DDR5 5600 vs 6000

sportwarrior

Limp Gawd
Joined
Jun 12, 2007
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Hey all, I'm attempting my first build in 12 (!!) years, and 4th build overall. I used to be much sharper when it comes to tech specs and whatnot, time has made things a little foggy...

So, the question is (I think) a fairly straightforward one. I'm looking to future proof my new build as much as possible while balancing price in the $1500-1600 range (before tax). I've got my eyes on DDR5 ram, but I'm a little uncertain as to what specs I should focus my attention. I can get a 32gb set of DDR5 6000 with timings of 38-38-38-78 for around the same price as DDR5 5600 sticks with timings of 32-36-36-76.

Now, knowing full well that there is barely any current real world need or application for DDR5 over DDR4, if I were to focus purely on the specs above... Which direction should I lean? Assuming that I have a mobo picked out that could take advantage of both, of course.

Thanks!
 
Well, The sweet spot for AM5 or Ryzen 7k is 6000. Seems to work pretty good for Alder/Raptor lake too. I'd go for the 6000 even though i like those lower timings of 5600.
 
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I'm doing a new build, too. Waiting to see what AMD5 and Intel 13th gen have to offer, though I'm leaning in favor of AMD. I bought 32GB DDR5 5600 (Corsair Dominator) simply because it was on sale for $229 compared to $305 for 6000.
 
I'm looking to future proof my new build as much as possible while balancing price in the $1500-1600 range (before tax).

Slightly unrelated, but if you're going AMD, they're already talking about a refresh line of CPUs next year, so if you're building with the 7000 series, you might want to go more entry-level on the CPU side and put more money into your GPU budget. I'd consider spending at least a third of your budget on the GPU.

Also right now is not a great time to buy. It's not as bad as the first half of this year, but prices went crazy and are just beginning to come down. But it's completely doable if you don't mind seeing better deals in the future. If you can wait for AMD to launch their upcoming GPUs I think pricing will be a lot more stable. Even if you intend to buy used.
 
Slightly unrelated, but if you're going AMD, they're already talking about a refresh line of CPUs next year, so if you're building with the 7000 series, you might want to go more entry-level on the CPU side and put more money into your GPU budget. I'd consider spending at least a third of your budget on the GPU.

Also right now is not a great time to buy. It's not as bad as the first half of this year, but prices went crazy and are just beginning to come down. But it's completely doable if you don't mind seeing better deals in the future. If you can wait for AMD to launch their upcoming GPUs I think pricing will be a lot more stable. Even if you intend to buy used.
I agree. But if he's running the system in his sig. The whole waiting thing doesn't apply imo.
 
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Oh, and one more thing! You must not use your old PSU.

Even if you don't come close to the power envelope, older PSUs don't handle the voltage spikes needed for new systems. A number of people here have tried using unused, just old PSUs, with new parts, and they've caused them lots of reliability problems.

At best they just don't work well. At worst, they destroy new parts.
 
My sig rig is purely a media host at this point. I have had 3 laptops over the last 12 years, with the latest being an HP Omen for work that is a solid stopgap gamer.

All that said, I honestly haven't really considered AMD. I was aiming at grabbing a solid z690 motherboard and an i5 2600 as a hold over for a few years with the idea that I'd nab a top end Raptor Lake after Intel shifts to whatever socket Gen 14 is going to use. However, if there's any level of speculation or certainty that AMD may continue to use the same socket beyond 2023 (especially if speculation says it'll better utilize DDR5), I may have to rethink my direction.

As far as waiting goes, I've got the AM5/13th gen releases pegged as my target for waiting. I've found in the past that there's always something to wait for when it comes to computer pricing. There's always new tech around the corner, or price drops, or some other reason to wait. Sometimes you just gotta hop on the train!
 
Same boat, at least sometime in the next few months. I'm probably going with whatever Corsair's default DDR6000 option is. I figure going with the most common option is a safe bet when it comes to support on various mobos. Corsair might not be the best/fastest option necessarily, but their stuff is rarely forgotten or unsupported, too.
 
Yeah I'm aiming towards Corsair too. For the reasons you stated but also for sentiment. I moved to Boise, ID a few years ago, and Micron is HQ'd here. It'd be kinda cool for my first build in 12 years to have a little bit of Boise in it.

That said, I have another Q. 12 years ago, it used to absolutely matter how many sticks and what kind of memory you ran with. I can't figure that out now, though. Should I stick with a 2x16 kit? Or could I go 4x8 to get a nice pretty RGB array without suffering any performance?

Also, I have shifted plans completely and am likely gonna try to nab an AM5 board next week. Gonna pair it with a 6800 XT. The system gonna run a few hundred more than I wanted, but I figure I can splurge just a tad after waiting so long.

EDIT: I also am aware that Corsair sells RGB filler kits for this sort of thing. I'm curious about the pros and cons of filling the slots with actual ram sticks, however.
 
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I would be surprised if the 5600 sticks don't clock to 6000 with the same looser timings as the 6000 ones and a little extra voltage.
 
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