usefull. I will tinker and see if my 3-4-4-8 will go at 2.5-3-3-8 like my other stick to get them equal. Then I'll se if they'll run at 2.5-3-3-7.

Thanks again jam. I'm off to tinker...

Mattwizz3 : )

Sempron 2600+ OC 2.2GHz
512Mb
2X 80Gb 7200Rpm
nVIDIA FX5500 128Mb
Damn Microsoft...
DIE STEAM DIE!

I've got them running at 2.5-3-3-7 now. I will run mem test tomorrow and see what happens. But it seems OK at the moment. Anyways I'm off to bed, Its 12.35 at night past my bed time. Thanks again... for the second time ; )

Mattwizz3 : )

Sempron 2600+ OC 2.2GHz
1024Mb (2x512)
2X 80Gb 7200Rpm
nVIDIA FX5500 128Mb
Damn Microsoft...
DIE STEAM DIE!