8GB Dual channel or 12GB Single channel

hans013 · Jan 21, 2015

Thank you for reading this, i have a question.

From my father i just got a 'start' for building a new pc.
I don't have a lot of money so all the help i get is good.

I'm looking into getting the Intel Core i5-4460 Boxed for 167 euro. Which i think is a good budget processor. Am i right?

Now my real question:
I got 3 stripes of 4GB memory DDR3. (2x4 and one solo)
Should i install just 8GB which could work in dual channel.
Or should i install 12GB in which i think dual channel doesn't work? and i get 3 solo's.

I'm mostly on my computer for playing games like 'league of legens' and 'counter-strike'.
I'm not running VMs or any stuff that really requires the 12GB but i don't know what is better.
I run now on 3GB and that's 'fine'.

The rest i'm using is a nvidia geforce GTX750. I also dont have a motherboard yet.
The prices go from 50 to 200 euro. Do you think a 'cheaper' one will do just fine?

Thank you.

VincentP · Jan 21, 2015

I would just use the 2 x 4GB kit for now, this should be plenty for most things.
Using 3 x 4GB dimms is still dual channel but you could have compatibility issues.

i7Baby · Jan 21, 2015

What mobo?

hans013 · Jan 21, 2015

i didnt buy a mobo yet.
i dont know if an expensive mobo provides me with some real extra's.

currently on my mind i have this one:
Gigabyte GA-Z97M-DS3H

It is about the cheapest i can find with the Z97 chipset.
What do i gain by getting a more expensive one?

VincentP · Jan 21, 2015

hans013 :

More expensive motherboards will generally have better quality components (i.e. last longer) and a better audio solution.
Have a good look at the information on the manufacturers website.
You can't overclock that CPU, so no reason to go for a Z97 particularly. A H97 would be fine if cheaper.

i7Baby · Jan 21, 2015

Z97 and H97 are dual channel ram mobos. So just use a 2 x 4gb kit.

VincentP · Jan 22, 2015

i7Baby :

The motherboard is just providing a physical link from the memory controller on the CPU to the RAM dimms.
It is the CPU that has dual channel memory controller (along with all other socket 1150 CPUs).

i7Baby · Jan 22, 2015

It does a bit more eg provides XMP for overclcoking.

VincentP · Jan 22, 2015

i7Baby :

XMP is just providing configuration to the memory controller in the CPU, in the same way you can modify the CPU multiplier from the BIOS on an unlocked CPU.

hans013 · Jan 22, 2015

I didn't look closely enough on the memory.
I have 3 the same types of memory.
All 3 are 4GB, 1.5V, Kingston KVR1066D3Q8R7S/4GI.

http://www.kingston.com/us/memory/search/Default.aspx?DisPartId=KVR1066D3Q8R7S/4GI

one of them just had a different sticker with the same codes.

So then, should i install just 8GB or 12GB?

And the H97 are good enough?
What is the difference between H97 and Z97?

Thank you!

hans013 · Jan 22, 2015

i am now looking for this motherboard:
http://www.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=4971#ov
Gigabyte GA-H97M-D3H

It support 1333mhz and 1600mhz memory.
Does the 1066mhz really cause a problem?

i can't find a motherboard which does support 1066 DDR3 memory

VincentP · Jan 22, 2015

To use three dimms the memory controller will have two dimms on one channel and one on the other. It's not ideal but should work if the RAM is the same model. You might as well give this a go. I don't think you'll notice any performance drop when you add the third dimm. Test it with two and then three and compare.

The main difference between H97 and Z97 is that Z97 allows you to increase the CPU multiplier on CPUs where this is unlocked (e.g. Core i5 4690K).

Your CPU officially supports DDR3-1333 and DDR3-1600:
http://ark.intel.com/products/80817/Intel-Core-i5-4460-Processor-6M-Cache-up-to-3_40-GHz

You can't easily buy DDR3-1066 memory anymore and they probably didn't see any great need to support this old memory.
My guess is that it will still work.
A 2 x 8GB DDR3-1600 kit would be perfect if you do need new memory.

i7Baby · Jan 22, 2015

hans013 :

Just use a 2 x 4gb kit per your mobo spec.

For your CPU (non OCable), get a H97 mobo.

VincentP · Jan 23, 2015

i7Baby :

How is that "as per your mobo spec"?
The motherboard specification he was writing about was the supported RAM speed, not the number of dimms.
A motherboard with 4 dimm slots will generally support 1 to 4 dimms.

i7Baby · Jan 23, 2015

http://www.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=4971#sp says -
4 x DDR3 DIMM sockets supporting up to 32 GB of system memory
* Due to a Windows 32-bit operating system limitation, when more than 4 GB of physical memory is installed, the actual memory size displayed will be less than the size of the physical memory installed.
Dual channel memory architecture
Support for DDR3 1600/1333 MHz memory modules
Support for non-ECC memory modules
Support for Extreme Memory Profile (XMP) memory modules
(Please refer "Memory Support List" for more information.)

So that spec.

VincentP · Jan 23, 2015

i7Baby :

So what in that specification suggests "Just use a 2 x 4gb kit per your mobo spec."?

i7Baby · Jan 23, 2015

Dual channel memory architecture
and
Please refer "Memory Support List" for more information.

hans013 · Jan 23, 2015

Thank you guys!

VincentP · Jan 23, 2015

i7Baby :

The CPU has two memory channels, hence "dual channel memory architecture".
The memory support list is simply a list of tested memory modules.
Neither of these things in any way suggests you cannot use 1 to 4 dimms.
You make these statements as though they are factual, and when people don't know any better they believe you.
If you don't know what you are talking about, you don't need to write anything.
It is better to contribute nothing than to contribute misinformation as fact.

8GB Dual channel or 12GB Single channel

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