What RAM should I buy?

[YngwieJM]

OK - you guys have helped me learn all kinds of stuff over the last few years so I hope someone can give me good advice yet again! I just ordered an ABIT IC7 MAX3 mobo with a P4 478 3.2 Ghz w/ 800 FSB from Monarch. I held off on getting RAM because I was baffled by all the choices. I know I need DDR 3200 but the price range is pretty broad. The computer will be used for encoding DV to mpg-2 using TMPGenc. I use Vegas 4 for all my edits in DV. I am looking for faster encodes than I have now (using Athlon 1700+). I don't want to buy the junkiest RAM out there but I don't want to spend more than $300 fior 1 gig either. Is RAM really all that important for my particular application? TIA for all help!

[redwudz]

If you go to this ABIT page, it should give you a good start.
You are looking for DDR3200 dual channel memory modules.
You need a matched set for dual channel. http://www.abit-usa.com/memory/

I prefer Corsair, Mushkin, Crucial, then Kingston, in that order.
The ABIT page has links to the memory companies, which in turn have links to suppliers.

You have to decide how much memory you want. (Or can afford)
A matched set of 512M for 1GB total would be a good way to go, in my opinion.

The price for 1G of Dual Corsair is about $200 from TigerDirect, for example; http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/Category/category_memory.asp.

There are more expensive modules, mostly for overclocked applications.

[YngwieJM]

Thanks much! It sounds like you know what you're talking about and I really appreciate you pointing me in the right direction.

[Faustus]

Corsair XMS low latency stuff is awesome. Never ever go cheap on ram, it and Powersuppy are BIG problems sometimes if you go cheap.

[rallynavvie]

Don't be fooled by so-called "dual channel packs" that have two identical sticks for more than what each exact stick cost seperate. There were a lot of scams out there for "dual packs" where they cost about 2.5 times what the single stick cost. If anything the dual pack should be slightly cheaper than twice the single stick cost. Just double-check your reseller on that. I got my Mushkin sticks from Monarch back before the RAM price hike. The 2-2-2 PC3200 is great stuff. I prefer Mushkin to the "trendy" Corsair brand :P

[Hardcoreruss]

Corsair Twin X here