Welcome to the MacNN Forums.

Scotttheking · 02:11 AM

I'd like to make a central place to point people when they ask questions like "what ram do I need for my computer?" or "where should I buy ram?", among others.
That place is here.

So, how about we start at the Powermac 6100 and go up to the Powermac G5.
List the specs for the ram, whether is needs pairs or is helped by them, the number of slots, the max chip size, what type of chip, etc.

For where to buy, let's stick to good reputable places, and, well, yeah.

Throw FAQs in, too.

--Scott

PS. I can extend this to HDs too. What do you all think?

Scotttheking · Sep 15, 2003, 06:59 PM

Don't everybody reply at once now.

SSharon · Sep 16, 2003, 02:23 AM

how about CDRW's? and which one will fit in my DP MDD G4? and is 80 bucks too much for 512mb of ram for the DP MDD? thanks in advance as always

suprz · Sep 16, 2003, 05:53 AM

i think it would be a good idea, even if you decided not to, just put in a link to crucial, they have a great "ram finder" with info on the particular mac model too

action · Sep 17, 2003, 02:36 PM

hi gang,

if you had to get memory for your dual g5 from http://www.pricewatch.com/

which memory would you buy.

i have never had problems getting memory for my ti667 and quicksilver 997 from pricewatch but there seem to be some choices on pricewatch.

i have no idea what parity means as wells buffered or unbuffered.

any help would be great.

thanks in advance.

chung

Arkham_c · Sep 17, 2003, 04:41 PM

Originally posted by action:
hi gang,

if you had to get memory for your dual g5 from http://www.pricewatch.com/

which memory would you buy.

You need PC3200 DDR - 400MHZ DRAM, non parity, non-ECC.

You can get by with less on the 1.6, but might as well get the good stuff. The 1.8 and 2.0 require this spec.

Kahpoosta Kid · Sep 17, 2003, 07:48 PM

And as with the G4 memory, a CL2-2-2 rating(?) would be faster RAM than CL3-3-3?

Commodus · Sep 17, 2003, 10:23 PM

Lower latency is always better, unless the manufacturer makes shoddy memory.

action · Sep 18, 2003, 02:11 PM

hi folks,

does anyone see a problem buying this ram for my dual g5?

thanks in advance.

http://www.18004memory.com/cart/addc...2-7915235A0B8C

chung

Kahpoosta Kid · Sep 18, 2003, 05:41 PM

does anyone see a problem buying this ram for my dual g5?

I can't buy ram for your computer! I've got to buy ram for MY G5! I couldn't resist. Sorry. Yes, that sounds great to me. Although shipping seems 'stiff'. I guess insurance comes into play somewhat. Good Luck!

saru boy · Sep 19, 2003, 12:30 AM

Originally posted by action:
hi folks,

does anyone see a problem buying this ram for my dual g5?

thanks in advance.

http://www.18004memory.com/cart/addc...2-7915235A0B8C

chung

That's odd...their Mac 1GB DDR400mhz memory kit costs less than buying two generic 512MB PC3200 DDR 400mhz sticks in their regular memory section.

I wonder if the Mac memory is the same or maybe of lesser quality?

Kahpoosta Kid · Sep 19, 2003, 05:13 PM

I understand the addition on RAM in pairs. And I understand adding RAM from the center slots outward. Now, G5s base RAM is 2x256mbs-which is how my order is. I plan to order/add 2gigs of RAM as soon as it ships. Either in 2x1Gig or 2x512 + 2x512.

Would you not remove the base G5: 2x256, in favor of the largest RAM sticks in the first 2 inner slots? Would there be a decidedly better performance improvement-accessing the largest 2 modules first? And moving the 2x256 modules at the end.

Fill me up buddacup.

"You paid twunny tousand dollars fer dat car?? Man, dat's a lotta kahpoosta!"

AngryAngel · Sep 19, 2003, 05:29 PM

Try MacTracker for types of RAM, expansion and other useful things (for every Mac model ever made).

http://www.mactracker.ca/

AngryAngel · Sep 19, 2003, 05:31 PM

Originally posted by Kahpoosta Kid:
Would you not remove the base G5: 2x256, in favor of the largest RAM sticks in the first 2 inner slots? Would there be a decidedly better performance improvement-accessing the largest 2 modules first? And moving the 2x256 modules at the end.

I have not heard of there being any performance changes relating to the positioning of the RAM.

Gul Banana · Sep 19, 2003, 05:48 PM

Originally posted by AngryAngel:
I have not heard of there being any performance changes relating to the positioning of the RAM.

I had an exam on this this morning; trust me, there are.
..they're generally too miniscule to notice, though

Addressing higher up the bus MIGHT increase the latency of a cache miss by an integer number of cycles - but it's so high anyway that that'll be a tiny fraction of the time spent prefetching. Once the memory is actually being drawn down it's all about the throughput.

Kahpoosta Kid · Sep 19, 2003, 05:52 PM

Originally posted by Gul Banana:
I had an exam on this this morning; trust me, there are.
..they're generally too miniscule to notice, though Addressing higher up the bus MIGHT increase the latency of a cache miss by an integer number of cycles - but it's so high anyway that that'll be a tiny fraction of the time spent prefetching. Once the memory is actually being drawn down it's all about the throughput.

Good news--and fast too!

"You paid twunny tousand dollars fer dat car?? Man, dat's a lotta kapoosta!"

action · Sep 19, 2003, 05:55 PM

pruchased 4 512mb sticks of ram from crucial.com.

total price was $375. which included two day fedex shipping.

after adding in shipping the overall savings came out to $60 for 4 sticks of ram from pricewatch.com.

i spent numerous hours trying to figure out which company had what type of specs needed for the g5.

in the end it wasn't worth the hassle so i just purchased ram from a place with a proven track record and that i know will work in the dual g5's.

thanks for everyone's input.

chung lee

Kahpoosta Kid · Sep 19, 2003, 06:08 PM

Originally posted by action:
pruchased 4 512mb sticks of ram from crucial.com.

total price was $375. which included two day fedex shipping.

after adding in shipping the overall savings came out to $60 for 4 sticks of ram from pricewatch.com.

i spent numerous hours trying to figure out which company had what type of specs needed for the g5.

in the end it wasn't worth the hassle so i just purchased ram from a place with a proven track record and that i know will work in the dual g5's.

thanks for everyone's input.

chung lee

I noticed the 'latency' of Crucial's--and just about all sites I've visited have CL3. In the good old days of the G4s, latency specs were some-what of a concern. CL2 were better. Has this spec subsided, when using 3200 DDR RAM? The best I found were CL2.5.

"You paid twunny tousand dollars fer dat car?? Man, dat's a lotta kapoosta!"