What RAM to get?

Captain Obvious

Hoping someone can help me decide on upgrading my RAM. I currently have 2 4GB DDR3 sticks currently installed in my P67A GD55 motherboard. Can I get two more sticks of a different brand or should I replace the 2 I have with two new 8GB ones?

me_irl

https://www.msi.com/Motherboard/P67AGD55.html#hero-specification

DDR3 Memory
DDR3 1066/1333/1600*/2133*(OC)
Memory Channel
Dual
DIMM Slots
4
Max Memory (GB)
32

wotzgoingon

What do you need more RAM for? Are you doing anything with the computer that will need more?

Captain Obvious

wotzgoingon wrote: »

What do you need more RAM for? Are you doing anything with the computer that will need more?

Playing PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds. It apparently has a memory leak that causes issues with 8GB RAM due to the cache not clearing properly after each game. It can be avoided by restarting the game after each match but sometimes I forget to and I've been getting mid game crashes with an "out of memory" notice. I've been told it is not as big an issue with 16GB.

wotzgoingon

Well I would just get two 8GB sticks so you will have 16GB's rather than adding two more 4GB sticks.

That's what I would do personally as it will run more smoothly not that adding 2 more different will cause much or a upset to the system it is just good practice to have matching sets.

K.O.Kiki

Make sure you get DDR3-2133 for maximum performance; it's the same price as other speeds anyway.

Captain Obvious

Thanks. Any suggestions on where to get it from? They don't seem to have it on Komplette which is where I normally get single items.

K.O.Kiki

Captain Obvious wrote: »

Thanks. Any suggestions on where to get it from? They don't seem to have it on Komplette which is where I normally get single items.

Have a look on any of these:
<Geizhals search>

choons

Your motherboard has 4 ram slots so you could get another 2x4gb and add them in. Ignore the brand and get the same speed (or higher) as the two that are in the PC already.

Your motherboard will run at the speed of the slowest stick of ram. Also unlikely you will need more than 16gb before moving to a new motherboard with DDR4.

Elara online is handy if you can collect in Dublin to avoid postage.

Captain Obvious

Can someone tell me a bit more about the Mhz value? How big a difference does it make? If I got a 2600 stick for a motherboard with a 2133 limit would it simply not work or would it be limited to 2133?

This is what I currently have but I don't see a Mhz value for it. Is it 1066? Would it make much of a noticeable difference to get 2 new 2133 8GB sticks over two more of the ones I currently have? Does it make any difference if you have 4x4GB over 2x8GB?

Finally, does anyone know any good stores where you can simply walk in and buy RAM? Maplin and PC World are the only ones I know of.

K.O.Kiki

Captain Obvious wrote: »

Can someone tell me a bit more about the Mhz value? How big a difference does it make? If I got a 2600 stick for a motherboard with a 2133 limit would it simply not work or would it be limited to 2133?

This is what I currently have but I don't see a Mhz value for it. Is it 1066? Would it make much of a noticeable difference to get 2 new 2133 8GB sticks over two more of the ones I currently have? Does it make any difference if you have 4x4GB over 2x8GB?

Finally, does anyone know any good stores where you can simply walk in and buy RAM? Maplin and PC World are the only ones I know of.

If you got a stick rated faster than your motherboard could handle, it would default to the fastest speed your motherboard can handle (i.e. 2133MHz).
Same if you mix sticks of different speeds, they'll default to the lowest common speed.

Your RAM is 1333MHz, which can really affect performance in modern games (e.g. 5-10fps lower than simply having 2133MHz RAM)

Maplin & PC World will charge you an extra €30-40 as thanks for "buying local" :rolleyes:
Elara.ie are good, best price I've found in an Irish shop is MemoryC.ie
https://www.memoryc.ie/18647-16gb-g-skill-ddr3-pc3-19200-2400mhz-sniper-series-11-13-13-31-dual-channel-kit-2x8gb.html

Captain Obvious

Yeah Elara are the best I could find but I was willing to pay a bit extra to have it for the weekend.