Is It Best To Replace Old Memory Sticks When Adding More Memory To A Computer?
The quick short answer is that it is not necessary to replace the old memory sticks if you have extra slots for more memory. However, if the old memory is a DDR 2700 type stick and your new sticks are 5400 DDR-2 then the first thing to consider is can the motherboard take the improved and Faster memory? If no then it is time to consider the age of your computer, amount of hard drive space, peripheral attachments, ability to run the latest software programs; including Windows XP or Vista, etc. And replace the motherboard or computer. If yes, then remember that the faster memory stick will run at the slowest memory speed. In this scenario, at the slower 2700 DDR speed. Again, usually sticks at this speed were in the 512 megabit bandwidth range. Today you can get fast 5400 DDR or DDR-2 sticks up to 4 GIGS. If you are going to replace over 4x the bandwidth, then throw out the old sticks and use the newer ones. The second speed restriction will then be the motherboard bus speed. BIOS will d
