Help about upgrading RAM for gaming, what is dual channel

[DeepakGaur91]

my PC config are

i3-2100
motherboard = Intel DH61ww
GPU = Nvidia G force 8400gs (palit 1gb dedicated)
Ram = 2 gb ddr3
windows 8 32 bit

so i want to buy 4 gb ram so i can play my game at much better speed but one thing is confusing me i read somewhere that for dual channel you have to put same amount of ram otherwise it won't work and will not make a huge difference
so
1st what is exactly dual channel and
2nd adding more ram (like i am thinking if i am gonna add ram why not 4 gb i got only two ram slots so,) will make any noticeable difference or should i upgrade GPU and keep 2gb ram and for better performance
3rd and most important should i buy 4 Gb Ram or maintain the pair and buy 2 Gb

 

[ssddx]

https://www.google.com/search?q=dual+channel+ram+definition&aq=f&oq=dual+channel+ram+definition&aqs=chrome.0.57j0.3574j0&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

2gb was standard in computers around the age of windows xp but is now light. i would suggest at minimum 4gb total (2x2gb sticks).

your video card is also old tech. depending on what type of games you play (pretty much anything newer than the 90's) it would be suggested to have a newer card. GS and GT models were also underpowered. top end models include GTX in the moniker for nvidia products.

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what games are you playing? if you are playing old games such as starcraft 1, unreal tournament 2004, or other such games a boost up in ram may be enough. a graphics card update doesnt hurt things either.

check in windows resource meter to see how much of your ram and processing power on the gpu is being used in game. this can give you an idea where your bottleneck is.

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short answer?

i would say upgrade the ram. check to see if you need a video card upgrade.

 

[DeepakGaur91]

https://www.google.com/search?q=dual+channel+ram+definition&aq=f&oq=dual+channel+ram+definition&aqs=chrome.0.57j0.3574j0&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

2gb was standard in computers around the age of windows xp but is now light. i would suggest at minimum 4gb total (2x2gb sticks).

your video card is also old tech. depending on what type of games you play (pretty much anything newer than the 90's) it would be suggested to have a newer card. GS and GT models were also underpowered. top end models include GTX in the moniker for nvidia products.

---

what games are you playing? if you are playing old games such as starcraft 1, unreal tournament 2004, or other such games a boost up in ram may be enough. a graphics card update doesnt hurt things either.

check in windows resource meter to see how much of your ram and processing power on the gpu is being used in game. this can give you an idea where your bottleneck is.

---

short answer?

i would say upgrade the ram. check to see if you need a video card upgrade.

I have devil may cry 4, spider man web of shadows, prince of persia forgotten sands, and other game are kinda ok with my pc , this is my first build and that time i didn't know about GPU and also that clock speed also matters i just thought that 1 GB dedicated memory would be enough for games
now i got enough knowledge about everything

thanks for the reply though but still i didn't get answer that should i buy 2 gb ram or 4 gb is it really matter to maintain dual channel , Gpu upgrade is my less priority i am kinda saving money for for a Gtx 680 (or higher if price drops in this year) , Ram is cheap not GPU

 

[ssddx]

you say that you have 2gb of ram currently. is this in 2x1gb sticks or 1x2gb stick? how many ram slots do you have total?

if you have 2x1gb sticks and 4 total slots (2 free slots) you can stick 2 more gb of ram in to maintain dual channel.
if you have 2x1gb sticks and 2 total slots (no free slots) you should replace the current sticks with 2x2gb sticks
if you have 1x2gb stick with 2 total slots you can add one more 2gb ram stick

it is not mandatory to maintain dual channel. you can have an odd amount of sticks however you lose any benefit you gain from dual channel so i would not advise it.

see below comment on ram and futurerpoofing.

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it seems that the games you play are not very demanding. you could make due with anything in the 2xx or 4xx series most likely. a 680 is likely overkill for your needs unless you plan on playing better games or want to futureproof. futureproofing is always a good idea. if this is your idea you can always upgrade to 6 to 8gb of ram total instead of 4 total.

 

[DeepakGaur91]

you say that you have 2gb of ram currently. is this in 2x1gb sticks or 1x2gb stick? how many ram slots do you have total?

if you have 2x1gb sticks and 4 total slots (2 free slots) you can stick 2 more gb of ram in to maintain dual channel.
if you have 2x1gb sticks and 2 total slots (no free slots) you should replace the current sticks with 2x2gb sticks
if you have 1x2gb stick with 2 total slots you can add one more 2gb ram stick

it is not mandatory to maintain dual channel. you can have an odd amount of sticks however you lose any benefit you gain from dual channel so i would not advise it.

see below comment on ram and futurerpoofing.

--

it seems that the games you play are not very demanding. you could make due with anything in the 2xx or 4xx series most likely. a 680 is likely overkill for your needs unless you plan on playing better games or want to futureproof. futureproofing is always a good idea. if this is your idea you can always upgrade to 6 to 8gb of ram total instead of 4 total.

thanks for the answer i think i'll go with 2GB like you said current games aren't very demanding i am gonna upgrade my system anyway next year

just one little question can you tell me how to find out what is the limit of my mother board for upgrading GPU , i mean how to find compatibility between motherboard and gpu (universal answer knowledge base so that it'll help me in future with other boards too)

 

[ssddx]

most gpu cards are pci-e slot and most motherboards have multiple pci-e slots.

you can put just about any gpu into your system provided your psu can power it.

however, pairing up a bleeding edge high end card with an average or below average system is a waste. you are best to stick with hardware in the same level as your system.

 

[Astroderp]

ok, dual channel ram means there are two ram pipelines to the cpu to try and help the bottleneck caused by the system bus. on all the dual channel boards i have seen if you have one stick of ram it runs in single channel mode. to get dual channel to work you have to have a matched pair of what ever ram you intend to use, like if you bought 2 sticks of 256 or 512, make sure they are the same brand and spec. install both in the same color slot, like if you put one in the blue slot, put the other in the blue slot. this will make the dual channel activate. if you mix it(one black, the other blue), it will still run just not in dual channel mode. if you decide to add more ram you will need another identical pair of ram to go in the two open slots, if you only add one more, it will see the ram but your back to single channel mode. it is very important to have the exact same chip in both slots of the same color.