Which RAM to get ?

[Master]

Hello everyone,
hope you are all good and having a great day .
I'm planning on getting a new pair of RAM modules and add them to what I have at the moment.
I currently have two Geil EVO Veloce DDR3 8 Gig 1600 mhz (11,11,11,28) modules installed on my system.
I couldn't find any Geil EVO Veloce here, instead I found these rams

GSKILL DDR3 16GB 1600 mhz 11,11,11,28 (brand new with life time warranty )
Corsair Vengenace 16GB-2133 mhz (second hand with no warranty)
Corsair XMS3 16GB-1600 mhz 11,11,11,30 (second hand but has life time warranty (but here it means for 3-5 years))

Which one do you suggest I get ? the price range for all of them are almost the same.
Thanks a lot in advance

 

[TheLostSwede]

You want to try and get the same memory ICs.
Try finding out what you have, using something like Taiphoon burner for example.
Then try to find out what the modules you're looking at are using and get ones that match as closely as possible.

 

[Master]

You want to try and get the same memory ICs.
Try finding out what you have, using something like Taiphoon burner for example.
Then try to find out what the modules you're looking at are using and get ones that match as closely as possible.

Thanks a lot . I installed that software! however, this is what I get for my RAMs. :

The manufacturer is unknown and also the timings are like this :

whats more important here that I need to pay more attention to?

 

[TheLostSwede]

Right, that means it can't identify the memory ICs.
That makes it a bit harder.
However, what you can tell from that info is that it's dual rank, so you're ideally going to want another set of dual rank modules.

Looking at what you have, I would go for the Corsair XMS3 16GB-1600 mhz 11,11,11,30 as it seems to be the most similar kit in terms of spec.

 

[Master]

Right, that means it can't identify the memory ICs.
That makes it a bit harder.
However, what you can tell from that info is that it's dual rank, so you're ideally going to want another set of dual rank modules.

Looking at what you have, I would go for the Corsair XMS3 16GB-1600 mhz 11,11,11,30 as it seems to be the most similar kit in terms of spec.

Thanks , but wouldnt GSKILL DDR3 8GB 1600 mhz 11,11,11,28 be more similar ? my timings are also 11,11,11,28 !

 

[Nero1024]

Just sell your current RAM and get this one >> Corsair Vengenace 16GB-2133 mhz <<. It will be more than enough for most. Usually, RAM don't break and people just sell their own to get new and faster ones. Try not to mix EVER different RAMs. They will work, but it's unknown it there would be issues or not. Your RAM will work on worst latencies, frequencies possible according to all RAM sticks you have

 

[TheLostSwede]

Just sell your current RAM and get this one >> Corsair Vengenace 16GB-2133 mhz <<. It will be more than enough for most. Usually, RAM don't break and people just sell their own to get new and faster ones. Try not to mix EVER different RAMs. They will work, but it's unknown it there would be issues or not. Your RAM will work on worst latencies, frequencies possible according to all RAM sticks you have

He already has 16GB of RAM, I guess he wants to upgrade to 32GB.
And mixing RAM isn't a big deal. I really don't know why people are so opposed to this. As long as they're the same speed, it tends to work perfectly fine.

Thanks , but wouldnt GSKILL DDR3 8GB 1600 mhz 11,11,11,28 be more similar ? my timings are also 11,11,11,28 !

That sub-timing isn't going to make any difference at all. Also, you can change memory timings in the BIOS/UEFI, which you might have to do anyhow to make both kits work properly together.
My understanding was that the G.Skill kit was 2x4GB whereas the Corsair kit is 2x8GB? Or am I missing something from your description?

 

[Master]

He already has 16GB of RAM, I guess he wants to upgrade to 32GB.
And mixing RAM isn't a big deal. I really don't know why people are so opposed to this. As long as they're the same speed, it tends to work perfectly fine.


That sub-timing isn't going to make any difference at all. Also, you can change memory timings in the BIOS/UEFI, which you might have to do anyhow to make both kits work properly together.
My understanding was that the G.Skill kit was 2x4GB whereas the Corsair kit is 2x8GB? Or am I missing something from your description?

and yes I want to upgrade to 32Gig of RAM.
They are all 2x8 gig modules.

 

[TheLostSwede]

Right, I see you edited the first post a bit. Then the G.Skill ought to be fine as well.

 

[Nero1024]

He already has 16GB of RAM, I guess he wants to upgrade to 32GB.
And mixing RAM isn't a big deal. I really don't know why people are so opposed to this. As long as they're the same speed, it tends to work perfectly fine.

Yes, but 2133 is much more faster than 1600. Speed of RAM is much more important, than quantity. Nowadays 8GB is enough. 16 GB is needed for futureproof or for work. 32? Maybe for server, but considering budget, it will be meh

 

[TheLostSwede]

Yes, but 2133 is much more faster than 1600. Speed of RAM is much more important, than quantity. Nowadays 8GB is enough. 16 GB is needed for futureproof or for work. 32? Maybe for server, but considering budget, it will be meh

His original kit is 1600MHz, so if he's going to get 32GB in total, going for mixed speeds makes no sense. And he's got an old rig, so the RAM speed doesn't matter all that much.

 

[bonehead123]

Corsair 4 me... it has been my go-to ram for many years now, and I have been building pc's for over 15 years, neveranottaproblemo

I'm not sayin other brands are not good also, but I have seen one issue or another with almost every brand out there at one time or another, except Corsair.... just plug & play like it should be, regardless of platform, speed, timings etc etc

 

[TheLostSwede]

Corsair 4 me... it has been my go-to ram for many years now, and I have been building pc's for over 15 years, neveranottaproblemo

I'm not sayin other brands are not good also, but I have seen one issue or another with almost every brand out there at one time or another, except Corsair.... just plug & play like it should be, regardless of platform, speed, timings etc etc

Good thing you never used Corsairs LPX modules with Ryzen then...
It's the only time I've had problems with RAM, apart from that time many moons ago that VIA sent over a board with a new chipset and DDR 133 or 166MHz memory for testing (can't remember which it was) and I couldn't get the system to boot... So much for being first with support for faster RAM...

 

[bonehead123]

Good thing you never used Corsairs LPX modules with Ryzen then...

Well, that's interesting, but has not been my experience, although I will admit to only building a few AMD systems for clients in the past year or so, and have not had any calls/complaints about any ram issues with them...

 

[John Naylor]

1. The best advice is to get the exact same make and model w/ exact same specs.... same speed, same timings same chipc... using faster speed is not an option as it would have to be cloicked down to 1600 to match the original set

2. Recognize that manufacturers change suppliers. Original versions of the Mushkin DDR3 2400 and Corsair Vengeance DDR3 2400 used the exact same memory chips with 10-12-12-28 timings. Corsair switched to a new cheaper, supplier with 10-12-12-28. One of our users had upgraded and brought in in and we couldn't get them to work ... however, adding a pair of new Muskins to the existing Cordairs worked on 1st boot w/ no tweaking

3. Recognize that even if you do get a perfect same brand match, you have no guarantee ... if they don't play well together it's tuff noogies. Better off not taking a chance... Sell the 2 x8s and but 2 x 16GB or 4 x 8GB in same package at whatever speed and timings you MoBo supports and you can afford.

4. 2 x 16GB is preferred over 4 x 8GB ... lighter load on mem controller and any CPU overclocking may be impacted by the added loads.

5. 8 GB of RAM stopped being enough in 2010

6. Some applications are not impacted at all by memory speed, some get a boost from faster speed, some get a b0ost from faster timings ... for an over all comparision that really means nothing except by comparison CAS x 1000 / speed

So for example ...

DDR4 3000 CAS 15 = 15 x 1000 / 3000 = 5.00
DDR4 3200 CAS 16 = 16 x 1000 / 3200 = 5.00

Again some apps won't care, some will like 3200 better, some apps will like 15 better ... but it's a rough and simple gauge of relative performance

 

[TheLostSwede]

4. 2 x 16GB is preferred over 4 x 8GB ... lighter load on mem controller and any CPU overclocking may be impacted by the added loads.

I take it you're aware that not all quad kits are tested by the manufacturer as such, right?
In fact, a lot of dual channel kits aren't even tested as kits, as the modules are often tested one by one at the factory.
And yes, I have actually been to Kingston's factory in Hsinchu and seen how they test things.
Obviously other companies might be doing things differently, but just a heads up to not expect all these kits to have been tested as kits.

On the same topic, I bought two kits of two modules, of the same RAM admittedly, and as you can see in my system spec, they run just fine at much higher speeds than they're rated at.

But yes, ideally, buy matched memory, but when not possible, it's still not impossible to make it work, but might take some tuning in the BIOS/UEFI to make it happen.
I've never had an issue with "mismatched" sets of memory, be it in desktops or notebooks.

Actually, how would you go about upgrading a notebook with soldered down RAM and one free SO-DIMM slot?

 

[John Naylor]

I take it you're aware that not all quad kits are tested by the manufacturer as such, right?
In fact, a lot of dual channel kits aren't even tested as kits, as the modules are often tested one by one at the factory.
And yes, I have actually been to Kingston's factory in Hsinchu and seen how they test things.
Obviously other companies might be doing things differently, but just a heads up to not expect all these kits to have been tested as kits.

On the same topic, I bought two kits of two modules, of the same RAM admittedly, and as you can see in my system spec, they run just fine at much higher speeds than they're rated at.

But yes, ideally, buy matched memory, but when not possible, it's still not impossible to make it work, but might take some tuning in the BIOS/UEFI to make it happen.
I've never had an issue with "mismatched" sets of memory, be it in desktops or notebooks.

Actually, how would you go about upgrading a notebook with soldered down RAM and one free SO-DIMM slot?

1. I'm not sure how the comment applies to buying 2 x 16Gb versus 4 x 8GB as it relates to memory controller loading and overclocking

2. Back in the day, Mushkin did guarantee that they tesed every set, maybe they lied. But I don't really don't care how or when they tested it, what factories you visited, nor if they never tested anything ... it does not have anything to do with the reasoning behind the choice. I care about the fact that:

a) If we buy a 4 x 8GB "set" or a 2 x 8GB "set", I have a guarantee that all sticks will work together for their lifetime.
b) If my RAM came from more than one packaged set I have 0 guarantee, leaving me stuck if i can't get it work. If a user's system fails because they don't, the cost in time, money and resources is mine. With a packaged set, the manufacturer will replace and I am not involved
c) I'd really rather not want to invest my time fiddling with CAS adjustments
d) When buying packaged sets, a 2 x 16 GB set is a wiser choice than 4 x 8GB ... less load on mem controller and more likelihood of a higher OC

3. As to how I add RAM to a laptop ... it all begins in the laptop selection, I don't buy laptops from vendors who don't actually "make" a laptop the which includes just about every brand except MSI. We have every laptop custom built to our / users component specifications and we pay less than the Dell (Alienware), Asus models. I have replaced CMOS batteries, GFX cards, fans, added SSDs and HDs, added RAM .... and w/o voiding the warrantee. Also, wouldn't have a free slot as we specify every build with "sets of 2"

 

[Master]

Thank you all guys for your kind messages and information.
Here is the update of how things went.
I ultimately ended up buying a 16g (2x8) ADATA XPG V2 DDR3 2400MHz (cl 11) ( it was a set).
After reading all the comments, I said, well lets risk this, at the very least, I'll be using the 16gig DDr2400 rather than the current 16gig ddr1600! and if everything goes OK, I'll be rocking 32gigs !
so I bought this.
I installed both modules and the system started to reset repeatedly!
I then removed the old modules (i.e. 1600mhz), then every thing booted up just fine.
I then entered BIOS, and set the ram speed to 1600mhz, saved, turned off, added one 1600mhz module , rebooted and when that booted fine, added the other 1600 mhz module .
So basically I had to first set the ram speed to 1600 instead of auto and then the Motherboard took care of everything else.
I now have 32 Gigs of ram running at 1600mhz which is great.
I ran memtest and everything was fine.
Thought maybe I share this with everyone maybe it comes handy to some people later on
Have a wornderful day

 

[birdie]

Yes, but 2133 is much more faster than 1600. Speed of RAM is much more important, than quantity. Nowadays 8GB is enough. 16 GB is needed for futureproof or for work. 32? Maybe for server, but considering budget, it will be meh

Nowadays 8GB is certainly not enough by a long shot. I've seen games which eat close to 8GB of RAM for breakfast (and mind that Windows itself consumes close to 2GB of RAM, and then there's filesystem cache and other running applications, e.g. web-browser or game launchers like Steam). Also if your GPU doesn't have enough VRAM your extra available RAM will speed up everything significantly or will help eliminate major stutters.

In 2020 the bare minimum of RAM for AAA gaming is 16GB thought having 24/32GB of RAM certainly won't hurt.

 

[John Naylor]

2 x 4GB stopped being the "Gaming Standard" in 2010 ... Unless we see tri channel boards again, i don't see 24 GB being a thing. Dual and quad channel are the options of the day tho you can always expect better performance w/ 2 x16 than 4 x 8GB

I would do some testing with your current games and apps ... I would NOT be surprised to see 2 x 8GB @ 2400 outperform the 4 x 8 GB #@1600 in the majority of tasks you use. And you can expect higher OCs with the 2400 pair alone. Won't know until you try. I'd start with an overnight run of memtest86+ followed by a the 8 minute benchmark in RoG Real Bench (record results) with 4 sticks at 1600 and 2 sticks at 2400. Then run the RoG RB stress test for 4 hours.
for
I expect the benchmark to favor the 4 sticks as the applications are RAM hungry. But for the applications and games that you typically run every day, I think you may be surpised at the results.

 

[moproblems99]

I would NOT be surprised to see 2 x 8GB @ 2400 outperform the 4 x 8 GB #@1600

Not sure how 2 x 8 @ faster speed will help you when you fill it up because you need 4 x 8?

 

[Nero1024]

Nowadays 8GB is certainly not enough by a long shot. I've seen games which eat close to 8GB of RAM for breakfast (and mind that Windows itself consumes close to 2GB of RAM, and then there's filesystem cache and other running applications, e.g. web-browser or game launchers like Steam). Also if your GPU doesn't have enough VRAM your extra available RAM will speed up everything significantly or will help eliminate major stutters.

In 2020 the bare minimum of RAM for AAA gaming is 16GB thought having 24/32GB of RAM certainly won't hurt.

Bullshit. I have played plenty of AAA games, but none of them required more than 8 GB of RAM. 8 GB of RAM is almost always enough for gaming. Only selected games with sandbox mechanics need more or games that are highly unoptimised. Speed and latencies of RAM is much more important for average user

 

[EarthDog]

Nowadays 8GB is certainly not enough by a long shot. I've seen games which eat close to 8GB of RAM for breakfast (and mind that Windows itself consumes close to 2GB of RAM, and then there's filesystem cache and other running applications, e.g. web-browser or game launchers like Steam). Also if your GPU doesn't have enough VRAM your extra available RAM will speed up everything significantly or will help eliminate major stutters.

In 2020 the bare minimum of RAM for AAA gaming is 16GB thought having 24/32GB of RAM certainly won't hurt.

For a lower spec gaming rig, 8GB is fine. 16GB is certainly a 2020 sweetspot for AAA gaming, but I wouldn't call it a "bare minimum".

Also if your GPU doesn't have enough VRAM your extra available RAM will speed up everything significantly or will help eliminate major stutters.

Not really... system RAM is slower than vRAM/GDDR6. When you page out it can cause stutters/hitching. Look at the 4gb 5500xt and what sort of performance hit it takes when using system ram.....stutters can and do happen when paging out to the slower system RAM.

 

[Chomiq]

For a minimum spec gaming rig, 8GB is fine. 16GB is certainly 2020 sweetspot. I wouldn't call it a minimum.

Some say that next gen nvme use might lead to devs using ram as a workaround on PC. Time will tell.

 

[EarthDog]

Some say that next gen nvme use might lead to devs using ram as a workaround on PC. Time will tell.

They've got a long way to go to even catch up to system RAM... look at AIDA64 bandwidth tests for say z390...and look at current gen nvme speeds (up to 5K MB/s r/w) they need to be ORDERS faster to even reach system ram. So it will be a while I'd imagine.