Will this RAM work with this MoBo?

[ajd344]

Hello! I'm planning for my second build now, but I need some help determining if this ram will work on this mobo.

MOTHERBOARD (Intel BOXD946GZISSL) RAM SPECS:
The board has two DIMM sockets and support the following memory features:

1. 1.8 V (only) DDR2 SDRAM DIMMs with gold plated contacts
2. Unbuffered, single sided or double sided DIMMs
3. Double sided DIMMs with x16 organizaton are NOT supported
4. 4GB Maximum total system memory
5. Minimum total system memory: 128 mb
6. Non-ECC DIMMs
7. Serial Presence Detect
8. DDR2 667 or DDR2 533 MHz SDRAM DIMMs

I also read in a review it only supports 5-5-5 or 6-6-6 RAM.


RAM (pqi 1GB Memory MAC41GUOE) SPECS:

1. Size: 1 GB
2. 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM
3. Cas Latency: 5
4. Speed: DDR2 667 (PC2 5400)
5. 128x64
6. Unbuffered

This is all the info I could find on everything. Could somebody check these out for me and determine if they will work? I'm pretty confused right now. I read that this mobo is picky with RAM.

Thanks!!!!!

[glc]

It should work, but I'd choose a different motherboard and ram.

[ajd344]

Err, whats wrong with my selection?

[Staren]

Well two things. Are you using a microATX case? If not, then it isn't worth it to go with a small motherboard. Everything would work better with a full ATX board.

The other thing is that pqi is pretty much a generic off brand, or might as well be.

[ajd344]

Okay, I see. Can you tell me why it would be better to buy a name brand for RAM? I mean, RAM's ram, right?

I'm building this thing for my parents, and all they really do is internet and email, and I highly doubt there going to be overclocking it. lol

Thanks

[LeftyAce]

Ram's ram unless you get a flaky set, in which case it can cause all kinds of problems. (Either it won't work right away, or it'll slowly deteriorate 'till it's causing random shutdowns, etc....) With pc hardware it's usually best to go with name brand.

That said, you don't have to get overclocking ram! The Corsair Value Select line is very good, and cheaper b/c it just can't handle overclocking.

On the motherboard, ASUS is highly recommended around here; what processor are you planning to use? That will determine what board would be suitable.

Since they're not gaming, you might as well get a mobo with onboard video.

As far as "Why ASUS?" the best answer I can give you is, they're quite reliable, and they've got good customer support. I'd trust GLC's advice here; I ignored it on my first build, and ended up with a dead motherboard that I had to exchange.....got the one he recommended originally and it's been working like a champ ever since :-)

*edit* Here's some Value Select http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820146580 that's only a couple bucks more than the PQI u linked to.

[Staren]

No, ram isn't ram if you get a messed up stick, which is much more common with a no name. That holds for most all computer parts. The cheap stuff has a much higher rate of showing up DOA, getting fried from little voltage changes that happen in all computers (but are much worse with a cheap power supply), just giving up the ghost after a few months, there's just a laundry list of things that could wrong with cheap parts.

Now keep in mind that what I mean by cheap is a generic company, not inexpensive. There are some inexpensive parts made by respected brands that are great.

[ajd344]

Hey, thanks for the info! Yeh, I suppose I'll just go with the Corsair then. I plan on buying a Pentium D 915. I used Asus for my last build, but isnt Intel mobos just as good quality? If you guys think an Asus with similar features/price is better, then please tell me! I think one of the stresses of this build is to make it long lasting, my parents were upset they only got 5yrs out of our old Dell.

Thanks again, you guys are being a great help to me!

[Staren]

Intel boards are said to be very stable and solid, but are usually a bit more expensive for the feature set. Asus, Abit, Gigabyte, along with some others are usually a little less for the same quality and features.

Personally about 5 years is what I consider a fair life span for a computer. Thats about how long I can use one as my main desktop befoire moving it to some kind of special duty like a server or whatever. The sad thing is that there are people I've talked to that would cry and whine forever if they had to use a computer more then a year and a half old.

[ajd344]

Yeh, I kinda thought it was about time to replace that old thing too. Is it okay to buy a mATX, not a full-sized ATX? Yeh, I know you cant upgrade it as well, but there a lot cheaper. This project is already pretty expensive, I mean it's getting to about the same price as just buying one pre-made, so I'm trying to keep the cost down where I safely can.

[glc]

If you are building with a 915, get an Asus P5L-MX board and Corsair Value Select DDR2-667 ram, dual channel kit, not a single module. Put it in a Foxconn TS-1 case, it comes with a quality 300 watt FSP ATX 2.0 power supply.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131041
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811153042
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820145568