Member Avatar for crunchie

An easy question for all you in the know guys.
I have an MSI MS-6318 motherboard which has SDRAM installed. How can I find out if it will take DDRRAM?
TIA.

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— good question; and thanks to for tracking down the manual. To add useful, practical checks and next steps beyond that lookup:

Visually inspect the memory slots and the DIMMs themselves. Desktop SDR DIMMs are 168‑pin modules and DDR DIMMs are 184‑pin; the notch positions differ so you cannot fit one into the other. DIMMs also normally have their type/speed printed on the label (PC100/PC133 for SDR, PC1600/PC2100 etc. for DDR). The BIOS POST screen or a small utility such as CPU‑Z will report the detected memory type if you want software confirmation.

Why they are incompatible: SDR and DDR use different signaling and voltages (SDR modules run around 3.3 V; original DDR modules run around 2.5 V) and different pinouts, so there is no safe, practical adapter to convert SDR slots to DDR. For background on the standards see the SDRAM and DDR SDRAM pages: SDRAM and DDR SDRAM.

If the goal is more memory or better performance, two realistic paths are: 1) populate the current board with the fastest SDR modules it supports (match speed/timings and capacities listed in the manual), or 2) replace the motherboard (and possibly the CPU) with a DDR‑capable board if DDR is required. Quick checklist: note the board model printed on the PCB, confirm supported module size/speed in the manual, inspect DIMM labels/notches, run CPU‑Z for a software readout, then choose either higher‑spec SDR modules or a board upgrade depending on cost and reuse goals.

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Member Avatar for caperjack

the slots are different for these two types of ram so unless you board has both slots it can't work .I just downloaded a manual for you board and it only supports SDRAM!

Member Avatar for crunchie

Rats. Thanx for your trouble caperjack.

Member Avatar for caperjack

no problem .

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