adding a stick to get dual channel

[johnny_quest]

I bought one stick of 1GB PC2-5300 667mhz ram about a year ago for $80. Now, its like $25 more... a year later on new egg, why did it go up? I thought there was a scandal for manufacturers inflating the price of ram chips. anyways, here's the link to the ram:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820146438

My real question is, I want to go dual channel, should I get this same stick? Or do I have a chance by using a different brand? Should I even assume that buying this same ram a year later will work in dual channel mode?

[jlreich]

Although generally speaking dual channel isn't as picky as it once was, your best chance of dual channel compatibility is to get the same stick. Getting the same speed and size is the most important things to consider.

Awhile back just to see if it would work I paired up a new Corsair 512MB DDR400 with a 1 year old Mushkin of the same speed and size and it worked just fine in dual channel mode on my nForce 4 Ultra board.

But you are right, there is no guarantee the same stick you bought a year ago will work with the same stick bought today. Still the best chance is to get the same stick.

As for the prices, I don't know why they have gone through the roof! DDR2 is supposed to be in full production now, so I don't understand... I expected a 1GB stick of DDR2 667 to run about $60-$70 by now, but as you can see it's nowhere near that price. I don't even want to talk about DDR2 800 prices... :(

When you consider the performance gain, I guess the prices are not really that bad. But I can still whine about it if I want... :p :D

[johnny_quest]

Thanks for the reply.

I just don't know why the price went up 31% after a full year! I mean geez, that RAM does better than my 401k... I shoulda invested in a case or two :)