[SOLVED] What memory is compatible with the Alienware Area-51 R2 Desktop (2015) ?

[BrendanXX6]

Hello! So I purchased my Alienware Desktop around 2015, and overall the PC still runs great for what I need. I develop video games, so I tend to run multiple programs at the same time - Photoshop, Substance Painter, Blender, Multiple tabs on my browser for concept art, so on and so forth. My memory is currently reaching about 95% usage as these programs are open, and it slows down my workflow tremendously.

So I'm looking to upgrade my ram from 16GB (x4 4GB sticks) to 32GB (x4 8GB sticks) but my PC being older I'm not sure what ram I can possibly upgrade to? So any help would be greatly appreciated as I'm looking to upgrade as soon as possible.

Here's the current RAM sticks I have;

Brand; Samsung
Speed; 2133
Size; 4GB
Slots; x4 (x4 used)
Product Number; M378A5143DB0-CPB

Here's the motherboard I have;

Model; 0XJKKD (SOCKET 0)

 

[Lutfij]

Welcome to the forums, newcomer!

Download and use CPU-Z, check the Mainboard tab and parse a screenshot of what you see. It'd be a better idea to parse the CPU tab as well. While you're on your desktop, check and see if you have any BIOS updates. You can use your desktop's Service Tag/Serial Number to narrow down a support page for said prebuilt desktop.

 

[SkyNetRising]

So I'm looking to upgrade my ram from 16GB (x4 4GB sticks) to 32GB (x4 8GB sticks) but my PC being older I'm not sure what ram I can possibly upgrade to?

Regular desktop DDR4.
If you use it for work, then you may want to upgrade to 4x16GB instead.

https://www.dell.com/support/kbdoc/en-us/000178577/alienware-area-51-r2-system-specifications

 

[Eximo]

LGA2011 board, and you have DDR4 2133 now.

I would say skies the limit when it comes to memory speed, capacity is limited by the board to 32GB total, though officially 2133 is the top speed for Haswell-E processors.

Probably pick up some Crucial Ballistix sticks 3200Mhz CL16, should be relatively cheap, about $160 for 4x8GB.

 

[Eximo]

Interesting, Dell claims 64GB max. 4x16GB kit would be interesting to try if you want to spend that much on an older system.

 

[BrendanXX6]

Welcome to the forums, newcomer!

Download and use CPU-Z, check the Mainboard tab and parse a screenshot of what you see. It'd be a better idea to parse the CPU tab as well. While you're on your desktop, check and see if you have any BIOS updates. You can use your desktop's Service Tag/Serial Number to narrow down a support page for said prebuilt desktop.

Here's a look at my CPU on CPU-Z
http://prntscr.com/1us1nlg

 

[BrendanXX6]

LGA2011 board, and you have DDR4 2133 now.

I would say skies the limit when it comes to memory speed, capacity is limited by the board to 32GB total, though officially 2133 is the top speed for Haswell-E processors.

Probably pick up some Crucial Ballistix sticks 3200Mhz CL16, should be relatively cheap, about $160 for 4x8GB.

Thanks for the suggestion I'll look into this option

 

[BrendanXX6]

Interesting, Dell claims 64GB max. 4x16GB kit would be interesting to try if you want to spend that much on an older system.

Does the card I select matter? What would be compatible with my system?

 

[BrendanXX6]

LGA2011 board, and you have DDR4 2133 now.

I would say skies the limit when it comes to memory speed, capacity is limited by the board to 32GB total, though officially 2133 is the top speed for Haswell-E processors.

Probably pick up some Crucial Ballistix sticks 3200Mhz CL16, should be relatively cheap, about $160 for 4x8GB.

I looked into these cards I only see x2 slots, nothing with x4

 

[Eximo]

Here are a few 4x8GB kits.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07CNFJNRR?tag=pcpapi-20&linkCode=ogi&th=1&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B078MGCL42?tag=pcpapi-20&linkCode=ogi&th=1&psc=1

https://www.newegg.com/g-skill-32gb...&ranSiteID=8BacdVP0GFs-hwDrC55fuZkd.8wVHn5Wyg

Still, no reason you can't pick up two 2x8GB kits, chances are quite good they would be the same batch and work well together.

 

[BrendanXX6]

Here are a few 4x8GB kits.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07CNFJNRR?tag=pcpapi-20&linkCode=ogi&th=1&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B078MGCL42?tag=pcpapi-20&linkCode=ogi&th=1&psc=1

https://www.newegg.com/g-skill-32gb-288-pin-ddr4-sdram/p/N82E16820231978?Item=N82E16820231978&nm_mc=AFC-RAN-COM&cm_mmc=AFC-RAN-COM&utm_medium=affiliates&utm_source=afc-PCPartPicker&AFFID=2558510&AFFNAME=PCPartPicker&ACRID=1&ASID=https://pcpartpicker.com/&ranMID=44583&ranEAID=2558510&ranSiteID=8BacdVP0GFs-hwDrC55fuZkd.8wVHn5Wyg

Still, no reason you can't pick up two 2x8GB kits, chances are quite good they would be the same batch and work well together.

These look pretty good; Corsair CMK32GX4M4Z2933C16 VENGEANCE LPX 32GB (4x8GB) DDR4 2933 (PC4-23400) C16 1.35V Desktop Memory - Black at Amazon.com

But it seems that it's for AMD, I have Intel/NVida does that matter?

 

[BrendanXX6]

Here are a few 4x8GB kits.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07CNFJNRR?tag=pcpapi-20&linkCode=ogi&th=1&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B078MGCL42?tag=pcpapi-20&linkCode=ogi&th=1&psc=1

https://www.newegg.com/g-skill-32gb-288-pin-ddr4-sdram/p/N82E16820231978?Item=N82E16820231978&nm_mc=AFC-RAN-COM&cm_mmc=AFC-RAN-COM&utm_medium=affiliates&utm_source=afc-PCPartPicker&AFFID=2558510&AFFNAME=PCPartPicker&ACRID=1&ASID=https://pcpartpicker.com/&ranMID=44583&ranEAID=2558510&ranSiteID=8BacdVP0GFs-hwDrC55fuZkd.8wVHn5Wyg

Still, no reason you can't pick up two 2x8GB kits, chances are quite good they would be the same batch and work well together.

These seem pretty good as well; G.SKILL Ripjaws V Series 32GB (4 x 8GB) 288-Pin DDR4 SDRAM DDR4 3200 (PC4 25600) Desktop Memory Model F4-3200C16Q-32GVRB - Newegg.com

 

[Eximo]

These look pretty good; Corsair CMK32GX4M4Z2933C16 VENGEANCE LPX 32GB (4x8GB) DDR4 2933 (PC4-23400) C16 1.35V Desktop Memory - Black at Amazon.com

But it seems that it's for AMD, I have Intel/NVida does that matter?

Probably not to the Intel system. Some AMD CPUs were a little more sensitive to needing compatible RAM. Zen and Zen+ generations from what I recall. Zen2 and Zen3 are much more compatible.

 

[Eximo]

These seem pretty good as well; G.SKILL Ripjaws V Series 32GB (4 x 8GB) 288-Pin DDR4 SDRAM DDR4 3200 (PC4 25600) Desktop Memory Model F4-3200C16Q-32GVRB - Newegg.com

My only concern there is they are slightly taller. Shouldn't be an issue, but take a look inside your computer and make sure there is room for them. They might not run at 3200Mhz (though no reason a 5820k shouldn't be able to), but they will certainly run at 2133, 2400, 2666 as long as the board allows it.

There are some posts about the XMP profiles only going up to 2666 in the BIOS and that you might need to run the Intel XTU to overclock the memory through software.

Either way, you have 2133 now, and there is the potential to move this DDR4 to a new system at some point.

 

[BrendanXX6]

Probably not to the Intel system. Some AMD CPUs were a little more sensitive to needing compatible RAM. Zen and Zen+ generations from what I recall. Zen2 and Zen3 are much more compatible.

Thanks a bunch for the help! I'm gonna go with these; G.SKILL Ripjaws V Series 32GB (4 x 8GB) 288-Pin DDR4 SDRAM DDR4 3200 (PC4 25600) Desktop Memory Model F4-3200C16Q-32GVRB - Newegg.com

I have a question, considering my current system is set to 2133 Mhz, and these cards support up to 3200 Mhz, would adjusting my bios to a higher MHz affect my system? Or should I leave it as is?

 

[Eximo]

See above. You should be able to run faster speeds. The CPU is more than capable. The worry is the Dell/Alienware BIOS. My understanding is that is a custom MSI board.

Worst case, you run at 2133, XMP may allow 2666. Next worse, you have to manually enter the memory timings to get to any speed above 2133. And the off chance that XMP profiles just works it will run at 3200. (Well, worst case would be the memory not working, but that doesn't seem likely)

There were some postings about this here: https://www.alienowners.com/

 

[BrendanXX6]

My only concern there is they are slightly taller. Shouldn't be an issue, but take a look inside your computer and make sure there is room for them. They might not run at 3200Mhz (though no reason a 5820k shouldn't be able to), but they will certainly run at 2133, 2400, 2666 as long as the board allows it.

There are some posts about the XMP profiles only going up to 2666 in the BIOS and that you might need to run the Intel XTU to overclock the memory through software.

Either way, you have 2133 now, and there is the potential to move this DDR4 to a new system at some point.

The cards do look a little big, can't tell if it would fit in my case here's a look at it; http://prntscr.com/1us9f2c

can't tell if it would bump the fan or not

 

[Eximo]

That looks fine.

 

[BrendanXX6]

That looks fine.

Thanks for your help! I'll order them now