8gb 2133mhz DDR3 vs 16gb 1600mhz DDR3

[jamesgalb]

I got 2 memory slots on a motherboard with a FX 8370e and GTX 970...

Should I run 8gb of 2133mhz DDR3 or 16gb of 1600mhz DDR3 ?

 

[silk186]

depends, do you need more than 8GB?

 

[iamwhoiamtoday]

I vote for 16GB of 1600, but I'm also of the mindset of "more ram trumps faster ram"

What does your workload look like?

 

[jamesgalb]

depends, do you need more than 8GB?

Its for gaming...

Most would say 8GB is all that is needed, but I have seen some people say that with WIndows 8/10 and certain games that they can see 8GB getting maxxed out...

The extra 8GB would rarely be needed if ever, but the extra speed on the ram really doesn't make much of a difference anyways right? bleh. I got both, just wondering which would be better to stick in.

 

[MikeRotch]

Depends on how much multitasking you do. I run 16GB RAM and when I run GTA5 I can use around 8-9GB of RAM. But I also have a VNC session going, FF open with 9-10 tabs, Skype, Steam, sometimes a movie/show playing, and a bunch of the other background apps (HP scan/print, Blackberry Blend, those are the biggest footprint ones I think of off the top of my head).

I don't think memory speed itself will help that much anyway, latency is still king no? Correct me if I am wrong.

 

[Tsumi]

More RAM trumps faster RAM every single time. At the same price, I would go with the 16gb. If you already have both, I would see what your RAM usage is like with the 16gb and then decide from there.

 

[dasa]

faster ram can help to improve cpu performance by about 10% so if the game is gpu limited there will be no performance difference from going slower
timings also mater though
if the 2x8g sticks are 1600c7/c8 and the 2x4g 2133 sticks are c11 then there is no performance difference

more ram will do nothing till you need it then the difference can be huge once its needed with the hdd thrashing and the game stuttering so if you start to see this then add more ram and see if it helps
although 8g sticks does ensure you get double sided dims which may affect performance
http://hwbot.org/newsflash/2125_the...kill_tridentx_8gb_ddr3_2933_memory_kit_review

 

[mls1995]

I'd go for 16gb

 

[ssnyder28]

16gb all day

 

[diizzy]

16Gb is a much better choice

 

[morningreis]

More RAM trumps faster RAM every single time. At the same price, I would go with the 16gb. If you already have both, I would see what your RAM usage is like with the 16gb and then decide from there.

Definitely not every single time... newer desktop motherboards support up to 128GB. I would much rather take 64GB of a faster RAM in that situation. In a few years who knows...

In this situation though, 16GB is the better choice. 8GB can be easily maxed.