Trying to extend and old systems life - RAM compatibility?

[Data-Cain]

Just wondering if anyone could give any advice in relation to RAM compatibility with my motherboard.

Basically I've got an older system which I'd like to try squeeze a little more life out of - I can't afford a whole new system, however I can afford a couple bang-for-buck parts. RAM isn't the only upgrade I'm making, but this particular thread is focused mainly on it.

I've seen a fair bit of info related to running faster RAM
i.e. 2133Mhz makes a significant difference over 1600Mhz memory, in particular to low end frame rates; with that being the case, I'd assume 2400Mhz RAM would help a little more (if I can make use of it).

So RAM seems like an excellent option - plus I'm selling my old stuff to my mum, which will help offset the cost of new stuff.

My concern however, is RAM compatibility with my motherboard?
If anyone has any experience with 2400Mhz (or 2133 / 2300 / etc.) RAM and this board, I'd love to hear about it.

Some details;

• CPU: i5 2500k (which I'm finally going to overclock)
• Motherboard: ASRock Z68 Extreme4 Gen3
• RAM: 4 channel 1600mhz stuff (that is being replaced)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In addition to RAM I'm looking to get:

• Geforce 1060 once nVidia release them (to replace my GTX 570)
• Also considering a AIO cooler, probably a Corsair h100i to replace the stock air cooler.
  From the little browsing I've done the h100i seems to be a reasonable balance between cooling/noise/price and should fit my 600T nicely - although they are a champion CPU, it is a few years old now, so a little extra cooling will give me a little more peace of mind once it's overclocked.

 

[Track Drew]

RAM with better timing is often more effective then faster RAM. These articles are directly relevant to you:
Sandy Bridge Memory Scaling: Choosing the Best DDR3
Exploring the impact of memory speed on Sandy Bridge performance

Outside of bench marking, you're looking at gains of only a few percent at best between the fastest of the fast and the cheapest of the cheap.

As long as you have enough RAM currently (you didn't say how much you have), not a lot of reason to upgrade.

Buying the fastest/most-expensive DDR3 memory will likely yield you a side-grade. Low latency will likely have a more measurable difference (again not much though).

 

[Data-Cain]

Thanks for the info - I'll have a read through those links soon.

As for the timing / speed - in the past I'd agree, which is why I only opted for 1600Mhz stuff originally, and I was not overly worried about timing either.
True RAM has little effect on MAX fps, but according to a few articles I've read lately, faster memory has a large impact on MIN frame rate - which is a good thing to me, and why I'm interested in getting some new RAM.

I can't find it atm, but I had a table that showed a spread of speed and timing, and which is better (at least on paper). I'll post if I find it.



oh and as for the RAM I've got atm;
Corsair 4x4GB 1600Mhz 8-8-8-24

 

[Data-Cain]

After a little more reading, with my C8 mem it's probably a smaller difference than I first thought; until I checked for my last post I thought my RAM was actually higher latency (C11, not C8).
If it was C10 or C11 then it would be a decent increase from what I can tell, but C8 means it's only a small jump by going 2133 C9 or 2400 C10.

Found those charts I was talking about - which was from Anand.