Q: I have 2 gigs of pc 5300 in my pc. I also have an extra 1 gig stick of pc 4200 . Should I install it ? As it will turn everything to pc 4200 speed? My pc specs are --- windows xp Amd 64 x2 4200 8800 gts 512 ddr 3 G92 250 gig sata,dvd rw lightscribe drive, 500w power, Nvidia mobo
A: Adding the 4200-speed DIMM will indeed bring the other down to that speed. It will also mean you can't use dual channel, if supported by your motherboard. The gains from two to three gigabytes are meager in most games, so the extra RAM may paradoxically make your PC slower at what its best at. Also, your OC headroom will be limited, though that may not be applicable to your PC. If your curious, install it, run a memory benchmark, and compare it to performance with just current module(s).