Understanding RAM

[hughlb]

Memory is something I don't fully understand, and perhaps the community can shed some light.

 

I have the G.SKILL TridentX Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3 1600 7-8-8-24

 

When I purchased it last year, it seemed like the timing (latency?) was low, and I thought this was a good thing. According to CPU-Z, my DRAM frequency is also low - 666mhz, but this is apparently not such a good thing.

 

The 2016 performance benchmark thread shows the clock speed or RAM is quite important. So this all raises questions:

 

Is it worth getting faster DDR3 RAM - eg. 3200?

Is there a difference between DDR3 and DDR4 in DCS? (My motherboard only supports DDR3)

Could RAM contribute to stuttering?

 

I appreciate that 16GB is better than 8GB for DCS, but everything else starts to get confusing.

[BitMaster]

Its not worth getting faster ram unless you do LOTS of video transcoding und such, that is a realm where those higher clocked RAM can show SOME advantage, but it is not as big as the price tag !

 

Stuttering only tangents RAM in the case of too little RAM, like 8GB, that is a sure bet to encounter stuttering, 16GB is fair, 32GB not needed for DCS ( for now ).

 

You can only add the RAM type your Mobo supports. If you own DDR3 now, you will very likely have to stay with DDR3, which is fine. Just have 16GB to be stutter free on NTTR.

 

Benchmarks have to be taken with a pinch of salt... I doubt that RAM speed, e.g. 1600 vs 2133 vs 2400 will show any diffs worth talking about and aee for sure not the cause of any stutter.

 

 

If you love stutter free gaming, think Gsync or aquivalent and have the fastest CPU you can afford and overclock it even further. That is the true DCS speedster, not the GPU's..they are plenty fast already, at least till 1440p.

 

I hardly ever see my GPU at 99% but I always have a 100% cpu load on that one core that drives DCS...and that single core defines my fps.

 

I just read the review about the new i7's.....still a NoGo for 2600k owners from 4.5-5GHz. I still think I wouod not even gain 10% more fps....for 1000-1500 € upgrade price. Intel is nuts in my eyes.

 

Bit

[agrasyuk]

 

I just read the review about the new i7's.....still a NoGo for 2600k owners from 4.5-5GHz. I still think I wouod not even gain 10% more fps....for 1000-1500 € upgrade price. Intel is nuts in my eyes.

 

Bit

 

According to the benchmark thread stickied on top there is measurable improvement in clock to clock performance gain for newer Intel generation of CPUs. 2700k is a solid CPU still and I'm not suggesting dropping everything and upgrade, but there is improvement to be had. in any case 1000-1500 for an upgrade is quite an exaggeration. I'd wager 6600k+decent MB+ddr4 ram combo Can be had for under 500 easily and probavly lower if shopping carefully. As the matter of fact I just got that 6600k CPU+MB+ram last thursday for well under 400 and I'm sure I'm not he most gifted coupon clipper.

 

To the ram topic, judging by same benchmark thread the jump from 2133 to 2400 ram under those test conditions yielded ~3fps improvement, not much at all. With the current prices I don't see why not go with 2400. For higher speeds that's more of a question to your wallet. But Since you with ddr3 I would recommend not touching anything, IMHO not the best investment at this day and age.

[Malefic Rage]

Memory is something I don't fully understand, and perhaps the community can shed some light.

 

I have the G.SKILL TridentX Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3 1600 7-8-8-24

 

When I purchased it last year, it seemed like the timing (latency?) was low, and I thought this was a good thing. According to CPU-Z, my DRAM frequency is also low - 666mhz, but this is apparently not such a good thing.

 

Is it worth getting faster DDR3 RAM - eg. 3200?

Is there a difference between DDR3 and DDR4 in DCS? (My motherboard only supports DDR3)

Could RAM contribute to stuttering?

 

I appreciate that 16GB is better than 8GB for DCS, but everything else starts to get confusing.

 

Hello there. Memory can be confusing, especially with the hype going around overclocking nowadays so I'll keep it simple.

 

Basically, you current configuration is perfectly fine.

 

Firstly, timings/latency is mostly a marketing gimmick. The difference timings make in both real-word performance and theoretical tests is tiny.

 

Secondly, 1600Mhz is the highest of the standard DDR3 clock speeds. Anything over that is overclocking. Since CPUs are designed to work optimally at the standard speeds, overclocking isn't necessary unless you want to squeeze in a few extra FPS. Also, the further you overclock, the less advantage you get.

 

Third, DDR4 is only needed if your CPU requires it. You'll get some advantage with a new CPU that supports it but tests have shown that the performance of DDR3 is almost identical to DDR4 at the same frequencies. Stick you whatever your CPU needs.

 

Finally with respect to the reading of 666Mhz, this is referring to the base IO rate of the memory. Since DDR is Double Data Rate RAM, two bits of data are sent per cycle so the effective bandwidth you are getting is actually 1333. While your RAM is capable of more, it may be that your motherboard is only able to run at 1333 with your current configuration. The difference between 1333 Mhz and 1600 Mhz is pretty small so don't sweat over it.

 

If you want to get some faster ram, you'll get a small FPS increase but you'll need to enable what is called the XMP profile. There is plenty of info about that if you google. I don't think you really need to though; the main performance limiter in DCS is the CPU itself and since you have a recent Core i7, you'll be fine.

[B2Blain]

I am building a Core i5 6600K system for DCS. What's the best bang for the buck in DDR4? I was looking at 2x8 GB - Corsair Vengeance at 3000 MHz. There is not a lot of difference in price between 3000 MHz and slower speeds. Or am I not understanding something?

 

http://www.amazon.com/CORSAIR-Vengeance-288-Pin-Desktop-CMK16GX4M2B3000C15R/dp/B013GZ5PD2?ie=UTF8&keywords=corsair%20vengeance%2016%20GB%20DDR4%20288%20pin&qid=1464741834&ref_=sr_1_3&sr=8-3

 

http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Vengeance-2400MHz-PC4-19200-Memory/dp/B00PC9H6BK/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1464742033&sr=8-5&keywords=corsair+vengeance+16+GB+DDR4+288+pin