Question Going from 32gb 3000mhz to 16gb 4266mhz

Trancestor

Reputable
Sep 16, 2016
31
0
4,540
So i got a new PC like a month ago with RTX 2080 ti, i9 9900k and Corsair Vengeance RGB Ram 32GB 3000mhz and i was really happy until i saw benchmarks that show how much ram speed matters and that i'm losing 8+ fps in games by using pretty low ram speed, now it's haunting my mind all the time and i'm thinking about ditching the 32gb ram which i don't need anyway since i just game and go for some Gskill Trident Z 16gb 4266 mhz sticks, now i have a few questions:

1. In all honesty how much fps am i actually losing? (1440p screen) I play very cpu intensive MMORPG games.

2. How useless is 32gb Ram currently and any guess how long until games actually start using it?

3. if i get the new ram i'm afraid my 9900k OC will suffer, currently it's 5ghz all cores stable at 1.275v manual, installing new ram with 1266 more mhz would probably mess with it?

4. The new ram will have CL19 timing, my current ram has CL15, will that be noticeable in any way?
 

Barty1884

Retired Moderator
Just to be clear, 3000MHz is not "pretty low ram speed". 3000-3200MHz is the upper end of 'mainstream'. Kits exist that clock higher, but those are generally only beneficial for benchmarking (and bragging rights, of course).

1. It'll vary title to title, but I would expect it to be totally negligible. Measurable in some instances, but functionally the same. With a 2080TI, as an example, you're likely comparing ~150FPS with ~155FPS. Doesn't matter.

2. For gaming? Unlikely that's you're even maxing out 16GB at this point in time. Might be a title or two that can use marginally more than 16GB, but nowhere close to widespread. "How long"? Total guesswork here... but I'd fully expect the timeline before 32GB is the 'norm' to be measured in years, likely 3-5+ if I had to hazard a guess.

3. The XMP profile of 4266MHz RAM will almost certainly impact your 9900K OC to some degree. I'd expect a 9900K could still hit 5GHz with 4266MHz RAM installed, but unlikely to simply be 'plug and play' as you have it right now.

4. Generally speaking, lower clocks/tighter timings will rival higher clocks/looser timings. There would probably still be a slight benefit one way or the other, but personally, 3000MHz CL15 would be a smarter 'gaming' setup vs 4266MHz @ CL19.