Can I use ddr 3200 with older MB?

chutamango · 05-04-2005, 08:06 PM

I have an EPOX 8k2a+ MB that supports up to 2700 ddr...thats what was out at the time. Now..I was wondering if I could buy some 3200 and underclock it to match my current 2700 ram. Would this work ok?

I am doing this becuase my current ram is OCZ 2700 2-2-2 ram (2x256). One of the modules died and I would like to replace it with some ram that can perform similarly. I figure if I get a cheap 2.5-3-3 3200 ram and underclock it to 2700 I may reach stats similar to my original OCZ ram.

ANybody able to help me figure this out? THanks.

Chutamango

galaxyglider · 05-04-2005, 08:11 PM

i wouldn't suggest it for reason the underclocking just like overclocking can have problems in the long road.

**UncleMacro** · 05-04-2005, 11:00 PM

Actually, DDR RAM is supposed to be downward compatible with slower clock rates (check here for info). In other words, you should have no problems running PC3200 at PC2700. But if you really want to run it at 2-2-2-?, I think you'll still have to get pretty fast PC3200 to accomplish it. PC2700 is 166MHz and PC3200 is 200MHz so I doubt that most 2.5-3-3 @ 200MHz would be fast enough to do 2-2-2 @ 166MHz. The SPD in my RAM shows 2.5-3-3-8 @ 200MHz and 2.0-3-3-7 @ 166MHz although admittedly, it does have fairly conservative SPD values.

**waffleweed** · 05-05-2005, 05:15 PM

pc3200 does support pc2700 speeds but one thing you gotta be worried about is mixing ram brand names. some motherboards are finicky with mixing brand names of ram. some people i know had good luck with them but other have problems.

chutamango · 05-06-2005, 11:53 AM

Thanks for your help. I guess its not necessary to get a 2-2-2 rating. Close would be great.
So I guess any MB that supports DDR can pretty much support any module, as long as it has the same pin numbers (since they are backwards compatible). I guess you can go down, but not up.

05-04-2005, 08:06 PM	#1 (permalink)
chutamango Registered User Join Date: May 2005 Posts: 2 OS: WinXP	Can I use ddr 3200 with older MB? I have an EPOX 8k2a+ MB that supports up to 2700 ddr...thats what was out at the time. Now..I was wondering if I could buy some 3200 and underclock it to match my current 2700 ram. Would this work ok? I am doing this becuase my current ram is OCZ 2700 2-2-2 ram (2x256). One of the modules died and I would like to replace it with some ram that can perform similarly. I figure if I get a cheap 2.5-3-3 3200 ram and underclock it to 2700 I may reach stats similar to my original OCZ ram. ANybody able to help me figure this out? THanks. Chutamango

05-04-2005, 08:11 PM	#2 (permalink)
galaxyglider Member Join Date: May 2005 Location: pa Posts: 44 OS: Microsoft Windows xp home edition	i wouldn't suggest it i wouldn't suggest it for reason the underclocking just like overclocking can have problems in the long road.

05-04-2005, 11:00 PM	#3 (permalink)
UncleMacro TSF Enthusiast Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: San Diego Posts: 2,133 OS: Vista SP1 My System	Actually, DDR RAM is supposed to be downward compatible with slower clock rates (check here for info). In other words, you should have no problems running PC3200 at PC2700. But if you really want to run it at 2-2-2-?, I think you'll still have to get pretty fast PC3200 to accomplish it. PC2700 is 166MHz and PC3200 is 200MHz so I doubt that most 2.5-3-3 @ 200MHz would be fast enough to do 2-2-2 @ 166MHz. The SPD in my RAM shows 2.5-3-3-8 @ 200MHz and 2.0-3-3-7 @ 166MHz although admittedly, it does have fairly conservative SPD values.

05-05-2005, 05:15 PM	#4 (permalink)
waffleweed Join Date: Mar 2005 Posts: 629 OS: winxp	pc3200 does support pc2700 speeds but one thing you gotta be worried about is mixing ram brand names. some motherboards are finicky with mixing brand names of ram. some people i know had good luck with them but other have problems.

05-06-2005, 11:53 AM	#5 (permalink)
chutamango Registered User Join Date: May 2005 Posts: 2 OS: WinXP	Thanks for your help. I guess its not necessary to get a 2-2-2 rating. Close would be great. So I guess any MB that supports DDR can pretty much support any module, as long as it has the same pin numbers (since they are backwards compatible). I guess you can go down, but not up.