I knew I have this somewhere, just found and want to post for the Visitors to consider, if wanting to build a Machines:
The diagrams posted here are taken from the AMD techdocs, which you can read in full here:
http://support.amd.com/en-us
(diagrams found on pages 85 and 86 if you don't want to read everything!)
The AMD memory controller
The memory controller on AMD64 Athlon / Phenom / Sempron CPUs is contained in the CPU itself. It doesn't matter what mainboard you have, Nvidia, ATI, or ULi chipset based, mainboard chipset is irrelevant to what memory is supported, and any limitations are not due to MSI either, you'll find the same limitations on any other manufacturer's mainboards.
For AM2/AM2+ systems using DDR2 memory
AMD Athlon64/Sempron CPUs support a maximum 800mhz memory speed.
AMD Phenom CPUs support a maximum 1066mhz memory speed.
For AM3 systems using DDR3 memory
AMD Phenom II CPUs support a maximum 1333mhz memory speed.
So can I use faster memory?
If you buy memory rated to run faster than these speeds (listed earlier), then you will have to overclock your system in order to use your memory at its rated speed.
Remember though, when you overclock, you are exceeding specifications of your memory controller inside the CPU. An overclock is never guaranteed to work...
Of course, these sticks will happily run at lower speeds.
Please, keep overclocking questions out of this area, but post your question here: >> Overclockers and Modding Corner <<
What memory to buy?
If you are not planning on any overclocking, then any generic DDR2/DDR3 memory should work.
To get the most out of your memory, use two sticks in dual channel mode. If you use 4 sticks, then your memory will work, but only at a lower speed.
If you are looking for performance memory, look for Dual-Channel kits tested for AMD systems, as many are Intel optimised, and the Intel timings are not always suitable for AMD systems. Don't waste your money buying Tri-channel kits, they are optimised for Intel i7 systems, and you'll get better performance using just one or two sticks anyway. And if you're lucky to get three sticks working together, they'll only run in single channel mode, which will hinder performance anyway.
Don't mix and match sticks either. Always use identical matched sticks for best performance in dual channel mode.
For optimal results and trouble free maximal performance it's recommended to use 1 memory stick per channel, as a general rule this always works.
4gb+ memory
Due to 32bit physical address limitations, if your system has 4GB or more RAM installed, a 32bit operating system will only be able to utilise 3.2-3.5gb, because of memory reserved for other resources, such as VGA cards, RAID controllers etc. It is pointless having more than 4gb RAM in a 32bit system.
To be able to utilise 4gb+ memory, you need to run a 64bit operating system. But while the 64bit OS will be able to 'see' and utilise more than 4gb of RAM, any 32bit programs will still have the same physical address limitations, in order to fully utilise more than 4gb of RAM, you'll also need to utilise dedicated 64bit software also. So again, it is also pretty pointless to have 4gb or more, in a 64bit OS, if you're only ever going to run 32bit software.
EDIT : Check here for more up to date information: http://support.amd.com/en-us
July 31, 2014
regards,
Maxx
A few tips on overclocking...
Doing this stresses your components! Stressing means it makes them work harder. This can shorten the life span of one or more components and/or cause them to overheat and burn them out. Then you will need new ones. Overclocking one component can cause over components to work harder which will stress them as well.
I've burned out a CPU doing this because I kept pushing it to see how high it would go. There is no need to push your system to it's limits all of the time. Doing it once in a while is fine but you still take a chance. Small increments of overclocking are fine in most cases. But never try pushing them to their limits unless you've got money to burn.
For more information, I suggest these 2 sites.
http://tomshardware.net (http://tomshardware.net) - Probably one of the best hardware sites around. I've been using them since my first build about 11 years ago. General hardware issues, product testing, overclocking, tutorials...you name it, they know it!
http://overclockers.com (http://overclockers.com) - For all things dealing with overclocking including which hardware to get specifically designed for overclocking as well as tutorials and product testing.
And ALWAYS do some research before attempting to build a PC or try to overclock it! Just because a component may have overclocking features doesn't mean it's good or will play nice with your other components.