Whats faster? 8gb 2133mhz or 12gb 1600mhz

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Douglas Hamilton

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Jul 22, 2014
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I am trying to decide whether or not to increase my amount of ram from 4gb 1600mhz to 12gb 1600mhz or whether to get 8gb of 2133mhz which of these will make my PC fastest. I do gaming, video editing and uploading (My YouTube channelhttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcW3LVi-NcCaoPWHxpiKk2Q/feed (I have only just started))

Here are my specs:
- Power Supply: Corsair CX 500W
- CPU: Intel Core i3 540 3.06GHz Clarkdale overclocked to 4.20GHz
- Motherboard: Gigabyte H55M-UD2H Intel H55 (Socket 1156) PCI-Express DDR3 Motherboard
- Cooler: Xigmatek Dark Knight CPU Cooler
- RAM: Corsair XMS3 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit
- Hard Drive: Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 500GB SATA-II 16MB Cache
- Graphics Card: Gainward GTX 560ti
- Sound: Realtek 7.1 Channel Sound (On-Board)
- Optical Drive: LG DVD+/-RW SATA Drive
 
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LucoTF
Well it's not just about the speed, it's also about the latency. I would take 8gb of CAS8 @ 1600 over 8gb of CAS12 @ 2133mhz, for example.

I would just get another 8gb of CAS9 1600 and be happy
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oxiide

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Having greater RAM capacity will only help performance if the applications you're using are actually doing something with that RAM, and of the things you listed only video editing *might* use more than 8 GB. Even then, I think you'll be so CPU-bound in video editing tasks with that old Core i3-540 that RAM won't be holding you back all that much.
 
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Douglas Hamilton

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Jul 22, 2014
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Currently I don't have enough money for a better first gen cpu as they are now old, rare and expensive. So I am gradually upgrading my other components for a higher performance. And then once I have put aside enough money for a new mobo and cpu. Then I am just going to swap to the new mobo and cpu. I am very aware that my cpu doesn't quite cut the mustard.

For a new cpu I was going to get either an i5 4670k, i5 3570k, if quite cheap i3 4360. Or step into the realms of AMD like a phenom, or fx6-8

For intel mobo wise I was thinking something like this http://www.amazon.co.uk/Z77-Extreme4-Motherboard-Supports-CrossFireX/dp/B007KTY4A6/ref=sr_1_21?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1407334884&sr=1-21&keywords=i5+2500k
Or an AMD socket of some form if I go that way.

Also please do bare in mind that my youtube channel I am building around showing what can be done with a more low-end rig.http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcW3LVi-NcCaoPWHxpiKk2Q

What would you recommend I did?
 
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oxiide

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I wasn't necessarily saying you *need* a new CPU right now, just that your Core i3-540 is likely to be a much bigger limitation to your performance than RAM capacity ever will, and therefore I think you're better off with 8 GB of faster RAM. If you're happy with how your i3 performs for now (and it suits the theme of your channel) by all means stick with it.

If you are considering a new processor right now, I'd recommend looking at the i5-4590 or -4690 with an H97 motherboard (i5-4690K & Z97 if you want to overclock). I wouldn't bother with any Ivy Bridge (i5-3xxx) platform because its slower for usually very little if any money saved. An AMD FX-8320 is a decent option, but I'd say you're best off with an i5 as long as you can afford it.

Your CPU is getting very old, and an upgrade is certainly justified. I think you'd see some big gains in performance. Its just a matter of when you want to do it.
 
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bualdoot

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Aug 15, 2014
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You are leaving out a lot of factors that go into memory. Sure, CAS 8 is better than CAS 12, if the memory has the same rating (ie. 1600 MHz), how ever, we are talking about 1660 vs 2133. Its just like when we went from DDR2 to DDR3. DDR3 had higher timings, yet, it was still actually faster because it has more bandwidth. And, since we are talking about SDRAM, we are talking about clock cycles, not absolute time. Which means it is not 8 nanoseconds vs 12 nanoseconds. Also, the cycle time for 2133 should be faster than for 1600. So, even though the CAS is higher, the actual time really is not much different. Data rate, command rate, cycle time, and bit time, all factor into the overall performance.

I would much rather have a higher data rate with a theoretically lower CAS, than a lower data rate with higher CAS. The 2133 will out perform the 1600.

Douglas, increasing to 8 GB of ram will help, no matter what speed you get (as long as you dont go down in speed of course). Your operating system probably uses a good portion of the 4 GB you currently have, which doesn't leave much for other programs. Yes, a CPU upgrade would help as well, like others have stated, but the RAM is also a bottleneck for doing pretty much anything right now.I wouldnt be surprised if you were using close to 50% of your current RAM, with just the OS loaded (assuming Windows).

Also, ignore byza, your motherboard supports up to 2200. Specs are listed right on gigabyte's website (http://www.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=3309#sp).

Oh, and you can always overclock 1600, if you so desire. Either way, you will have better performance from increasing to 8 GB, no matter the rating you choose to get. That's because the computer has to start using virtual memory (page file), when it runs out of available RAM, which is on the hard drive. Your hard drive is way slower than the RAM would be.
 
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