RAM upgrade advice please

[Chris1959]

A little technical help please, I have a Dell Dimension 5100 with 1Gb of ram and EB plays very apart from long initial load times.
Having a little money to spare I want to add more ram. I know that ram should be installed in pairs and I have 2x512mb. I've two slots free and want to add 2x1Gb giving 3Gb in total.
Is this going to work OK or will I have to install another 2x512mb to give 2Gb in total.
Operating system is Windows Xp.

[Theages]

You should consult your Dell owner's manual, to verify that the mainboard supports 1GB modules (which it normally should ). The 2 new modules should be of the same type ('matched pair' = unbuffered DDR2 nonECC, with same size, timing).
The new modules should be of the same (or higher) speed as the 2 already in your system, since your PC will default to the highest speed the modules have in common (eg. when PC2-4300 modules and PC2-3200 modules are installed, PC2-3200 timing is used for all). Using faster modules than these already installed will give no advantage in memory speed.

I would choose 2x1GB.

Following is an excerpt of the Dell online documentation:
also look here: http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/systems/dim5100/en/sm/parts1.htm#wp1364711

Memory

You can increase your computer memory by installing memory modules on the system board.

Your computer supports DDR2 memory. For additional information on the type of memory supported by your computer, see your Owner's Manual.
DDR2 Memory Overview

DDR2 memory modules should be installed in pairs of matched memory size, speed, and technology. If the DDR2 memory modules are not installed in matched pairs, the computer will continue to operate, but with a slight reduction in performance. See the label on the module to determine the module's capacity.

NOTE: Always install DDR2 memory modules in the order indicated on the system board.

The recommended memory configurations are:

o A pair of matched memory modules installed in DIMM connectors 1 and 2

or

o A pair of matched memory modules installed in DIMM connectors 1 and 2 and another matched pair installed in DIMM connectors 3 and 4

NOTICE: Do not install ECC or buffered memory modules. Only unbuffered, non-ECC memory is supported.
NOTE: If you install DDR2 667-MHz memory, the speed is reduced to 533 MHz.

* If you install mixed pairs of DDR2 400-MHz (PC2-3200) and DDR2 533-MHz (PC2-4300) memory, the modules function at the slowest speed installed.

* Be sure to install a single memory module in DIMM connector 1, the connector closest to the processor, before you install modules in the other connectors.

NOTE: Memory purchased from Dell is covered under your computer warranty.
NOTICE: If you remove your original memory modules from the computer during a memory upgrade, keep them separate from any new modules that you may have, even if you purchased the new modules from Dell. If possible, do not pair an original memory module with a new memory module. Otherwise, your computer may not start properly. You should install your original memory modules in pairs either in DIMM connectors 1 and 2 or DIMM connectors 3 and 4.

[overweightninja]

http://www.crucial.com/

They have a system scanner on there that should tell you exactly which types of memory your system can support. Then its just a case of finding the best price :2thumbsup:
Hope that helps
Cheers

[Chris1959]

Thank's for the advice guys 2x1Gb memory modules on the way!

Uddate to anyone interested, new memory installed and load times have been halved from 5mins to about 2.5mins and turn times from 1min to 30secs not bad for £29.