Is it worth getting 1066 RAM?

[TMN02]

Hey everyone, I just had a quick question. I'm in the process of building a new gaming rig and only way I can afford it is buying certain components each month. I'm at the RAM phase and was originally going to get some DDR2-800 speed RAM to go with a Q6600 & P35 chipset mobo. I plan on keeping things nominal b/c my OC experience is non-existant, but if I could afford some 1066 RAM is it worth it, or will I run into some latency & heat problems. Suggestions for both 800 & 1066 RAM would be greatly appreciated. I'm looking to spend no more than $150 for 2 gigs. Thanks a lot.

 

[Gravemind123]

Because running at 1:1 ratio of memory and FSB with a Q6600 is only going to require 333Mhz FSB and DDR2-667 to hit 3.0Ghz, you should be fine with DDR2-800 which will allow for up to 400Mhz FSB at stock and that is 3.6Ghz on the CPU. Most good quality DDR2-800 can easily clock up to DDR2-1066(something based on Micron D9GMH/D9GKX chips). Crucial Ballistix is usually the cheapest thing that guarantees Micron D9GMH chips, and having a set myself, I know that at 4-4-4-12 they can get up to DDR2-960, so if you loosen the timings to 5-5-5 you should be able to get very good clock speeds out of them.

 

[zenmaster]

As Grave stated, definitely no need for DDR2-1066 for the Q6600.

 

[TMN02]

Thanks for the feedback Gravemind. DDR2 800 sounds fine with me when going with a Q6600. Only problem is I keep ripping my hair out when trying to choose between the E6850 vs. Q6600. I've read a ton on the forums and the links to xbitlabs and what not. It's like since I don't want to OC, 6850 will be better, but with multithreading games coming out. Anyways, I'll spare you the inner struggle