Simms or Dimms & how many pins ?

[Vic 970]

Current memory is 32 Mb and I am thinking of adding another 32, to put off the inevitable upgrade.
But how do I find out what memory to purchase ???????????

There seems to be plenty advertised at auction (32. 64 & 128)But what's worth buying & how do I know if it's compatible?

System details:
Cyrix 188 Mhz: 32 Mb RAM: 2.1 Gb HD: W95.


[This message has been edited by Vic 970 (edited 01-04-2001).]

[BigBlue66]

Hi Ya Vic,

The easiest way for you to find out is to download some free analysis software. I can't remember the URL right now, but do a search for "SiSoft Sandra 2000 Standard". I think it's developed over there in your neck of the woods. Download and install. It will tell you everything you want to know about the mainboard, chipset and what kind of memory is installed presently. It will also tell you what kind of memory the motherboard will support, as well as the biggest (as in memory size) chip it will accept, as well as the total amount of memory it will support.

Methinks you most likely have 72pin SIMMS memory. I don't think Sandra can tell you this, unless maybe the Professional version would. The best way to find out is to open the case and look. There are a lot of websites that actually have pictures of what the various memory chips look like. For example, you could try www.kingston.com. (http://www.kingston.com.)

If it were me, I would definitely download the software. In case you don't have access to your motherboard manual, the software will come in handy for telling you the possible memory upgrade possibilities. For example, you may have slow memory in there now, but the motherboard may very well support faster memory. Which reminds me, you should peruse some of the websites to study the differences in memory and why you might want a particular kind.

Good luck. Post back if you still have questions.

Cheers,

Big Blue 66

[Albatator]

Hey Guys, I ask my buddy early about that and he said to go to
these sites.
www.pcpitstop.com (http://www.pcpitstop.com) They tell you everything your system has
http://www.tweakfiles.com/memory/dimmid.html

Try downloading and running dimm id, it should tell you what type of memory you currently have.

This is the advice he give me so if it is not helpful I'll kick his behind.

http://www.PCGuide.com/ubb/tongue.gif

[Paleo Pete]

When you boot the computer press the [Pause] key at the second screen, with the large rectangular area. Look through the info there, I think it's the bottom right you'll find memory listed, and it will tell you what type it is, Fast Page Mode, etc.

I agree with Blue, it's most likely 72 pin SIMM, and on a board that will handle the Cyrix chip, probably either Fast Page Mode or EDO. I thought I had pics here I could post, but guess not. I'll have to look around and find some, this question isn't exactly uncommon...

What's worth buying? Both Crucial and Kingston have good reputations, in general it's a good idea to stay away from the generic types. Often generic memory will work fine, but when it doesn't, it's a real headache.

CSO (http://www.computersurplusoutlet.com) and Pricewatch (http://www.pricewatch.com) both usually have very good prices, but if you're only buying memory the shipping might make up the difference you would save over buying locally. CSO should also have pictures that will give you an idea what 72 pin SIMM and 168 pin DIMM or SDRAM look like. Chances are your board might handle DIMM as well, maybe even SDRAM, but you'll need the motherboard manual to find out which, if the slots are there.


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[Vic 970]

So far so good, I've got a lot of useful info from your suggestions, even got a better rating from pitstop after doing a few adjustments.

on the memory side I now know that I have 32 Mb of SDRAM, there are 4 slots, 2 of which are vacant, (which I assume means that the 32 Mb is made up of 2 x 16 Mb.) & each slot will take up to 32 Mb is. it now time to get the screwdriver out ? & what do I look for ? also can I add 1 or 2 x 32 Mb, or just another 2 x 16 Mb. or, sling the originals and start again with units of 32.?

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Vic

[This message has been edited by Vic 970 (edited 01-06-2001).]

[Paleo Pete]

That depends on the memory type. If it's 72 pin SIMM, you have to use pairs. If it's 168 pin DIMM you can use one chip at a time. Check the link to CSO in my above post, they usually have pictures of most items for sale, you should be able to tell from the picture which one you have. Being a system that old and with 4 slots, I'd almost bet it's 72 pin SIMM. most systems that use 168 pin DIMM or PC 100-133 will have 3 slots at most, and a board that will handle the under 200MHz Cyrix will have two DIMM slots at most, if any at all. Mine will handle the same CPU and only has one DIMM slot. The other board I recently retired had 2 DIMM slots. Both have 4 SIMM slots.

My guess would be you'll have to get a pair of 16MB or 32MB chips. Make sure you get the right type, especially if you buy it from an auction. Chances are you might not be able to return it for a refund or exchange if it's the wrong memory and you can't use it. If you get it from CSO I've dealt with them for nearly 4 years, and they do honor their warranties. I've sent back parts several times when they were bad to begin with or I ordered the wrong one, and in one case a motherboard I suspected that I fried myself, they still exchanged it. Even told them I thought I might have fried it myself, they took it back as bad out of the box.

That is not a suggestion, I was working for a computer shop at the time and we were regular customers, ordering about $500 in parts a month. I figure they wanted to keep a good customer...

Pricewatch I can't vouch for, haven't dealt with any of their advertisers, but watch out for the ones that don't post shipping cost, you'll usually end up better paying $5 more for the part and half as much for shipping by getting it somewhere else.



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My hairdresser charges me a finder's fee!!

Please post your questions on the forums, not in my email.

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