RAM upgrade

[Noah_Hero]

So yeah I want to upgrade my RAM (right now I only have 8GB and that kinda sucks for ARMA 3) but I have no idea how much RAM is reasonable and what to "buy" (=wish for Christmas). Any recommendations?

 

And btw my current MB (Gigabyte GA-H97-D3H) only supports DDR3-1333 and DDR-1600...don´t know if it´s usefull to upgrade that one as well to be able to get DDR4.

[Ryko]

If you're looking to increase performance easily and cheaply, yes, adding two more sticks of 4gb ram (I'm assuming you've got 2x4gb in there right now) is the easiest way to go. It won't be a huge increase but it will overall be a good thing. Make sure whatever you get matches the timing of your current RAM (the best would be to get two more sticks of the same).

 

The best upgrade would be a new, faster processor, assuming you haven't maxed out what your motherboard can support. But this does involve familiarity and comfort with PC modifications.

[Amentes]

http://eu.crucial.com/eur/en/compatible-upgrade-for/GIGABYTE/ga-h97-d3h#memoryResults

[Noah_Hero]

27 minutes ago, Ryko said:

If you're looking to increase performance easily and cheaply, yes, adding two more sticks of 4gb ram (I'm assuming you've got 2x4gb in there right now) is the easiest way to go. It won't be a huge increase but it will overall be a good thing. Make sure whatever you get matches the timing of your current RAM (the best would be to get two more sticks of the same).

Since it´s christmas it doesn´t have to be as cheap as possible but mainly I don´t know if my current RAM is anyhow good at all by now = if it´s worth buying another pack.

27 minutes ago, Ryko said:

The best upgrade would be a new, faster processor, assuming you haven't maxed out what your motherboard can support. But this does involve familiarity and comfort with PC modifications.

I builded my current rig myself so changing the CPU shouldn´t be a problem (aside from being afraid to break the MB while attaching the CPU cooler). But I also got no idea on what´s usefull in that area.

 

Right now my setup is this (I mainly want more/better RAM but would also switch the MB if it´s worth it/needed and the CPU):

• MB: Gigabyte GA-H97-HD3 (So. 1150)
• CPU: i5 4460 @3.2GHz
• GPU: ZOTAC GTX 1080 AMP Edition
• RAM: 8GB (2x 4096MB) Crucial Ballistix Sport DDR3-1600 DIMM
• PSU: be quiet! Strong Power 10 500W
  • +3x S-ATA {SSD, HDD, CD/DVD reader/writer}
  • +3x Fan
  • +1x CPU Fan

 

17 minutes ago, Amentes said:

http://eu.crucial.com/eur/en/compatible-upgrade-for/GIGABYTE/ga-h97-d3h#memoryResults

Thanks That would be around 90€ to get another 8GB of the same RAM as I have right now.

[Ryko]

Other thoughts:

You could probably put a i7 4770k in there, it's a greater processor (I run it) and you can also overclock it if you're feeling daring. 

 

If you aren't already running arma off of an SSD I'd highly recommend it. 

[Noah_Hero]

4 minutes ago, Ryko said:

You could probably put a i7 4770k in there, it's a greater processor (I run it)

Ok, sounds good and the socket also fits. But I probably won´t be overclocking it since I really like warrantys.

 

5 minutes ago, Ryko said:

If you aren't already running arma off of an SSD I'd highly recommend it.

Already doing that.

 

 

But would you rather buy entirely new, better RAM or would you just upgrade the one I have right now? Because I really don´t know if the RAM I own is ok, or not. And what is appropriate for ARMA? Because right now with 8GB it usually is a pain.

[Ryko]

It might be easier to just buy 2x8gb modules rather than find two more 4gb modules of the same spec to what you have... And probably not a lot more expensive. 

[Noah_Hero]

2 minutes ago, Ryko said:

It might be easier to just buy 2x8gb

Ok, any suggestions?

 

2 minutes ago, Ryko said:

And probably not a lot more expensive. 

Yeah as I sad, it would cost around 80€ to 90€ to upgrade with two more 4GB modules of the same type.

[GamerbugUK]

Depending what you are doing the i5 will do you just fine; though the i7 stated is a nice upgrade, it's not needed. 

 

However if you are recording, or doing a lot of video rendering an i7 is a better choice. 

 

16gb is a good number for memory, go 1600 and get 2 x 8gb matching sticks, corsair is my choice but kingston etc are all good. 

 

The SSD is another good option if you don't have one for gaming. 

[Noah_Hero]

3 hours ago, GamerbugUK said:

Depending what you are doing the i5 will do you just fine; though the i7 stated is a nice upgrade, it's not needed.

ok

4 hours ago, GamerbugUK said:

However if you are recording, or doing a lot of video rendering an i7 is a better choice.

not doing that at all

4 hours ago, GamerbugUK said:

16gb is a good number for memory, go 1600 and get 2 x 8gb matching sticks, corsair is my choice but kingston etc are all good.

ok, then I´ll have a look on what they offer

4 hours ago, GamerbugUK said:

The SSD is another good option if you don't have one for gaming. 

I literally only bought that one for gaming

[JANXOL]

16gb is good, but why stop there? Personally when I have upgraded my RAM last time, i have left the original 2 sticks in and just added new ones, so I have 2x4 and 2x8 for a total of 24gb. The question is, how much do you really need? If its for "normal" gaming, 16gb should be perfectly fine, but if you're like me... There comes a point in your life when you mod a game so hard it actually needs 20gbs of RAM to load a save. As said earlier, corsairs and kingstons are reasonable choice.

 

Speaking from experience, one thing to consider when doing an upgrade is cooling. You may need to add a fanblade or two, especially if you're planning to overclock, and make sure air can circulate inside the case. Peformance won't really increase if you put new stuff in, but the pc will keep crashing because of temps.

I put two bonus fans inside my case, and my friend, who has no space for them, had to lower room temperature by a couple degrees to keep playing.