Should I upgrade?

[danageis]

I have 8gb of Kingston hyper x ddr3 1333MHz: http://www.microcenter.com/product/360526/hyperx_blu_8gb_ddr3-1333_pc3-10600_cl9_dual_channel_desktop_memory_kit_two_4gb_memory_modules running:
i5-4430
Gtx 970
Asus z97-a/USB3. 1

I recently upgraded to this motherboard, and since I now have 4 DIMM slots that support faster memory I was wondering if I should upgrade.

My machine is used for gaming/general computing, and I have come close to maxing out my 8gb multitasking but never had any serious issues.

Is this system worthwhile to upgrade?

If I do upgrade, should I go for more memory or better speeds (1333 cl9 currently)?

Thanks in advance for any advice.

 

[geofelt]

I would do nothing unless you have a serious issue.
In general, ram capacity trumps ram speed.
Here is one report:
http://www.anandtech.com/show/7364/memory-scaling-on-haswell
Not much of any difference.

And...
Ram is sold in kits for a reason.
A motherboard must manage all the ram using the same specs of voltage, cas and speed.
Ram from the same vendor and part number can be made up of differing manufacturing components over time.
Some motherboards can be very sensitive to this.
That is why ram vendors will NOT support ram that is not bought in one kit.
You would be advised to replace with a 2 x 8gb kit and not try to just add 8gb.

 

[danageis]

Thanks for the reply!

So if I were to upgrade to a 16gb kit, do you have any recommendations? I would certainly like to spend less than $50 of possible. Like I said, I haven't had any major issues, but I would like to do some kind of upgrade as I've come close to maxing out my 8gb kit. Thanks for your help.

 

[geofelt]

Pick your favorite ram vendor.
Go to their web site and access their ram configurator.
Enter your motherboard and you will gat a list of compatible ram kits.

Likely you should end up with a 2 x 8gb kit of 1.5v ddr3 1866 ram.
It should cost about $65.