PC Memory Knowledge

[Tatsujin]

So I'm looking over some memory on Newegg, and I need to understand somethings about memory. I know the higher the timings the better the memory. But what about Case Latency? Is it better if the numbers are lower? Is there a real difference in the plates on memory as well? I know they spread the heat across the memory, but is there like a real difference in the type of plate or brand or model make?

[vuzedome]

Higher timings = better memory? What?
You probably meant frequency right?
And I think this would be of good use for you.

The ones with heat spreaders do help a lot, it's more for preserving it's life than getting better performance there.
I haven't been using any other brand besides Corsair's and Kingston's and right now, The Corsair Vengeance are a real bargain.

[krumm]

Well both timings and clock mess with the speed of your ram.  for example, 1600MHz with timings of 9,9,9,24 is around the same speed of 1333MHz with timings of 8,8,8,24.  The 1600MHz is still faster but not by much.  the fastest ram is going to be the one with the lowest timings(case latency is the first number in the timings) and highest clock.

but from what benchmarks I've seen, ram speed does not have a big impact on over all computer speed.  It seems a lot of people just get plan 1333 cl9 ram, but I would go with 1600MHz cl8 or cl9.  cl7 and CL8 seem to be easier to find on 2GB dimms, so if you get the lower size I would go with one of them timings.

The heat spreaders do just that spread the heat evenly across the dimm.  RAM resellers add all kinds of fancy spreaders on their dimms, but it does not really make much difference.  Just get RAM with spreaders and don't worry what they look like, they will do their job.

[datora]

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General rule: the lower the timing numbers, the faster the performance.  What krumm said, and the link from vuzedome is excellent; you can use the vocabulary you learn in that to google further info.  If you can find DDR3 1600 w/ a CL8 rating for 4 GB chips, you're near the cutting edge.  Not sure if I've seen anything like that w/ CL7, but you'd certainly want that if you find it/can afford it.  1800 and 2133 tends to be CL9; find those at CL8 and you're rockin' it.

Heat spreaders:  at lower frequencies and standard voltages, you about don't need them.  Although, they cannot hurt.  Any time you are keeping your components cool you are generally extending their life.

Heat spreaders come in much more handy if you start to overclock, especially if you have to tweak the voltages up.  You tend to cook your RAM when you do that if you don't bleed off all that extra heat that they were never rated to take.  If you go that route, try to ensure that one of your case fans is also blowing across your RAM bank to increase heat radiation.  You can often run 1200 up to 1600 or 1833, or maybe take 1600 up to 1800 or 2100, but you'll (usually) have to dial the CL back a notch, like from CL8 to CL9 ... in addition to the stress your piling on.

I can also recommend G.SKILL as a damned solid product.  Their budget stuff is very reliable at the rated speeds/voltages, and their higher end stuff handles overclocking as well as anyone.  Mushkin is another solid name brand.

In the big picture, fast RAM is just one thing you want to pay attention to.  If you get something like 1600 or 1800 right now, your in the sweet spot for price/performance.  It doesn't make a huge difference in your system performance, but it can bump you by 5% or even 10% ... it's about total system.  If you're going for maximum that your system can handle, then it's one of several tweaks that add up to the total in the end.

[kitamesume]

the higher clock (####mhz) means the wider it's bandwidth becomes, or more data can be transferred. the lower the latency (CL#) the faster the ram works, or the shorter the cpu will wait for the ram to start transferring data hence "latency".
a combination of wide bandwidth and low latency per size capacity is a first step of choosing what to buy, the next step is selecting which manufacturer to buy from, and then everything else is a bonus.
to make it short, 1333mhz CL9 is a good start for picking value rams, 1600mhz CL9 is a great start for picking performance rams.
note: anything better than 1600mhz CL9 has high diminishing returns, anything worse than 1333mhz CL9 is called "why the hell did you even consider buying one?".

also, so long as it's rated specifications is the same, every manufacturer's ram should perform the same, maybe with about 0.01% difference.
example? kingston DDR3 1333mhz CL9 = corsair DDR3 1333 CL9

[Slysoft]

I had some old 1067mhz ram which started having issues so I just got some 1600mhz ram. I didn't notice any difference. In other words, buy from a quality brand so you know it will last, but there's no point in spending a fortune on super high end when you could put that money to better use on something else that might actually benefit performance. 1600mhz c9 was only like 50 bucks for 8gb so i'd go with that.

[datora]

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Speaking of the Devil.  This kit just went on Shell Shocker special for today:

 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231519

$55 delivered, bleeding edge 2133 DDR3, G.SKILL Sniper series, some of their best.  Also throw in an 8 GB micro HDSD card gift ... very difficult deal to beat.  Of course, 2133 w/ 11-11-11-30 timings is probably unnecessary, but if you're building a top tier gaming rig it might be worth it to you.

Shopping around, you should be able to get 1800/1833 RAM for ~$40 delivered, and it's unlikely you'll be able to tell the difference in system performance.  Unless you're doing something mad like overclocking to 2300 or somesuch.


[ EDIT: BTW, you can also choose to underclock your RAM.  If you got an especially good deal, similar to this one (which, notice the reviews state that it was available for $45 recently), you could dial the voltage down and tweak it to 1833 or 1600 and try to get the CL really low, like CL7, maybe get some of the other timing numbers down.  You'll still end up with blazing fast RAM and ... in theory ... you are extending the life expectancy and increasing the stability of your configuration.

E^2 @kitamesume -- yep.  Agreed.  We don't know what Tatsujin is doing yet, but that is a consideration: make sure your mobo can make use of what you buy. ]

[kitamesume]

^ don't forget that most reasonable priced mobos are limited to only 1866mhz >,>

[Tatsujin]

Wow, I learned a lot now. Thanks. I'm not building any computers. This is just for knowledge reference to stay up-to-date with computer parts. I look over newegg every two months and see what's new in the market.

[Freedom Kira]

The actual visible difference you'll see is usually not noticeable, especially if you are only going up or down a step or two.

But yes, smaller CL is better, and higher frequency is better. You can pay a premium for low CL (lowest for DDR3 is 6 I think) but you'll hardly notice a difference between that and the highest CL. Not only that, but CL ratings are generally higher for larger capacities. You'll usually see higher frequencies on the larger capacity sticks to make up for it.

In the end, it's the actual capacity that really matters.