Question regarding Laptop RAM compatibility ..

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ahmadka

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Hi guys .. I have a Sony VPCF1390X laptop which I purchased from the US 2 years ... It currently has 4 GB (2x 2GB) of DDR3 RAM in it, which according to the specs of the RAM modules, runs at PC1333Mhz ...

I want to upgrade to an 8GB RAM (2x 4GB), but I don't want the value-type Kington memory .. The only alternative I can find in my local market is this DDR3 1600Mhz RAM (From Galaxy):

Corsair CMSX8GX3M2A1600C9

CORSAIR Vengeance Model CMSX8GX3M2A1600C9 Laptop Memory - Newegg.com

I wanted to know if it will be compatible with my laptop, since my laptop runs at 1333 Mhz bus speed, but this RAM's native speed is 1600 Mhz ..

The full spec details of my laptop (generated from CPU-Z) are available here: Ubuntu Pastebin

It's been a while since I was last into hardware stuff, so I want to get the community's opinion ! :)
 
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Legohouse
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Legohouse

Legohouse

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Yes, the corsair memory should be compatible theoretically but in reality the chances are low. The OEM manufactured laptops like SONY have less option in the BIOS for the user to make the memory play nice if there is any speed issue or compatibility issues.

IMO, Corsair memory or advance timing memory is a gamble it may work or maybe not. Even Crucial does not list Crucial Ballistix for your sony laptop, there is a reason behind it. So go with Value RAM to play it safe. FYI, there is no performance diff between the ValueRAM and advance memory except the flashy heat spreaders, price etc.

Yes, 1600MHz memory will work but sometime the memory speed will be underclocked to 1333MHz other than there will be no issues. Good luck with the upgrade.

Try the following links -
http://www.memorystock.com/memory/SonyVPCF1390X.html
http://www.crucial.com/upgrade/Sony-memory/VAIO+VPCF+Series/VAIO+VPCF1390X+CTO-upgrades.html

 
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ahmadka

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I'm a little confused ... In the start you mentioned that it might not be compatible, but in the end you said that it will work but the memory will be downclocked from 1600 Mhz to 1333 Mhz ... So I'm not sure which one applies here :)

I don't have a problem with the memory being downclocked to 1333 Mhz .. There's nothing I can do about that .. But I'm guessing this memory @ 1333 Mhz will still be (at least slightly) faster than a 'Value' memory @ 1333 Mhz, which is why I want to go with this memory rather than a 'Value' memory.

Also, the Crucial page you pointed to lists a 1600 Mhz memory, which Crucial 'guarantees' that it will work with my laptop, Sony VPCF1390X, despite the fact that this RAM is faster. Yes, it doesn't state if its a Ballistix model or Value model, but judging from the 1600 Mhz memory speed, I'm guessing its not Value at least ..

You also said that Value memory and Vengeance memory don't really differ .. Isn't it the contrary ? I mean, Vengeance, Ballistic, or other similar memories, do have faster timings than the typical 'Value' memory, right ?
 
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Legohouse

Legohouse

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Well, What I was trying to say is faster timing memory like Corsair may or may not work. But memory (referring to value RAM) with speed 1600MHz should work but maybe it will downclocked. Hope that clears the first part of your doubt.

Well, usually faster timing memory are the ones with the fancy heat spreaders and stuff. ValueRAM comes without heat spreader and some memory might come with heat spreaders too. Crucial hasn't listed any Ballistix or sport series (both series are faster timing) memory which means that your laptop may not support the advance timing memory in other words they have listed valueRAM.

Yes, the difference between ValueRAM and advance timing memory is that the latter memory has faster latencies but that doesn't mean they are on top of the rest. The difference between them is minute. If you are overclocking then going with faster latencies is a better idea else there is no difference at all. You can only experience in benchmarks.
 
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ahmadka

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I do some heavy Photoshop work which involves photoshop files with like 40-50 layers .. When I load these files in Photoshop, it takes 10-15 minutes to open them and stabilize the system .. Photoshop also eats like ~1.7 GB of RAM when I open such files ..

Also, although I'm mainly a console gamer, I may rarely play some games on my laptop ..

So with the above two points in mind, if you still think I still won't notice any difference, then I guess I'll just go with the Kingston Value RAM ...

Let me know what's your opinion with this in the context ...
 
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TomCat1

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There are some restrictions in using RAM. Both slots could use same or different RAM units. Dealers in RAM units could suggest the best combination which can be used as per the specific details about the system in use.
 
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