Question Noob question about ram

spardason

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Jan 9, 2019
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Hello!

Ok so, i have 2x4 gb RAM ddr4 , 2100 mhz and i bought today 2x8 gb RAM ddr4 3000 mhz...now my question is, how important are the mhz? whats the difference? all my life i thought the GB was the important part and not the mhz, but it makes me think, because other people seem to care about it, can someone please explain to me in a not very technical language the importance of mhz?
 

WildCard999

Titan
Moderator
These articles may help.
https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/cas-latency-ram-cl-timings-glossary-definition,6011.html

Short story, fast memory makes little difference for Intel (1-3 FPS) but can make a large difference for AMD Ryzen (up to 20 FPS in gaming). In addition to speed a lower CAS latency is better (faster, more responsive) which is why you may see a kit (2x8gb @3200mhz CAS 16=$100) be much cheaper then one with a lower CAS latency (2x8gb @3200mhz CAS 14=$170) but besides that the specs are identical.
 

spardason

Honorable
Jan 9, 2019
49
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10,535
These articles may help.
https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/cas-latency-ram-cl-timings-glossary-definition,6011.html

Short story, fast memory makes little difference for Intel (1-3 FPS) but can make a large difference for AMD Ryzen (up to 20 FPS in gaming). In addition to speed a lower CAS latency is better (faster, more responsive) which is why you may see a kit (2x8gb @3200mhz CAS 16=$100) be much cheaper then one with a lower CAS latency (2x8gb @3200mhz CAS 14=$170) but besides that the specs are identical.

Ryzen 5 2400g and thinking about upgrading to 2600
 

Karadjgne

Titan
Ambassador
It's because of the way AMD Infinity Fabric (AMD's version of Hyperthreading) works. It's intimately tied to the ram speeds. DDR4 default speed is 2133MHz, and for Intel, there's very little difference, especially to games, between 2133 and 3200. But with Ryzen there's @ 20% performance gain between 2133 and 3200. After 3200, performance gains taper off while costs get high, so the value of 3200 in performance vs price is King. Best bang for the buck.
 
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spardason

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Jan 9, 2019
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