Corsair "value select"

does "value select" ram from corsair perform any better for gaming than the cheeper brands that have higher speeds. ie would it be a better choice to have a gig of corsair value select ddr2 667 than say a gig of a-data ddr2 800.

The a-data gig is slighgtly more expensive than the value select. What im asking is basicly this: how much does brand name affect in game performance if you are comparing chips of simmilar price

Brand names are brand names. Corsair is a premium brand, but they have earned it. However, this isn't to say you won't find other brands that aren't better. I've not used A-Data or Corsair, but as far as negatives go, I've not heard much. I do know that Corsair has a support forum.

ValueSelect is Corsairs mainstream lineup, wheres as XMS is the enthusiast performance. Depending on the particular A-data stick, you might be getting a more tweak friendly unit on the level of XMS.

Brand really doesn't mean a damn thing. What memory chips and what kind of support do they offer? That's what you should be concerned with.

what would you reccomend for the cash strapped gaming enthusiast

Do you want to overclock? If not, grab some PC3200 Kingston ValueRAM.

If you do, see what kind of Corsair XMS you can get. Get something with lower timings (2-2-2, not 3-3-3), and get at least 1GB in your system. Another good option would be some OCZ Platinum Rev. 2 or Patriot +XBL, as both are based on the Samsung TCCD RAM chips that overclock well with little voltage.

Also, you mentioned DDR2. The system in your specs uses DDR. DDR is 184-pin, and DDR 2 is 240-pin, not to mention the voltages are different.

In any case, the main goal you'd be best of to make is getting up to 1GB or more of RAM in your system, regardless of if you're overclocking or not. You're better off with more generic RAM (although DFI can be picky about what RAM you put in there sometimes) than highly tweakable RAM.

Just so you know B, Matt is upgrading to DDR2 and AM2 :)

Value select is just fine. I've got it, along with some A-data stuff. A-data is purely a budget brand. That stuff you found is fine but that's apparently what they have for their "bad boy" line up supposed to appeal to enthusiasts. Since DDR2 800 is the standard for AM2 mobo's I could see using it. You probably wouldn't notice a difference at all in gaming if you used either one of those. Size if really all that matters when the speed is that close.
If you were using an Intel chip or overclocking it would be a bit easir as you can just work on matching up the speeds of the ram to that of the front side bus on the cpu. That doesn't really work with AMD chips as far as I know as I belive the fsb is integrated and runs at the same speed as the chip itself (someone please correct me if I'm wrong, I've become a little rusty here).
If the Corsair is a good deal more expensive or harder to get just get the A-Data. But make sure they have a good return policy as you never know.

so a gig of corsair value select ddr2 667 is what im gonna get. but the way i think ive found it quite cheap. Just to compare, what would you guys( anyone who lives in a firstworld contry) pay for the same

Thanks for the help!! :)

No problem dude, hope it works out for you.

Yeah mee too. Its gonna be sooooo much nicer than what i have now and when i can afford a nice gpu itt be even better. I ordered it all today so im itching for it to come already!!