is 12gb ram unnecessary?
polycounter lvl 14
Hey,
So I currently have 4gb ram and I was thinking of getting an additional 8gb ram...I have 4 more slots on my Mobo and I was wondering if I should go for 12gb ram or go for just 8gb ram? Would I see a huge difference or any difference between 8-12gb?
Thanks
So I currently have 4gb ram and I was thinking of getting an additional 8gb ram...I have 4 more slots on my Mobo and I was wondering if I should go for 12gb ram or go for just 8gb ram? Would I see a huge difference or any difference between 8-12gb?
Thanks
Replies
Also, can you be more specific as to how many RAM slots you have total, dual or triple channel (I don't understand how you have 4 free slots), and the RAM speed/timings?
That doesn't mean having 12gb available won't be helpful, because it will you can have other apps open and they won't be beating each other up trying to get a slot in the ram. Just know some apps aren't going to use it all, but if you're using a few apps you will more than likely utilize it.
I would also throw out all the ram you already have and buy all 12gb from the same manufacture at the same time.
Nope. Your RAM is triple channel. You need to be using sets of 3 RAM sticks. It's best if all of the RAM is of the same speed, voltage, timing, etc.
You may encounter problems if you try to add 4 more sticks that don't match what you already have.
Whether you decide to go to 12GB or not, you should see about finding a matching 2GB RAM stick to the 2x2GB you have now or replacing them with a faster triple channel set.
I'm upgraded to 8GB of high perf ram now and it's completely night and day by comparison. I can have Photoshop, Max, Zbrush, UDK and several other apps open all day long and not have any slow downs. I can work on my larger multi-layer 4096 textures without any lag or stuttering in Photoshop. It really is quite amazing what the ram itself does.
If you are using Zbrush only, with 6-8gb are enough, for the app, the os, and other apps requiring less than 3gb of memory.
8gb ddr3 1600mhz are now by 80 euros here. I have been using a workstation with 16 gb for years (around 4), and with the cheap prices in memories, i builded a new computer recently with 16 gb aswell. That thing of working with Max, modo, Zbrush, Photoshop, etc. has no price.
If you are going to mount more modules, buy the same modules.
Maybe it's the way I segment most of my designs, but I hardly ever go over 2 million polygons for any SubTool in Zbrush. Seems like a bit of a waste of effort IMHO. Pore details hardly ever bake out in a Normal Map, and there comes a point where Microdetails will just work better in nDo.
My AO bakes take the most time, and I hadn't seen much of a difference between 6 and 8 gigs.
I have 8gb and I'm perfectly happy with that.
Until I read that last sentence, I almost thought you were completely serious. I was going "Is he using a render farm or something? Yeesh." I don't think I got enough sleep last night.
Anyway. I have 8GB and an SSD in my desktop and it's an absolute dream to use. The RAM is nice, but the SSD is what just kicks the entire thing into overdrive and makes the whole experience that much sweeter. I can now launch Max 2010 in about five seconds as opposed to the minute plus it took on my previous machine (and that thing was no slouch). With the combination of RAM and SSD, I can now open Photoshop, Mudbox, Max and any other programs in a fraction of the time and I can usually jump between them with zero lag or other problems.
At work I have 16gigs and love it.
the Increase in performance is like night and day, everything opens super fast.
if you don't have an SSD I would recommend getting that over the upgrade in RAM.
I ordered 8gb (4x2gb sticks) at 1600MHz. paying a little extra for the 1600MHz.
whats the difference between 1333MHz and 1600MHz...is it faster?
also. Is it better to get 2x4gb sticks when dealing with software that uses large chunks of RAM. i.e. keeping 1 process on 1 stick rather than spread across a few sticks. If you get my meaning.
there are my specs I want to add more ram at least so I can play games as well without a problem and I did think of having 12gb for future purposes but I am so unknowable about building pc's my older brother built this one and I bought it from him. Can someone help me pick out a set of sticks of ram?
I think I have these :http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231277 all I know is I have 4gb ram with 2 sticks of Gskill red ram.
I am thinking of getting these, would I have to scrap the ones ? or can I include these?
And the fact that most games are still 32bit, meaning 2gb limit.
Working smart and efficient will save you more than just memory.
Stinger, it really doesn't matter what size of stick you use in the end, and you'll only gain benefits from memory timings and speed if you know what they actually do.
That way, you can keep all programs in your workflow open during your entire art process without having to worry about RAM.
Even if you don't need all 12 GB for all your programs, you can setup what is called a RAM disk and put paging files onto the left-over RAM to speed up undo and redo.
However, I agree that the biggest speed increases are going to come from a SSD.
I wouldn't do overclocking on the machine you do your work on unless it came from a builder overclocked with a warranty.
As far as the RAM goes, you can do 1600Mhz with your current mobo. A low latency RAM stick will be faster during a lot of read/write operations. To get the triple channel, you'll have to go with 6 or 12 GB configurations. Newegg has two kits that are 1600Mhz, triple channel, 6GB, and a 6 nanosecond CAS. One has a 24 cycle tRAS and the other has a 20 cycle tRAS. With the 20 cycle stick, you're getting the fastest your machine can without OC. I would suggest the 24 cycle stick though because it's $30 cheaper for 6GB and $60 cheaper for 12GB ($100 for the 6GB and $200 for the 12GB).
I second Rex's suggestion for a RAM disk. It's even faster than an SSD, but don't use it to store vital data, it goes poof when the power goes out.
Ah. I see what you mean. Just googling about with "i5 ram mhz 1333 or 1600"
i5 and i7 memory controllers run at 1333 anyway. So unless you overclock, 1600 is pointless. I might overclock it do at some point though. So paying the extra couple of quid is no biggy.
Pretty sure paging files are used even when RAM isn't all the way full, but I might be thinking of the Windows swap file though; which would benefit from being on a RAM disk as well.
RAM disks also make it so you can use more than 4 GB's of RAM on a 32 bit machine.
So you are correct that it can be used when there still is RAM available, but only when there is insufficient space
How hot?
50c is a normal temp for i7 CPU's and the max temp is around 100, so you really have nothing to worry about.
Mine runs at 45-55c when idle and 70-80c when under load. (i7 950)
I used too use liquid cooling and with the advances with air cooling, trust me when i say that it isnt worth it. Just get a good after market air cooler and you will be fine.
I already bought it though, will it be fine with it though?
With a good cpu cooler you can low a few ºC, but those temps are normal. My ati 5770 reaches almost 70ºC in extreme games.
The heat can be a serious problem in summer if you don't have AC. Where i live we reach 47ºC so easily, and working with a computer is like to work in the hell.
Less Heat, less noise is always great.
Took forever to find a mobo and RAM that were compatible.
How often do I have to refill?
Just whenever it needs it really
Just make sure its always full
You would then have to get a new pump, drain the system, replace the pump and refill.
The pumps are not designed to run with any air in the system, so just try to keep it topped up.
I used to check mine every couple of weeks. It wont actually damage your system (CPU etc.) if the cooling failed as everything would shut off before it got hot enough to do real damage.
Also if the pump fails, the time scale to fix it would be dependent on how fast you could get a new pump...They are not a stock item that regular PC stores carry in stock
And get a SSD.