[SOLVED] 2666MHz or 2400MHz?

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Avik Basu

Avik Basu

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Looking at upgrade options and came across an article that suggested getting 2x8GB DDR4 2400MHz, not directly but they provided a link that took me to an online retailer page of that specific RAM. I checked the specs of the motherboard mentioned in the article and it supports up to 2666MHz. So I looked through other RAMs on the site. I wanted to get one 16GB stick but they sell them mostly in 2400MHz or 3000MHz and above. Then I searched if 2666MHz is good for gaming and came across a forum where one person said that 2666MHz is mediocre and outdated.

So my question is, is 2666MHz worth picking one from the limited option available or will 2400MHz do the job? Keep in mind that I'm not currently looking to upgrade the GPU. I plan to do that next year. The purpose of this PC would primarily be gaming with web browsing and watching videos. No other intense usage. Also, feel free to recommend any other good motherboard at the same price range that might support 3000MHz. It's cheaper than the other two so if possible I'd like to get the 3000MHz.

For those who didn't the article the motherboard mentioned in it is Asus ROG Strix B365-G and the CPU is Intel Core i5 9400F and my current GPU is Asus 760 Geforce GTX 760 2GB. I recently started using a Corsair TX650M PSU.
 
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guanyu210379
  1. 2400 vs 2666 Mhz --> almost no difference. For Ryzen, get better >3000 as long as your money can afford.
  2. 2x8 vs 1x16. Speed for now: 2x8, future: 1x16 as you can add a second 16.
  3. Ryzen is the better bang for bucks compared to Intel by far, especially the 3xxx. The 3xxx platform is not that picky about RAM anymore. Instead of I5 9400F, I would rather go 3600 or 3600x
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TJ Hooker

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I don't know if I've seen it referred to specifically as "DDRAM", but yes the effective speed/transfer rate is double the DRAM frequency (AKA memory clock).

Edit: You don't necessarily need to know all this when buying memory though. All memory is advertised by the effective (double) data rate. They usually list it in MHz, but it's equivalent to the double data rate MT/s being discussed here.
 
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Endre

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Avik Basu said:
So the double of DRAM, as in DDRAM, would be the whole frequency?
Click to expand...

Starting with DDR1 up to DDR5, they are all Double Data Random Access Memories.
Which means that the advertized speed, incorrectly named MHz is actually MT/s.
The MHz are only the half of the MT/s.
Example DDR3-1600 means 800MHz x2, which means 1600MT/s (mega transfer per second).

In the SDRAM era MHz and MT/s were equal 100MHz meant 100 MT/s.

The PC that you have right now uses DDR3, if you’ll upgrade to DDR4, buy a memory kit rated DDR4-2933 or higher.
 
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TJ Hooker

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@Endre you have your acronyms a bit mixed up. DDR1 through DDR4 (and beyond) is all SDRAM, which is Synchronous Dynamic Random Access Memory (sometimes the S is omitted, so just DRAM). The DDR stands for Double Data Rate. So the full name would be DDR[#] SDRAM. Hence why I said the specific acronym of "DDRAM" was one I hadn't seen before.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DDR_SDRAM
 
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Endre

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TJ Hooker said:
@Endre you have your acronyms a bit mixed up. DDR1 through DDR4 (and beyond) is all SDRAM, which is Synchronous Dynamic Random Access Memory (sometimes the S is omitted, so just DRAM). The DDR stands for Double Data Rate. So the full name would be DDR[#] SDRAM. Hence why I said the specific acronym of "DDRAM" was one I hadn't seen before.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DDR_SDRAM
Click to expand...

You are right!
Thank you for correcting me.
But my main point regarding MT/s vs MHz remains the same.
😄
 
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Avik Basu

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Gaming Plus MAX and Tomahawk MAX are available at a good price. There's no PRO MAX though. Just PRO. GP MAX and T MAX both say they are Ryzen 3 supporting in the specs. But I'm worried about the USB Ports. I can see at least 4 that look like USB ports, 2 of them red in color. And 2 that somewhat look like USB ports but not quite. They too are red in color. And MSI says Tomahawk (Max or non-Max, not specified) has a Type C USB but that's not visible in the pictures.

Is there any with in-built Bluetooth? Not mandatory but would be helpful. Don't even need in-built WiFi.

Correction - Tomahawk has 1 Type C USB port. But not sure about Tomahawk Max because I can't find any reviews on it.
 
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Avik Basu

Avik Basu

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I see that. But look at the pic of the ports here. Type C is missing.

By the way, if it says on the box that the board is Ryzen 3000 ready that means I don't have to update the BIOS, right? Because it is bothering me that even though it doesn't say so in the specs on their own page Asus has still mentioned the B450-E to be Ryzen 3000 ready even though the pic of the box doesn't have that printed on it. So I was wondering if I should check about that with the store.
 
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DMAN999

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The Tomahawk MAX has a USB type C port on the Rear I/O:
https://www.vedantcomputers.com/msi...search=MSI B450 Tomahawk MAX&description=true

And Yes if you want the Asus MB, call the store and ask them if it has the Ryzen 3000 Ready label/sticker on the box.
If it does it will work with a 3000 series CPU without a BIOS update.
And the MSI MAX motherboards were made specifically for 3000 series CPUs so they don't need a BIOS update to run a 3000 series CPU.
 
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Avik Basu

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Oh, sorry, so sorry. Not even looking properly. A bit stressed out. Went from Intel to Ryzen to finding a board for Ryzen that can run it out of the box. I literally don't care about Type C USB since I don't have any device that uses it. I guess I'm bothered that there's one less Type A port. I know I can just use an add-on but I don't want to block the airflow space for the GPU.

I'll check with the store tomorrow and I'll also mail Asus tonight to see what they say.

How new is Ryzen 3000 that there are so few motherboards for it?
 
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Endre

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If you’re looking for a good motherboard, I suggest you checking out the Gigabyte Aorus lineup.
I can’t suggest an exact model.
I am on Intel platform with a Gigabyte Aorus Master mobo and it rocks!
Gigabyte works great with AMD too, they even broke speed records with an AMD Epyc CPU on a Gigabyte server motherboard.
Gigabyte excells at VRMs quality and they put out BIOS updates every 2 months, without them being buggy.
😃
 
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Avik Basu

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Endre said:
If you’re looking for a good motherboard, I suggest you checking out the Gigabyte Aorus lineup.
I can’t suggest an exact model.
I am on Intel platform with a Gigabyte Aorus Master mobo and it rocks!
Gigabyte works great with AMD too, they even broke speed records with an AMD Epyc CPU on a Gigabyte server motherboard.
Gigabyte excells at VRMs quality and they put out BIOS updates every 2 months, without them being buggy.
😃
Click to expand...

I don't think getting a good motherboard is a problem. The problem is them working with Ryzen 3000 without needing a BIOS update. I actually wouldn't have minded going for Gigabyte. They have a good number of USB ports and my current board is Gigabyte too so I'm used to using it. But I have checked the Aorus lineup boards available in my budget and they have the same problem as pretty much everyone else. They are for Ryzen Gen 1 and 2 but will most likely work with 3 after a BIOS update.

@DMAN999 Asus hasn't replied yet but I have checked with the store and they said it'll need a BIOS update and that they'd do it for free. So now the question is should I get the Strix that needs a BIOS update and might get hiccups from it but I'm kinda leaning towards or should I got for the Tomahawk MAX that doesn't need a BIOS update so no need to interfere with that but has a bad BIOS team in case that becomes necessary in the future and I'm not feeling for it?
 
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Avik Basu

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I feel like Asus would be the right choice too. It's pretty much the same as the B450-F, which is supposedly a good performer. It's the only Bluetooth enabled board in my budget. And it looks good too. It does bother me that it'd mean a stranger touching my board but I guess it's a small sacrifice.

So the new setup is:-

Ryzen 5 3600
Asus ROG STRIX B450-E Gaming
Trident Z 16GB (2x8) 3200
Corsair 175R RGB

Good?
 
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Avik Basu

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Thanks. I'll hold off on ordering them for a day in case anyone else has other opinions. I have to go there personally to pick them up and have the BIOS updated and they are closed on Sundays so no point rushing it. But this is looking like the best option for me right now. Thanks again. Really appreciate all the help. I'll post an update once everything is settled.
 
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