Sanchez Posted October 9, 2009 Posted October 9, 2009 I just touch my radiator beforehand. I've worked on computers dozens of times and never static'ed anything.
fex Posted October 9, 2009 Posted October 9, 2009 Same here. I'm sure ESD is quite rare as long as you take pre cautionary measures. But if its your first time and you've spent a lot on your components then why take the risk? I'm sure you can pick up wrist bands for a few quid.
The Lillster Posted October 11, 2009 Posted October 11, 2009 Ok this is going to sound really stupid but... I currently have a 1GB laptop, if I buy a 1gb ram upgrade for it and put it into my 1gb laptop, will that upgrade it to a 2gb laptop?
Raining_again Posted October 11, 2009 Posted October 11, 2009 Ok this is going to sound really stupid but... I currently have a 1GB laptop, if I buy a 1gb ram upgrade for it and put it into my 1gb laptop, will that upgrade it to a 2gb laptop? if you have the spare slot for it and if its compatible ram, then yes
Nolan Posted October 11, 2009 Posted October 11, 2009 Just download and run CPU-Z. Then click on the SPD tab, this will tell you what type of RAM you have DDR DDR2(most likely) and the Max Bandwidth of what you currently have. On the left you can select which slot which will tell you 2 things. How many slots you have, and if there are any empty slots. It's likely that your 1GB is actually 2 sticks of 512MB, which makes getting to 2GB harder. Unless you just get a single (or even better 2) stick of 2GB.
The Lillster Posted October 12, 2009 Posted October 12, 2009 Just download and run CPU-Z. Then click on the SPD tab, this will tell you what type of RAM you have DDR DDR2(most likely) and the Max Bandwidth of what you currently have. On the left you can select which slot which will tell you 2 things. How many slots you have, and if there are any empty slots. It's likely that your 1GB is actually 2 sticks of 512MB, which makes getting to 2GB harder. Unless you just get a single (or even better 2) stick of 2GB. It's DDR2, four slots altogether, two taken up by 2x512MB and another two empty slots. Max bandwidth is PC2-4300 (266Mhz). So I guess I need to get a PC2-4300 card?
McPhee Posted October 12, 2009 Posted October 12, 2009 You've got 3 choices then; 1) Add another two 512MB sticks - which is stupid because it means replacing all the RAM if you want to go to 4GB 2) Add a 1GB stick - which will result in a small performance loss (RAM works best in matched pairs, i.e. multiples of two identical sticks) 3) Haul out both 512MB sticks are replace with 2 1GB sticks - the best option given the relatively low price of RAM And yeah, you need 266MHz DDR2 or faster (no harm in buying faster sticks, they'll underclock if your board can't support the full speed).
The Lillster Posted October 12, 2009 Posted October 12, 2009 (edited) You've got 3 choices then; 1) Add another two 512MB sticks - which is stupid because it means replacing all the RAM if you want to go to 4GB 2) Add a 1GB stick - which will result in a small performance loss (RAM works best in matched pairs, i.e. multiples of two identical sticks) 3) Haul out both 512MB sticks are replace with 2 1GB sticks - the best option given the relatively low price of RAM And yeah, you need 266MHz DDR2 or faster (no harm in buying faster sticks, they'll underclock if your board can't support the full speed). Ok that's good, it sounds simple enough and do I have to worry about this 200 vs the other one (can't remember), or is there just one standard for laptops and one for PC? (Or is that what the PC2 thing tells me)? Cheers. Another thing, I thought 4gb is only useful for 64bit processors? Edited October 12, 2009 by The Lillster
McPhee Posted October 12, 2009 Posted October 12, 2009 Thinking on it, there's an easier way around this; http://www.crucial.com/systemscanner/ Crucial's System Scanner will find out what RAM you need and give you a buy link, much less hassle and there's no chance of it going wrong
Nolan Posted October 12, 2009 Posted October 12, 2009 Any more than 3.25GB of RAM is essentially wasted if you don't have a 64bit OS. now a days most CPUs are already 64-bit though. There is no harm in having 4GB rather than 3GB, in fact it may be better since you won't have mismatched RAM sizes and can run them in Dual Channel mode. If you use the Crucial scanner you won't have any problems with compatibility, but just to answer a previous question, Laptops use SODIMM RAM which is the same, but with fewer pins (connectors) and it's about half the length of DIMM desktop RAM. PC2 4300 is just another way of saying DDR2 266. PC XXXX is DDR XXX and PC3 XXXXX is DDR3 XXXX.
Chuck Posted October 13, 2009 Posted October 13, 2009 If it isn't too much more I would like a CPU with a little faster clock rate but otherwise: Mobo: Biostar TA790GX GPU: Powercolor Radeon 4770 512MB RAM: Crucial 4GB DDR3 HDD: Western Digital 500GB AAKS DVD: Sony AD-7240S Case?
Ten10 Posted October 13, 2009 Posted October 13, 2009 Case is xblade, Shinobi or galaxy III from ebay for around 40 quid tops with PSU.
Nolan Posted October 13, 2009 Posted October 13, 2009 If it isn't too much more I would like a CPU with a little faster clock rate but otherwise: Mobo: Biostar TA790GX GPU: Powercolor Radeon 4770 512MB RAM: Crucial 4GB DDR3 HDD: Western Digital 500GB AAKS DVD: Sony AD-7240S Case? That motherboard is DDR2 and AM2 not AM3. You'd want something AM3 with DDR3. Check out the 785G or 770. As for a CPU I can't really suggest anything without having a total price range. Just about anything AM3 is nice though.
Chuck Posted October 13, 2009 Posted October 13, 2009 I thought Phee changed his mind to that. My price range about £400 for the system.
The Lillster Posted October 13, 2009 Posted October 13, 2009 I bought some RAM today (2x 1GB), for my Laptop. However there seems to be a problem... I took out my old RAM (2x512GB) and installed my new RAM. But when I went to turn it on, the lights came on butnothing comes on the screen. I tried it with 1GB and a 512MB stick and it loads fine, recognises the 1GB no problem. So what might be wrong?
Nolan Posted October 13, 2009 Posted October 13, 2009 One of your 1GB sticks may be dead. Try each of them separately, and make sure they are securely in.
The Lillster Posted October 13, 2009 Posted October 13, 2009 (edited) One of your 1GB sticks may be dead. Try each of them separately, and make sure they are securely in. I tried the 1GB stick on its own and it didn't work, however when I installed it with the old stick as well, the computer booted. And I checked on that cpuid thing and it shows up on there, so it can definently see it. Here is the datasheet for the Ram I purchased: http://www.valueram.com/datasheets/KVR800D2S6_1G.pdf UPDATE:Ok I think I figured out the problem, the problem is that the Ram I bought is too powerful. I looked on crucial scanner and it said 'Each memory slot can hold DDR2 PC2-5300 with a maximum of 1GB per slot.*' The Ram I bought is DDR2-6400. So i'm thinking that's the problem. Edited October 14, 2009 by The Lillster
Shorty Posted October 15, 2009 Posted October 15, 2009 Yes, that is definitely the problem. The reason it works when you put the old one in with it is that it lowers the speed of the new one to match (correct me if I'm wrong?) but you may as well get cheaper, more suitable RAM.
The Lillster Posted October 15, 2009 Posted October 15, 2009 Yes, that is definitely the problem. The reason it works when you put the old one in with it is that it lowers the speed of the new one to match (correct me if I'm wrong?) but you may as well get cheaper, more suitable RAM. Yeh, that was the problem, I downgraded the one to a 4200. It works fine now. Now I want to upgrade the HDD. How do I found out what type of Harddrive I need to buy? And wha cloning software should I use to backup my old HDD?
Shorty Posted October 16, 2009 Posted October 16, 2009 This is for a laptop right? As long as you buy the right size (2.5" not 3.5") then you can buy the fastest/best capacity drive your budget allows. Clonezilla is a good free (although not especially simple) cloning program but if you're going to change Hard Drives, you might want to use that as an opportunity to start afresh, put a new installation of your OS on it and copy over the files to an external source and then back again.
Jimbob Posted October 16, 2009 Posted October 16, 2009 I just touch my radiator beforehand. I've worked on computers dozens of times and never static'ed anything. I have also worked on many computers, half of the ones i have worked on i have used a Static Strap, my own however i haven't used a Strap at all. Anywho, i think as of next week once 7 arrives and i have fitted a new HDD and 1GB RAM, i won't have one original component in my PC since i bought it. Everything will have been replaced.
Pyxis Posted October 24, 2009 Posted October 24, 2009 I've finally bought some of the components for my PC and I can't wait until they arrive. I'm settling for a dual core for the time being, since they can be just as fast as quads for many games and they consume less power. Windows 7 Home Premium (retail) Gigabyte GA-MA785GMT-UD2H 785G Socket AM3 DVI VGA HDMI Out 8 Channel Audio MATX Motherboard AMD Phenom II X2 550 Black Edition @ 3.4-3.6GHz (overclocked) 6MB L3 Cache Socket AM3. I beleive that this is the same processor as the X4 955, but with 2 cores disabled. 4GB Kingston Ddr3 1600mhz Hyperx Memory Corsair 400W CX PSU - 12cm Fan 80Plus Certified Efficiency LG GH22NS50 22x SATA DVD±RW Dual Layer & RAM Black Bare Drive - OEM I'll be using my existing case and hard drive (160GB SATA) for the time being, until I do my final upgrade, which will include an ATI HD 5850 graphics card, a TV card and blu-ray. Hopefully it will be a little beast! Cost for far: £280 + £60 for Windows 7.
Nolan Posted October 24, 2009 Posted October 24, 2009 Sounding pretty nice. If you don't mind a bit of risk, it's possible to unlock the other cores on that 550, it's oddly easy to do as well. Although, the 785 chipset is fairly new and may not allow.
MoogleViper Posted October 24, 2009 Posted October 24, 2009 Quick question, how come RAM has suddenly increased in price?
Nolan Posted October 24, 2009 Posted October 24, 2009 DDR2 prices are rising to try and make a return on unsold stock as DDR3 is coming in and down on price. DDR was expensive to DDR2 as well.
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