Opteron 165 but which Ram?

-Hotplate- · 1 Feb 2006 at 18:37

Hi guys,

I recently decided to upgrade my PC and after speaking to a few friends i decided to buy an Opteron 165. (the 146 are going for over £180 on ebay now, so no point not spending a little more).

After looking at all the mobo's I will probably end up buying the latest Asus, the A8N32-Sli deluxe, or at worst the A8N Sli Premium. I have considered the DFI range but i'm defo leaning towards the Asus.

I will also be buying a 7800GT from somewhere, probably just a 400Mhz model and clock it myself.

But i am SOOO confused when it comes to the best RAM to use for this system to get the best, or at least a good over clock on the Opty.

I will only be using air, i'm not at all interested in using water.

I have read an awful lot on here about memory speeds and memory timings, and theres some really useful and helpful advice, but i'm still not sure.

I want a 2GB matched pair, and i'm happy(ish) to spend the money. I have looked at various PC4000, (because people tell me this is what i should be buying) but the OCZ Platinum is O.O.S.

The Mushkin Redlines look excellent, and the 1GB version dont appear to want as much voltage either prepared to older mushkins.

The XMS3500LL memory is highly praised on the Asus website, as developed for the Asus board, and is highly recommended by one member on these forums, who also has an Asus board.

But i'm not sure the XMS3500LL is meant to be clocked as high as the 165 is able to go.

Anyways, as you can see, i'm a bit lost now.

Anyone got any suggestions please? All replies are appreciated.

Thanks

-Hotplate-

rxmac · 1 Feb 2006 at 19:15

Gskill seem to be flavour of the moment, best performance for the cost etc. http://www.overclockers.co.uk/acatalog/G_Skill.html

If your going to overclock go for these :- G.Skill 2GB DDR HZ PC4000, if not then go for these G.Skill 2GB DDR ZX PC3200

UTmaniac · 1 Feb 2006 at 19:25

If this helps...

I have received the G.Skill HZ 2GB kit (plus a leadtek 7800GT) today to go with my Opty 165. So far, the memory is happy at 265MHz at 3-4-4-8, running 1:1 with CPU :cool:

Mana · 1 Feb 2006 at 19:28

wow that is some nice memory and a nice overclock there...

am thinking that that might be the memory to overclock my 3500+ as its good for 260x10 at least!

FrankJH · 1 Feb 2006 at 19:49

I am getting an Opty 170 and Gskill Hz 2Gb delivered tomorrow ( along with a few other lil bits and pieces )

glitch · 1 Feb 2006 at 20:18

Sorry to barge in guys, but wanted to ask the owners of the 165s a quick question. Did you get a retail pack 165? If so, what was the cooler like inside the box?

-Hotplate- · 1 Feb 2006 at 22:24

Thanks for the responses guys.....

I was hoping "man_from_uncle" might of commented about the XMS3500LL

Mine hasnt arrived yet, but it is Retail......and tbh it doesnt matter what the heatsink and fan are like in the box, as i wont be using it anyways...

I have also ordered one of these.............
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/acatalog/copy_of_Arctic_Cooling.html

Artic Freezer Pro 64............. should do the trick nicely ...

rxmac · 2 Feb 2006 at 07:41

Got mine a couple of days ago and it's stock hsf a heat pipe affair, same as the X2's use from what i understand. It looks quite good but i too won't be using it, not on my oppy anyway, might slap it on my 754 sempron though.

glitch · 2 Feb 2006 at 08:24

Was it one of these?

Anyway, RAM for Opteron 165. By all accounts (and this is by no means definitive) you'll get better overall performance by pushing the HTT speed of your 165 up and using a divider to run your chosen RAM at the tightest timings and highest speed you can.

So the Corsair XMS3500LL Pro would be a pretty good choice, but if you want to try for a 1:1 divider then you're either going to limit the HTT speed of your Opteron or have to go for some PC4000 memory. In which case, something like the Corsair XMS4000PT, Mushkin Redline XP4000 or OCZ Platinum PC4000 would be a safe choice. There's not a massive amount to call between them, but it's safe to say that the Corsair is the weakest of the three, albeit by a small amount.

But it's also about £70 - £100 cheaper. Horses for courses really.

rxmac · 2 Feb 2006 at 12:50

glitch said:
Was it one of these?

Its the 4 pipe version of those 2 in that other thread.

w3bbo · 4 Feb 2006 at 07:47

I have an Opty 165 and 2 gig 3500ll with an A8n32 board.

Running 300x9 (2.7ghz) with memory @133mhz 3-3-3-8 2.9v memtest pass.

If you wanted tighter timings then you can also run 289x9(2.6) @133mhz 2-3-2-6 2.8v. Memtest pass.

At stock settings the memory will run @ 200mhz(400 effective) 2-3-2-5 2.7v. Memtest pass.

For 24/7 running I have it set at 278x9 (2.5) @ 166 2-3-2-6 2.75v

All above settings are at 1T (dual).

Hope this helps.

mattup · 4 Feb 2006 at 13:28

w3bbo said:
I have an Opty 165 and 2 gig 3500ll with an A8n32 board.

Running 300x9 (2.7ghz) with memory @133mhz 3-3-3-8 2.9v memtest pass.

If you wanted tighter timings then you can also run 289x9(2.6) @133mhz 2-3-2-6 2.8v. Memtest pass.

At stock settings the memory will run @ 200mhz(400 effective) 2-3-2-5 2.7v. Memtest pass.

For 24/7 running I have it set at 278x9 (2.5) @ 166 2-3-2-6 2.75v

All above settings are at 1T (dual).

Hope this helps.

I dont understand why you run your ram so slow?
The ram is rated to 436mhz @ 2,3,2,6 @ 2.75.

w3bbo · 4 Feb 2006 at 21:30

Coz anything more than 250fsb and it wont boot unless I use a divider.