I have a DDR2 800 400Mhz, which one is the frequency? 800 or 400?

[drake717]

I want to buy a motherboard that supports 533, 667 and 800 frequency, but i don't know which one is the frequency, it my DDR enouch or do i need to buy another one of 400mhz to make 800?

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[solarmystic]

Hello and welcome to the forums drake717,

Actually, the frequency listed on the motherboard as 800 MHz refers to the effective DDR of the RAM stick.

(DDR means Dual Data Rate which means that your effective speed (800MHz) is twice your actual speed (400MHz).)

Since the RAM already has an effective speed of 400 x 2 = 800 Mhz, you don't have to buy another one as the stick is compatible with the motherboard.

You would only buy another stick of the same speed to get the RAM into dual channel mode which gives a slight improvement to memory performance.

What does dual channel mode mean?

Multi-channel memory architecture - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[drake717]

Thank you, i know it's a silly question but i'm not really good at this.

 

[solarmystic]

Not a problem!

All questions are welcome, we've all started from the ground floor at one point or another!