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RAM dual channel

Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
in General Chat
What exactly is dual channel RAM? I think i know, but i would like to make sure just incase i buy the wrong thing.

I opened up my computer and it has 4 ram slots, 2 pairs, and it has 1 stick in one pair, and another stick in the other pair. Would i be correct in saying that i should buy dual channel RAM and put one of the sticks in each slot?

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    Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Dual channel basicaly doubles the speed at which the memory runs at.

    you would have in your case memory slots like so:

    1
    2
    3
    4

    1 and 3 will probably be 1 colour, and 2 and 4 another colour.

    To run in dual channel, you need to insert either all 4 RAM chips, or 2 RAM chips (into slots 1&3 or 2&4)

    Your memory MUST be the same. i.e 2x512mb or 4x256mb or any variation.

    Hope that makes sense
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    Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    From the wikipedia
    Dual-Channel involves the use of two memory pipelines to the memory controller as opposed to Single-Channel RAM configurations in which only one is used, hence the name. This does not mean that there are two pipelines for each RAM slot on the board.

    In Dual-Channel mode on almost all motherboards, there need to be two Dual-Channel compatible RAM modules installed in two paired sockets, whereas in Single-Channel mode, only one module needs to be installed (but bandwidth would be smaller). This has led to the selling of Dual-Channel memory "kits", which consist of a pair of identical RAM modules.

    Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dual-channel"

    To utilise dual-channel, you need both a motherboard that supports it and a pair (or two pairs) of ram chips.

    You can buy some bundles that will pair them off for you to ensure compatibility.
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