Good 2x4GB Sticks DDR3 Recommendations?

Kevin L · Dec 13, 2014

Title says all. My nice PC is only is only bottle necked somewhat by the horrid ram from an older computer. I put my important specs here if they really matter, but I was wondering what the cheapest and most reliable ram is. I'm looking for DDR3 2 4GB sticks (in total 8GB) with blue - black heat spreaders for aesthetics! Thanks for the help

CPU: FX 8320
MB: 990FX-GD80

Darkbreeze · Dec 13, 2014

What are your RAM specs now?

iron8orn · Dec 13, 2014

http://pcpartpicker.com/part/gskill-memory-f314900cl8d8gbxm these are some nice ones

Darkbreeze · Dec 13, 2014

It's highly doubtful that a Phenom board with an FX cpu installed is going to support an 1866mhz module, regardless that the support page shows support up to 2133mhz. It may work, most especially with single modules, but these configurations often have problems with multiple modules over 1600mhz. Especially if it doesn't have the latest BIOS and if it isn't overclocked.

Kevin L · Dec 13, 2014

Darkbreeze :

Unfortunately, its one of those brands nobody has heard of. All I know is it runs at 1066HMZ and that there is 6GB in total. 2 Sticks of 2GB, and 2 sticks of 4GB.

Darkbreeze · Dec 13, 2014

Do you have the most recent BIOS installed? Do you have the currently installed memory settings set to run at the correct speed, timing and latency for the modules installed? This is what I'd probably go with for that board as it was originally a Phenom board and I'm pretty sure it only supported the FX after a BIOS update in the beginning.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($66.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $66.99
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-12-13 02:54 EST-0500

Darkbreeze · Dec 13, 2014

Something is definitely wrong there if you only show 6GB of installed memory but your memory modules add up to 12GB. Two sticks of 2GB and two sticks of 4GB should be 12GB. Something is wrong with your configuration. You should remove the two 2GB modules and install the two 4GB modules in the slots intended for dual channel operation. I'll find the slot designations for you.

Kevin L · Dec 13, 2014

Darkbreeze :

Yeah, my BIOS is up to date. It basically forced me to use the correct timings unless I ended up running into problems. It's overall just really bad memory, and trying to configure it isn't even worth the time. About the ram count being incorrect, I'm actually just a huge noob and really tired, and I mean't to say I have 2 sticks of 1GB and 2 sticks of 2GB. Sorry

I will see the ram you sent me.

iron8orn · Dec 13, 2014

da hell you smokin breeze? that motherboard holds a world record for FX cpu's and the memory controller is integrated on the cpu..

those vengeance sticks are cas 9 at 1600mhz so in other words they suck and will be horid in memory intensive games

get the sticks I showed you kevin

Darkbreeze · Dec 13, 2014

Dimm slot 1 and Dimm slot 2, which are separated by Dimm slot 3 which is between them, are the recommended slots for the first channel and then slots 3 and 4 for the second channel. This means you need to look on the board and see which slot says 1 and 2 and which say 3 and 4. I believe slot 1 to be the slot closest to the CPU but there is no clear indication in the manual. Only a generic picture. I'll look for an image of the board to verify.

Kevin L · Dec 13, 2014

iron8orn :

Haha, yeah I know the motherboard is one of the best of its class! I nearly stole it for like 90 bucks and it looks great! I don't really care about RAM speeds, because they show not to do a ton in gaming. I am thinking about awesome ram though and I saw the ones you sent me.

Darkbreeze · Dec 13, 2014

iron8orn :

Really? And you didn't even notice that 2+2+4+4 doesn't add up to 6GB? I guess on the other issue I was seeing what is on the MSI site and not paying attention to the model. My bad. Still, there's an issue although the 1866mhz RAM will probably work without any issues it would make a lot more sense to find out why your current 12GB is only showing up as 6.

Darkbreeze · Dec 13, 2014

If you want great modules in there, then run the Mushkin CAS 8 Redlines.

Darkbreeze · Dec 13, 2014

These:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Memory: Mushkin Redline 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($67.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $67.99
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-12-13 03:11 EST-0500

or these:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($81.98 @ OutletPC)
Total: $81.98
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-12-13 03:12 EST-0500

Kevin L · Dec 13, 2014

Darkbreeze :

As I stated earlier, I do actually have 6gb, I'm just tired and stupid so I typed it wrong. One question I have though, is does latency and timings do a difference in gaming, or is it minimal?

Darkbreeze · Dec 13, 2014

6GB running at 1066 when you should have 12GB running at, well, whatever they're supposed to be running at, probably more than 1333mhz with that chip and board, would be my biggest concern right now and once corrected you might find you don't even need to upgrade the RAM. Plus, you'd be pretty pissed to buy new modules and find you have the same issue due to a bad slot or other hardware issue.

You might even want to just install each module, one at a time, in slot 1, then run CPU-Z and look at the memory and SPD tabs to see what's being reported as far as speed, size and model numbers so we can determine what it's SUPPOSED to be configured as.

Darkbreeze · Dec 13, 2014

Kevin L :

Ok, no problem. We're even then as I kinda did the same thing when I looked at the supported CPUs on the MSI website without just checking in my brain to reference what board you had.

Honestly, the speed and latencies don't make a huge real world difference that you'll see other than on benchmark results, but it can't hurt either. When the price to drop down to an 8 latency module is ten bucks or so, it doesn't make sense to not do it. Plus, I've found that the lower latency modules are generally of a somewhat better quality as they're usually the flagship module for that series. Not always, but I play it that way anyhow.

Darkbreeze · Dec 13, 2014

Since you only have a 2GB and a 4GB module, which can't be run in dual channel, I'd definitely say getting a matched pair will be helpful and the combination of the extra 2GB, installed in the correct slots for dual channel, running at the correct speeds and running IN dual channel, will likely be a noticeable bump in performance.

iron8orn · Dec 13, 2014

haha

There are some games that get really memory intensive like bf4 and online multi player in general

Darkbreeze · Dec 13, 2014

Is your board a version one or version two V2 model? It should be printed on the board itself. These boards are significantly different and may have been the reason I was looking at an entirely different spec sheet.

Kevin L · Dec 13, 2014

Darkbreeze :

I didn't get it with a box, but the board says MS-7640 Ver. 2.2

Darkbreeze · Dec 13, 2014

Yeah, that's what I said. Printed on the board. The box rarely tells the story. What's printed on the PCB is what matters. Heck, I've even seen guys get boards off ebay that were supposed to be the latest versions of the model, and the box was correct, but the board inside was a first or second revision when they were supposed to be third or fourth revisions. Anyhow, that is the latest revision and is a damn good board so no worries there.

Kevin L · Dec 13, 2014

Darkbreeze :

Thanks you for the help, I now know what ram I should probably get.

Darkbreeze · Dec 13, 2014

You'll still need to configure the speed and voltage in the BIOS when you do get it. Most modules don't have automatic SPD information above 1600mhz and the majority are defaulted to 1333mhz. There are a few with specific profiles unique to AMD and of course there are Intel XMP profiles, but it's always best to go into the BIOS and determine for certain they are actually configured at 1866mhz and then 1.5 or 1.6v, whatever they are designed for.

Kevin L · Dec 13, 2014

Darkbreeze :

I picked up this: http://www.patriotmemory.com/product/detail.jsp?prodline=5&catid=34&prodgroupid=268&id=1459&type=1 today, and I started using it. Unfortunately, its not posting so I'm not sure what the problem is. It is 1600mhz which is very common, and my bios is up to date! I tried configuring the 2 sticks in dual channel mode on both the blue slots and the red slots, so I don;t think I installed them wrong. Any ideas?

Good 2x4GB Sticks DDR3 Recommendations?

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