[SOLVED] Ram Upgrade : 4gb + 4gb or 4gb + 8gb ?

[Elias_elie]

I'm using Asus Vivobook 15 x512fa. There is one fixed slot 4gb non removable & one empty slot available for me.

I'm confused whether I should go for 4gb+[4gb] or 4gb +[8gb]. In case If buy Ram with same clock speed & all other parameters except using different memory sizes. Is it going to affect my performance ?

I've seen very mixed opinion on Internet about this. Please help me figure out right configuration so that I can make this purchase

Current Ram : Size - 4GB; Type- DDR4 Clock Speed- 2667; Form Factor- 12; Manufacturer - Samsung;

 

[AJNameS]

4gb +[8gb]

Please help me figure out right configuration so that I can make this purchase

No perfect configuration here. I'll not comment the idea of someone to create a "fixed" slot, clearly it isn't good for the users. You just 'd better have some more than 8 GB ram in total, especially if you are trying demanding games on this machine.. with its limited graphics. It all depends on your ram usage, e.g. if this laptop 'll be used just for some Netflix, regular work with MSOffice and no more than 15 regular chrome tabs, the 8 GB total is likely fine. No futureproofing if you go for the lower memory amount ofc.
With MSI afterburner you can check your ram usage easily and constantly, locking it down on the quicklaunch to show up all the time.

If I was you, in order to get 12 GB I'd experiment with sellers that have some return option, just for in case the sticks "disagree" with each other. Samsung is reliable in the terms of compatibility and it's the compatibility that you're really in need of, not the 0,001% difference in performance from matched pair/total-equal if there is even such diff.

with same clock speed & all other parameters

All right, seems like you know what you do. Latencies would better be same as well, if your Samsung has CL19, search for a CL19 stick, If ur current is 1,2 V, the other one 'd better be same. Even brand doesn't have that much importance, though the bigger the similarity, the better the compatibility chance. The different amount of ram per stick is the smallest problem.

 

[hotaru.hino]

In addition to the above, going with a 4GB + 8GB combination at worst would cause the system to run in single channel memory mode, which I don't think is a problem for every day usage. At best, you get a 4GB + 4GB in dual channel and 4GB in single channel if the system supports Flex Mode. But again, if the use case is mostly productivity and consuming media, this probably won't matter.

 

[Elias_elie]

No perfect configuration here. I'll not comment the idea of someone to create a "fixed" slot, clearly it isn't good for the users. You just 'd better have some more than 8 GB ram in total, especially if you are trying demanding games on this machine.. with its limited graphics. It all depends on your ram usage, e.g. if this laptop 'll be used just for some Netflix, regular work with MSOffice and no more than 15 regular chrome tabs, the 8 GB total is likely fine. No futureproofing if you go for the lower memory amount ofc.
With MSI afterburner you can check your ram usage easily and constantly, locking it down on the quicklaunch to show up all the time.

If I was you, in order to get 12 GB I'd experiment with sellers that have some return option, just for in case the sticks "disagree" with each other. Samsung is reliable in the terms of compatibility and it's the compatibility that you're really in need of, not the 0,001% difference in performance from matched pair/total-equal if there is even such diff.


All right, seems like you know what you do. Latencies would better be same as well, if your Samsung has CL19, search for a CL19 stick, If ur current is 1,2 V, the other one 'd better be same. Even brand doesn't have that much importance, though the bigger the similarity, the better the compatibility chance. The different amount of ram per stick is the smallest problem.

Thanks for the reply. I hardly use my laptop for gaming, mostly for academics. I've i3-10110u processor & 512Gb SSD. Tbh even if the slots were not fixed, I've no plans to remove the existing Ram. I just want extend my Ram & choice is between 4gb/8gb. I've seen mixed opinion on this topic & I've seen threads talking about dual/single channel mode.

On my CPU Z memory tab it says 4GB DDR4; Channel #Single; CAS# Latency (CL) 19.0 clocks. { Cannot find voltage on SPD tab }. Edit : 4GB non-removable from crucial scan.

Based on your suggestion I'll be going with 4gb+8gb where seller allows return policy. Also I'll verify specification from the manufacturer. I appreciate your help. Thank you. 😇

 

[Elias_elie]

In addition to the above, going with a 4GB + 8GB combination at worst would cause the system to run in single channel memory mode, which I don't think is a problem for every day usage. At best, you get a 4GB + 4GB in dual channel and 4GB in single channel if the system supports Flex Mode. But again, if the use case is mostly productivity and consuming media, this probably won't matter.

Thanks for the reply. So the Best case for 4gb+8gb is that I'll get a 4gb+4gb dual channel and worse case that system run in single channel. Is there anyway to determine what will be the outcome of this upgrade ?

On my CPU Z memory tab it says 4GB DDR4; Channel #Single; CAS# Latency (CL) 19.0 clocks; Clock Speed- 2667; Form Factor- 12; Manufacturer - Samsung. Edit : 4GB non-removable from crucial scan.

So I can't remove this 4gb Ram, only thing I can do is get either 4gb or 8gb for the second slot.

 

[hotaru.hino]

Thanks for the reply. So the Best case for 4gb+8gb is that I'll get a 4gb+4gb dual channel and worse case that system run in single channel. Is there anyway to determine what will be the outcome of this upgrade ?

On my CPU Z memory tab it says 4GB DDR4; Channel #Single; CAS# Latency (CL) 10.0 clocks; Clock Speed- 2667; Form Factor- 12; Manufacturer - Samsung. Edit : 4GB non-removable from crucial scan.

So I can't remove this 4gb Ram, only thing I can do is get either 4gb or 8gb for the second slot.

CPU-Z should report the system is running in dual channel mode.

 

[Elias_elie]

CPU-Z should report the system is running in dual channel mode.

My CPU Z memory Tab has following information -

Memory Type	DDR4
Memory Size	4 GBytes
Channels	Single
Memory Frequency	1329.7 MHz (1:20)
CAS# latency (CL)	19.0
RAS# to CAS# delay (tRCD)	19
RAS# Precharge (tRP)	19
Cycle Time (tRAS)	43
Row Refresh Cycle Time (tRFC)	467
Command Rate (CR)	2T
Uncore Frequency	3094.0 MHz
Host Bridge	0x9B71

For some reason SPD tab is empty.

 

[Elias_elie]

UPDATE - I've Intel® Core™ i3-10110U Processor in my system. From the Intel product specification page I got the following information. https://ark.intel.com/content/www/u...10110u-processor-4m-cache-up-to-4-10-ghz.html

Advanced Technologies
Intel® Flex Memory Access - Yes
Intel® Flex Memory Access
Intel® Flex Memory Access facilitates easier upgrades by allowing different memory sizes to be populated and remain in dual-channel mode.

Memory Specifications

• Max Memory Size (dependent on memory type)- 64 GB
• Memory TypesDDR4-2666, LPDDR3-2133, LPDDR4-2933
• Max # of Memory Channels2
• Max Memory Bandwidth45.8 GB/s
• ECC Memory Supported ‡No

 

[MJS WARLORD]

Ok so here are the ram golden rules.

1. never mixed clock speeds because the slower 1 will pull down the speed of the faster one.
2. never mix band names.
3. never increase by 50% so do upgrade 8gb to 12 by adding 4. Always double what you have so the rule of thumb is 8 , 16 , 32 , 64.
4. always check what your mobo cant handle.

 

[Elias_elie]

Ok so here are the ram golden rules.

The different amount of ram per stick is the smallest problem.

At best, you get a 4GB + 4GB in dual channel and 4GB in single channel if the system supports Flex Mode.

Thanks for the reply guys. Can you please help me make this purchase. Based on the discussion so far, I was advised to go for 4gb+8b.
My Cpu i3-10110u supports Intel® Flex Memory Access.
I've currently installed 4gb non removable fixed slot, Samsung DDR4 2667Mhz, Cl19 1.2V.

Is it fine if I go for Samsung 8gb DDR4 2666Mhz, Cl19,1.2V 260pins ?

Some of the products listed on amazon have (Single channel) & (Dual channel ) mentioned on them & its confusing me. My system support dual channel but do the also Ram also has to support Dual channel ?

I'll highly appreciate if you guys link the product number of Samsung Ram or a Purchase link in this thread.

 

[alceryes]

...At best, you get a 4GB + 4GB in dual channel and 4GB in single channel if the system supports Flex Mode...

This is probably what you will end up with if you can get a closely matched 8GB stick to what is soldered on.

 

[hotaru.hino]

Some of the products listed on amazon have (Single channel) & (Dual channel ) mentioned on them & its confusing me. My system support dual channel but do the also Ram also has to support Dual channel ?

RAM doesn't specifically need to be made for single or dual channel. You can get two separate RAM modules and have them operate in dual channel mode as opposed to getting a RAM kit with two modules already.

Also kinda wanted to nitpick this:

Ok so here are the ram golden rules.

1. never mixed clock speeds because the slower 1 will pull down the speed of the faster one.
2. never mix band names.
3. never increase by 50% so do upgrade 8gb to 12 by adding 4. Always double what you have so the rule of thumb is 8 , 16 , 32 , 64.
4. always check what your mobo cant handle.

1. There's no harm in mixing and matching as long as you get something that's better than what's already there. And sometimes you may not have a choice or there was simply a good deal for better RAM.
2. I've done this without ill effect. As long as the specifications of what you're adding meets or exceeds what's already there, there's no problem.
3. There's no advantage in doing this nor is there any problem, per se. The situation is more complicated in a two RAM module setup like this, but Intel's Flex Mode is a thing. In four-slot systems, I really don't see where the problem is. Maybe if you're running out of RAM with the current capacity, but 50% extra is a good buffer.
4. I think this should be reworded to more like checking the capacity or if there's any special notes about how the RAM was built (e.g., there was a person the other day who was likely trying to add an 8GB RAM module that was single sided when the manufacturer said it should be double sided), because outside of that and the speed rating, there's not much else a motherboard can't handle.

 

[Elias_elie]

RAM doesn't specifically need to be made for single or dual channel.

Thank you very much. I got this one on the Samsung website.

https://www.samsung.com/semiconductor/dram/module/M471A1K43CB1-CTD/

https://www.samsung.com/semiconductor/global.semi/file/resource/2018/05/M471A1K43CB1-CTD00.pdf

8 GB DDR4 2666 Mbps 1.2 V CL=19.

I've 4gb DDR4 2666 1.2V CL=19 installed in my system fixed slot. Current Ram

Everything is same except, Rank x Org and Component Composition.

I will search for this product number from a seller which allow return option. Finger cross, Lets hope for the best. I hope it will support dual channel mode after installation. 🙏🙏