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macbook pro 2.33mhz memory

S

snake007uk

macrumors member
Original poster
Jan 8, 2008
36
4
Guys,

I have one question why can this mac 2.33mhz only have 3gb? and does that mean I have to install 1*1GB and 1*2GB module?
 
snake007uk said:
1*1GB and 1*2GB module?
Click to expand...

I have this setup in mine so I lost dual-channel mode but didn't notice a huge drop in performance at all. Besides, I sometimes go 2 weeks without rebooting so once an application loads once it always loads faster the next time around. I have never run out of ram, even running VMWare virtual machines and right now on 18 hours uptime I have 100k page-ins and only 1500 page-outs and that number of page-outs is even a bit unusual. My last reboot had an uptime of 12 days and less than 1k page-outs. So generally once it's in RAM it pretty much stays there. I suspect my current high page-out is due to running transmission overnight.
 
snake007uk said:
Guys,

I have one question why can this mac 2.33mhz only have 3gb? and does that mean I have to install 1*1GB and 1*2GB module?
Click to expand...

Wow, it's only 2.33mhz? Must be slow. :p

I don't know the technical details, but I remember it having something to do with the previous motherboard (and why some people for waiting for the Santa Rosa platform). Accordingly, you could put in 4gb, but I think there was some risk of memory beyond 3gb overwriting itself, hence the 3gb limit.

Yes, you would need a 1gb and a 2gb chip.
 
snake007uk said:
Guys,

I have one question why can this mac 2.33mhz only have 3gb? and does that mean I have to install 1*1GB and 1*2GB module?
Click to expand...

That's two questions ;) It's a limitation of the chipset. The Santa Rosa chipset removed that limitation in later Macbook Pros. I've got a 1gb and a 2gb in mine, but last year when I bought the machine a 2gb stick of memory went for around $350 (Crucial).
 
I was in the same boat as you...I just went for the 2x2GB option simply because I was able to get it for fairly cheap from Frys.com.

They just had a sale where you got 2x2GB for about $64 after rebate and shipping.

It doesn't bother me enough that I'm losing out on 1GB and I don't think my needs really require the extra gig...3GB is fine for me. And this way I was able to keep dual channel in tact as well.
 
4GB of RAM on my 2.33GHz MacBook Pro

I'm not sure if there was an update, but I just installed it today and noticed that all 4GB is registered.
 

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i installed 4gb in mine it doesn' read all 4 but it will read a little bit of that extra gig plus the matched pairs will run better. so your ram turns out to be 3.3gigs or something like that.
 
jjlee777 said:
I'm not sure if there was an update, but I just installed it today and noticed that all 4GB is registered.
Click to expand...

it will detect 4 gb. However, actual usage is limited to 3.

pull up Activity Monitor.
 
it still shows 4gb in the activity monitor also.
 

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jjlee777 said:
it still shows 4gb in the activity monitor also.
Click to expand...

Mine shows the same, but mine can only access 3GB of RAM. It can't access 4GB, because of a chipset limitation. While both of our MBP's support 4GB of RAM, it's total system memory which includes video memory and other devices. The video card I have has 256MB of memory, so that comes off the 4GB limit automatically.
 
Sorry about coming to the party late.

1. Will the 2.33 mpb take only 3 gigs or 3.3 like the first core 2 duo white imacs?

2. Will there be any noticeable difference in having dual channel mode from matched ram? I know it's not going to make a world of difference, but with 2 gig sticks going for $30-40, any slight difference would probably be worth the money.

Thanks.
 
I have a 2.16 MBP and I've tried both the 3 and 4 GB configuration. The difference of having Dual Channel memory is noticeable and significant if you do anything more than surfing the web, reading emails and writing documents. Zero Issues.
 
Hi,

I will appreciate your advice, I have a 2.33GHz MacBook Pro with 2GB RAM.

I want to upgrade to 3GB or 4GB. As posted I visited Frys.com

Could you suggest which memory brand/model to buy?

Thanks
 
Animalk said:
I have a 2.16 MBP and I've tried both the 3 and 4 GB configuration. The difference of having Dual Channel memory is noticeable and significant if you do anything more than surfing the web, reading emails and writing documents. Zero Issues.
Click to expand...

Virtually every article / test I have read indicates that dual channel results in a 2% - 4% improvement at the most.
 
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