Consider the benefits of upgrading to DDR3 RAM 8 versus 16.
Consider the benefits of upgrading to DDR3 RAM 8 versus 16.
Hello everyone, I’m not planning a big upgrade right now, but I sometimes think about adding two 8 GB DDR3 RAM sticks. My current setup has 2133 MHz DDR3 8 GB RAM, and I believe it can limit my performance at times. I play games with medium or low settings, but I also do some video editing in Davinci Resolve. They mention needing at least 16 GB on Windows 10. I’m okay with slower speeds in Resolve—like delayed scrubbing or playing at half quality—but I’m curious if 16 GB would fix the issues and improve gaming. My system includes a NZXT H440 motherboard, an Asus Z97 A Mobo, Corsair RM 850, an Intel i5 4590, an Evo TX3 cooler, an Asus 970 Strix with a 250 GB SSD, an 850 Evo drive, and a Seagate Barracuda 1TB HDD. I’m using Windows 10, and my board seems to be on the entry side.
Wow, quick responses appreciated! I mainly use 80% capacity in Resolve, with a dual channel 2x4 setup. Also, I thought the speed was off—my RAM is around 2133 MHz, probably correct now.
If you're not receiving low memory warnings, it's likely okay. Keep track of memory usage with tools like HWInfo to check if you're near capacity limits. Alternatively, use the Task Manager on Windows to monitor how resources are being used. For instance, my mom's laptop has only 4GB of RAM and rarely shows high usage alerts, though it slows down significantly when doing multiple tasks and never exceeds about 1GB free during operation. If you're already using dual-channel mode, performance gains won't appear. Unless you're running out of available memory.
Windows prefers having at least 4GB of memory available, otherwise it may struggle... 16GB is always a solid choice.
Hey there, I think you've got the right idea. It seems Windows hasn't sent any warnings or updates before. I'm happy with what I have, so I'll stick with it for now.
It doesn't improve gameplay, but I've seen a huge boost in performance—especially during rendering—after upgrading from 16 to 32 gigabytes. I recommend sticking with 16 since it's still affordable on the used market right now.