What is the point of faster RAM speed?

[chengbin]

What are the uses of faster RAM speed? What kind of software benefits from this?

[FX5200]

One question, why create a new thread? Just stick with the old one

[Hickeydog]

Everything benefits from faster RAM speed. Just like everything benefits from faster CPU speed.

[chengbin]

Originally Posted by FX5200

One question, why create a new thread? Just stick with the old one

Oh, I come from forums where there are strict rules that one thread should be about one subject (I'm looking at you Doom9 )

[FX5200]

Originally Posted by chengbin

Oh, I come from forums where there are strict rules that one thread should be about one subject (I'm looking at you Doom9 )

Ah, ok, not a problem, just keep it in mind in the future.

EDIT: Stealthy ninja attack...

[jjjc_93]

Originally Posted by chengbin

Oh, I come from forums where there are strict rules that one thread should be about one subject (I'm looking at you Doom9 )

It was still the same subject..ram
Just keep it in mind for next time .

[chengbin]

I heard that faster RAM's benefit is negligible. So it is not true?

About the CPU analogy, I don't think faster CPU matters if the things you run cannot make the CPU run at 100%. You certainly won't notice a difference in web browsing with a dual and a quad.

[jjjc_93]

a quad or dual has nothing to do with clock speeds .. A faster processor makes the OS 'snappier', helping to load programs quicker, gaming better ect..
The faster RAM is better..some applications will make use of it more then others..but same thing as a faster processor, will help things load faster and make things feel more snappier.. plus faster ram can give higher ocing headroom if ocing with the FSB..
BTW what are your system specs?

[chengbin]

Originally Posted by jjjc_93

a quad or dual has nothing to do with clock speeds .. A faster processor makes the OS 'snappier', helping to load programs quicker, gaming better ect..
The faster RAM is better..some applications will make use of it more then others..but same thing as a faster processor, will help things load faster and make things feel more snappier.. plus faster ram can give higher ocing headroom if ocing with the FSB..
BTW what are your system specs?

I'm sorry if I'm going OT here (is that allowed here?), but I'd like to discuss CPU speed with you.

I thought CPU speed is just how much a CPU can do. Correct me if I'm wrong.

Let's say that a 2GHz CPU can do a maximum of 1000 instructions a second (I know the numbers are way off), and a 3GHz CPU can do a maximum of 1500 instructions a second. If running a program, say IE, only uses 200 instructions a second, there is no difference in speed between the 2GHz and 3GHz CPU. Am I right?

BTW, my computer specs are

Q6600 @ 2.4GHz
3GB, recently upgraded to 8GB Corsair XMS2 @ 800MHz
500GB HDD
8800GT
Creative Xtrememusic + Logitech Z-5500
Dell 2208WFP
Blu-ray burner (useless)

Spent $1569 + tax for this back in February 2008 from Dell Canada (sound card, speakers not included). I can't do any overclocking on this computer T_T. Otherwise I could of overclocked the Q6600 to like 3.6GHz and RAM to 1066 as recommended by Corsair.

I upgraded to 8GB RAM because I'm sick of running out of RAM when encoding videos with heavy filters. Then I realized that not many filters are available for 64 bit, and I'm stuck with the 2GB RAM limit and single thread encoding (due to RAM usage). Now I can run 4 1080p encodings (1 video separated to 4 parts to achieve multithreading) and play CS at the same time !

[Hickeydog]

Not quite true on the processor speed there. Programs vary their need of CPU power. When starting a program, there is a TON of information that needs to be processed. Plus, having a faster processor allows faster switching between threads, which also greatly helps performance.

[Carozzeria]

I don't think it's neccesary to read into this so much. For example my processors complete .92 million instructions per second each. That pair of cpus has never gone over 50% cpu usage and I play crysis every day but it's good to know there is headroom. Your Q6600 is a great processor btw.

[chengbin]

Interesting. This will probably convince me to buy a new computer. I'm really putting off my "buy a new PC every 3 years" this time because every time I bought a PC before, it still couldn't do some basic things instantly. My current computer is infinitely faster (real world and CPU intensive tasks) than my last P4 computer, especially in graphics, as it didn't have a graphics card on my P4 machine. Also, a jump from P4 2.8GHz (my last computer) to Q6600 is 7-8 times faster. But currently a Q6600 to an i7-920 is around 50% faster, and probably the mainstream 6 core CPUs in a year from now would be only twice as fast. Not much faster.

Originally Posted by Carozzeria

I don't think it's neccesary to read into this so much. For example my processors complete .92 million instructions per second each. That pair of cpus has never gone over 50% cpu usage and I play crysis every day but it's good to know there is headroom. Your Q6600 is a great processor btw.

It is a great processor, it is holding up well with the current CPUs. That really says something to the speed of CPU development though.

[K31TH3R]

Originally Posted by chengbin

Interesting. This will probably convince me to buy a new computer. I'm really putting off my "buy a new PC every 3 years" this time because every time I bought a PC before, it still couldn't do some basic things instantly. My current computer is infinitely faster than my last P4 computer, especially in graphics, as it didn't have a graphics card on my P4 machine. Also, a jump from P4 2.8GHz (my last computer) to Q6600 is 7-8 times faster. But currently a Q6600 to an i7-920 is around 50% faster, and probably the mainstream 6 core CPUs in a year from now would be only twice as fast. Not much faster.



It is a great processor, it is holding up well with the current CPUs. That really says something to the speed of CPU development though.

That's the main problem with computers of course, your hardware is outdated nearly every 6 months.

I've found the most effective and best way around this is to play the upgrade game.

The upgrade game entails some effort, and and can be troublesome.

Basically, you buy as high end as you can afford, and right before the new hardware is about to drop, sell it for as much as you can get out of it, and use the money for your next piece of hardware.

Instead of dropping a big chunk of change every few years and getting a decidedly average-high end build, nickel and dime your rig up, constantly buy and sell parts and continually upgrade. In the long term, it's cheaper, and you always end up with a better rig because of it.

[chengbin]

Originally Posted by K31TH3R

That's the main problem with computers of course, your hardware is outdated nearly every 6 months.

I've found the most effective and best way around this is to play the upgrade game.

The upgrade game entails some effort, and and can be troublesome.

Basically, you buy as high end as you can afford, and right before the new hardware is about to drop, sell it for as much as you can get out of it, and use the money for your next piece of hardware.

Instead of dropping a big chunk of change every few years and getting a decidedly average-high end build, nickel and dime your rig up, constantly buy and sell parts and continually upgrade. In the long term, it's cheaper, and you always end up with a better rig because of it.

I probably won't do that. My computer now is from Dell (no upgrade). The next time I get a new computer is probably when I'm in university, or in 2 years so I have one before I go to university (but that defeats the point of upgrading my RAM now, as that's my computer's weakest component). I'm tempted to buy a ready built computer (for simplicity and the warranty), but I would like to try to build my own computer, so I can overclock and choose my parts. I'm worried about what if it fails one day though, I have no one to call. It is too much trouble to constantly upgrade and sell, especially during university.

[jjjc_93]

Originally Posted by chengbin

I probably won't do that. My computer now is from Dell (no upgrade). The next time I get a new computer is probably when I'm in university, or in 2 years so I have one before I go to university (but that defeats the point of upgrading my RAM now, as that's my computer's weakest component). I'm tempted to buy a ready built computer (for simplicity and the warranty), but I would like to try to build my own computer, so I can overclock and choose my parts. I'm worried about what if it fails one day though, I have no one to call. It is too much trouble to constantly upgrade and sell, especially during university.

That's what EOCF is here for .

[chengbin]

Originally Posted by jjjc_93

That's what EOCF is here for .

Time? (Not talking about response time, as it seems instant here)

I enjoyed next business day warranty service from Dell. They replaced my motherboard and PSU in home next day. Granted I didn't need that now, as I can go without a computer for some time, but that kind of service would be very helpful when I'm in university.

I should have built my own computer 2 years ago, and buy from Dell during university. I got it all reversed.

Although realistically, assuming you built your computer properly with quality parts, it should fail far less than a branded machine right?

[jjjc_93]

Originally Posted by chengbin

Time? (Not talking about response time, as it seems instant here)

I enjoyed next business day warranty service from Dell. They replaced my motherboard and PSU in home next day. Granted I didn't need that now, as I can go without a computer for some time, but that kind of service would be very helpful when I'm in university.

I should have built my own computer 2 years ago, and buy from Dell during university. I got it all reversed.

Although realistically, assuming you built your computer properly with quality parts, it should fail far less than a branded machine right?

In most cases correct.. However with everything you may get defective parts, but once you put it together you should test your pc for stability anyways.

[Fr0sty]

Originally Posted by chengbin

Interesting. This will probably convince me to buy a new computer. I'm really putting off my "buy a new PC every 3 years" this time because every time I bought a PC before, it still couldn't do some basic things instantly. My current computer is infinitely faster (real world and CPU intensive tasks) than my last P4 computer, especially in graphics, as it didn't have a graphics card on my P4 machine. Also, a jump from P4 2.8GHz (my last computer) to Q6600 is 7-8 times faster. But currently a Q6600 to an i7-920 is around 50% faster, and probably the mainstream 6 core CPUs in a year from now would be only twice as fast. Not much faster.



It is a great processor, it is holding up well with the current CPUs. That really says something to the speed of CPU development though.

what kind of job do you usually do with a computer.. that would be the perfect question....

the only kind of system that doesn't require mutual upgrade each 3 years or so are multi socket system but they usually come with a premium...

[chengbin]

Originally Posted by Fr0sty

what kind of job do you usually do with a computer.. that would be the perfect question....

the only kind of system that doesn't require mutual upgrade each 3 years or so are multi socket system but they usually come with a premium...

I do a lot of video encoding, which is very CPU intensive. But by the time I buy a new computer, most of my encoding work will be done, as I'm reencoding my collection of DVD, videos, and Blu-rays for my Archos 5IT. Then I'll just be doing casual encoding, watch 1080p movies, play some games like Call of Duty 4 and 6, web browsing and word processing.

So I would be fine with this computer for quite a long time, until 2160p comes out in 10 years. I can only decode a 300Mbps 2160p H.264 video at 11fps currently.

My monitor is only 1680x1050, if I don't turn on AA/AF, I should be able to play future games smoothly on my 8800GT.

I want to have an upgrade like the upgrade I had with a P4 @ 2.8GHz, 512MB RAM, no video card, and 17'' monitor to my current computer. At the current paste technology is moving, I don't see that happening very soon. In other words, CPU and GPU has to be at least 5 times faster (just like every one of my "3 year new computer upgrade"before) than what I have right now without overclocking. Unlike my P4, which couldn't even browse the web quickly, I can afford to wait with what I have right now. There is not much my current computer cannot do well.

[K31TH3R]

Originally Posted by chengbin

Time? (Not talking about response time, as it seems instant here)

I enjoyed next business day warranty service from Dell. They replaced my motherboard and PSU in home next day. Granted I didn't need that now, as I can go without a computer for some time, but that kind of service would be very helpful when I'm in university.

I should have built my own computer 2 years ago, and buy from Dell during university. I got it all reversed.

Although realistically, assuming you built your computer properly with quality parts, it should fail far less than a branded machine right?

Absolutely. Dell uses proprietary parts that don't have near as strict quality control testing than individually manufactured parts.