2gb vs 4 gb of system memory

[Radaghast]

I found this article to be very informative:

http://www.corsairmemory.com/_appnotes/AN804_Gaming_Performance_Analysis.pdf

I had no idea that the graphics card(s) reserved memory space on your system ram (I thought the memory on the card did everything).

I have a 2 gb of system memory and a 768mb Graphics card currently, which cuts my system ram almost in half with what is reserved. I bet a high memory game like WAR would be using alot of virtual memory(which is bad) with my current setup.

So for $68 dollars I order 2 more gigs today and will hopefully be running even better for release. I am bringing this up because memory is about the cheapest upgrade most of us can do and still get alot of performance for our dollars.

**I realize this article was written by a memory company :) **

[Sethial]

That is a very interesting article indeed, I knew the benefits of going from 2-4 were good, but didn't realize how good. I have a sneaking feeling that 4gb is the threshold though and going from 4 - 8 will see much less gained.

[Drakhon]

I have a sneaking feeling that 4gb is the threshold though and going from 4 - 8 will see much less gained.

This is true and is supported by this bit-tech (http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/2008/07/08/is-more-memory-better/1) article. They did not test two 4GB sticks for 8GB because they are very expensive for DDR2, but in certain situations, 8GB (4x2GB) actually results in slightly less performance due to having four sticks instead of the two in the 4GB (2x2GB) configuration.

Now, if you have more than 4GB, you could theoretically make a ramdisk on the extra have have ridiculous I/O performance for stuff that would normally have gone to/come from the hard drive. You'd have to have 10-15GB extra to load WAR completely into it, though. Otherwise you'd have to pick specific files. Interesting idea, but unlikely to be worth it.

[Vadokri]

8gigs ftw. strip down vista 64 and shut off page filing and zoom zoom you go :)

[Gisli]

What is the practical difference (if any) between getting DDR2 800 memory and DDR2 1066 memory?

[Drakhon]

What is the practical difference (if any) between getting DDR2 800 memory and DDR2 1066 memory?

Faster memory has more bandwidth. At this point, DDR2 1066 isn't going to do much for you over DDR2 800 unless you are overclocking, though.

[Gisli]

Does that mean if you were building a $1000 computer (give or take a couple hundred), you would go with DDR2 800?

[Wazdakka]

Does that mean if you were building a $1000 computer (give or take a couple hundred), you would go with DDR2 800?

Yes. The prices are great.

[Vadokri]

unless you are just benchmarking to brag go with ddr2 800. performance for the price is a sure win.

[Drakhon]

Does that mean if you were building a $1000 computer (give or take a couple hundred), you would go with DDR2 800?

Does that $1000 include a monitor? If not, I just put mine (http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=6961685&WishListTitle=New) together for about $1100 with a 24" monitor bringing the total to $1500 (after mail-in rebates and with a few promo codes that saved me ~$40). I went with DDR2 1000 RAM because I intend to overclock pretty heavily (though only on air cooling) and there was a good sale on the kit I got. I'd suggest signing up for Newegg's promo emails. They come out 1-2 times per week and last a while. I was able to get three codes for items I had already decided on that were all active at the same time.

Edit: I was going to get two of those hard drives for RAID0, but decided to only get one and wait and see what happens with the 150GB version of the new Velociraptor (newest generation of Waz's Raptor hard drives). The 300GB one is just too expensive to make it worth it when the purpose isn't large data storage but game/application performance. There is also the potential of decently priced Solid State Drives in the semi-near future that would serve that purpose even better.

[Gisli]

Not including a monitor.

[Drakhon]

Well, there ya go. Mine might be a good starting place for you, then. You can shave money off by going with a lesser motherboard, DDR2 800 RAM and a lower wattage PSU. For the PSU, the Corsair 620HX is amazing and also modular, so only the cables you actually need have to been in the case. You may also be able to drop the video card down a bit if you plan on going with a 22" or less monitor. Let me know what your plans are and I might be able to give more specific advice. :)

As a note, I just configured a near identical system to mine at the site that you mentioned in another thread. It came out to $2000 (with almost no markup on the monitor, though it was a slightly different one), which is $500 more than just the parts cost me. You just have to ask yourself if it's worth that much to you. As you have your specific budget, you are looking at sacrificing horsepower rather than increasing the amount you pay, but it's the same idea.

[Gisli]

A big chunk of savings could come from getting a EVGA 8800GT instead of the card you picked.

I'm willing to spend $100-200 to have someone put it together for me as part of my budget. Once it gets up there or beyond, its not worth it to me anymore to pay for the labor. Another option is my local PC hack shop. I'm going to check them out tomorrow. Some of the other configurations, like the one from Vadokri, are looking like a good place to start.